Their polished home win however piled the pressure on relegation rivals Wrexham who looked toothless upfront and without invention in midfield.
Macclesfield had the first chance in the first minute when Murphy deliberately deflected a David Morley strike goal-bound, only for the ball to be easily pouched by Anthony Williams.
Wrexham then saw bulldog striker Lee McEvilly plant two headers over, before Michael Proctor turned on the angle of the six-yard box to force a sharp reaction save from Tommy Lee.
Macc were desperately unlucky in the 30th minute when they twice hit the underside of the crossbar in the space of an agonising 30 seconds.
First John Miles was thwarted with his 15-yard volley and then Martin Bullock saw a header crash against the woodwork.
They broke the deadlock four minutes later when Miles delivered a slide-rule pass for McNeil to turn past the keeper and score his fourth goal of the season from close range.
Wrexham went close to levelling the scores minutes after the break when Proctor saw a glancing header cleared of the six-yard line by Jordan Hadfield. But it was Macclesfield who sealed the game on 62 minutes.
Carl Regan crossed from the by-line for Murphy to score his eighth goal of the season with a firm downward header at the far post.
Town had the better chances at the death with Adam Murray forcing a fingertip save from Williams with the clock running down.