Skip to main content

Apple M1 vs. M1 Pro vs. M1 Max

At the Apple Unleashed event, the company announced two revisions to its M1 chip — the M1 Pro and M1 Max. The new designs are built on the same architecture as the M1, but they push core counts and RAM limits far past what the M1 offered. They look like fantastic new designs, but are they the best option for you?

Before products sporting the new chips start shipping, we’re here to break down the differences between the M1, M1 Pro, and M1 Max, as well as what you can expect out of each chip. Although all Apple silicon and very impressive in terms of performance, there’s one clear winner.

Pricing and availability

Apple M1 Pro and Max logos.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Apple doesn’t sell the M1, M1 Pro, or M1 Max individually, so the price is dictated by the devices each chip is inside. Here are the products and base prices that feature the M1 chip:

The M1 Pro and Max are newer, and they don’t overlap with products that feature the M1 right now. Here’s what’s available with the newer chips:

  • 14-inch MacBook Pro 2021 — $1,999
  • 16-inch MacBook Pro 2021 — $2,499

The M1 Pro and Max, despite being newer, don’t replace the M1 in Apple’s lineup. As we’ll get to in the next section, all three processors are built on the same architecture, but they meet different demands. At least until we see the Apple M2, you should expect to find M1, M1 Pro, and M1 Max products from Apple — pending demand, of course.

Specs

Apple's M1 Lineup.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The M1, M1 Pro, and M1 Max are built on the same underlying architecture, but the latter two feature far greater power. They’re all system-on-a-chips (SoCs) that combine the CPU, GPU, and RAM onto a single package. That leads to higher efficiency overall, as well as decreased latency between the RAM and CPU.

They’re all based on chipmaker TSMC’s N5 node, which is the smallest manufacturing process TSMC currently has available. They combine two CPU core types — high-performance Firestorm cores and high-efficiency Icestorm cores. The main difference between them comes down to the balance of these two cores.

The M1 features eight cores total, four Firestorm and four Icestorm. The M1 Pro and Max only bump the core count to a total of 10, but they feature many more Firestorm cores. They come with eight Firestorm and two Icestorm cores, making for a much beefier processor overall.

Another big difference comes in graphics. The M1 tops out at eight graphics cores, but the M1 Pro can go as high as 16 graphics cores, while the M1 Max features a staggering 32 cores. That’s a massive step up, giving the newer MacBook Pros much-needed legs when it comes to GPU-intensive tasks like 3D modeling and rendering, as well as a boon to gaming.

The M1 Max supports much more RAM, too. The M1 can only support up to 16GB, while the M1 Max goes as high as 64GB (the M1 Pro tops out at 32GB). That’s not the same as 64GB of RAM you’d see in a standard PC, either — like the M1, the M1 Max features unified memory, which gives the CPU and GPU a single pool of memory depending on the task at hand.

That means improved CPU and GPU performance with more memory instead of carving our specific portions for each part of the chip.

Performance

Lifestyle image of someone using the new Macbook Pro 2021.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Apple’s M1 chip is very performant, despite fitting inside tablets and fan-less laptops alike. Despite drawing only 10 watts, the M1 destroys Intel’s most recent Tiger Lake chips based on our testing. In GeekBench 5, the chip managed to be 8% faster in single-core performance, and that’s compared to an Intel chip that draws almost three times as much power.

Still, the M1 Pro and Max offer a big step up in performance. Although these new chips only come with two more cores, they sport more than twice the number of transistors as M1. Apple says that translates into a CPU that’s up to 70% faster overall, with around two times the GPU performance on the M1 Pro compared to the M1.

Leaked benchmarks back up Apple’s claims, too. The M1 Max showed up in GeekBench, outperforming the M1 in multi-core performance by around 56%. Keep in mind that the M1 Max and M1 Pro feature the same CPU under the hood, so you can expect similar gains with both chips. The differences come in memory and graphics.

The M1 Pro basically doubles all of the metrics of the M1. It comes with twice the memory bandwidth at 200GBps, twice the GPU horsepower, and twice the number of transistors. Short of the transistor count, the M1 Max doubles the M1 Pro, with four times as much GPU performance and memory bandwidth as the base M1.

The GPU seems to make the most difference. Although the chips aren’t available yet, a leaked benchmark from GFXBench put the M1 Max’s GPU on the level of an RTX 3080 mobile or RX 6800M graphics card. Apple said that the M1 Max could match the most powerful laptop GPUs while consuming a fraction of the power, and these results back up that claim.

We recommend waiting for independent testing before drawing any conclusions on performance. That said, the M1 Max and M1 Pro look to offer a huge upgrade over the base M1, with enough graphics power to make the most performant laptop graphics cards sweat.

Battery life

New 2021 Macbook Pro brings back magsafe charging.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

One of the reasons the M1 is so great is that it has exceptional battery life. In the M1 MacBook Pro 13, we managed an impressive 16 hours of battery life, and in the MacBook Air, 15.5 hours. That’s great performance, but Apple says the M1 Pro and M1 Max are even better.

Apple says the 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M1 Pro chip can achieve up to 17 hours of video playback — seven more hours than the previous MacBook Pro. In addition, the new machines support fast charging, allowing you to get to 50% battery life with only 30 minutes of charging.

It’s worth being suspicious of Apple’s claims here, though. The M1 Pro and M1 Max feature a far greater number of cores and memory. They’re simply more powerful chips, meaning that they’ll suck up more power. We have to wait until we can get our hands on the new MacBook Pros to test the battery life of these chips, but we suspect the base M1 will remain the battery life champion.

Ports

Connectivity on the new 2021 Macbook Pro. SD reader, USB-C port, HDMI port.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The M1 is a chip that only has what it needs, which means Apple had to cut a few corners. Ports are a big example of that. The M1 only has the bandwidth to support two Thunderbolt 3 ports, so a dongle or adaptor for more ports is almost a required accessory.

That’s not the case with the M1 Pro and M1 Max. These chips sport a greater number of Thunderbolt ports, including four on the MacBook Pro. That allows for up to four external displays, which is a bump over what the M1 MacBook offers.

A clear winner

An overview of the Apple M1 Max.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The M1 is a fantastic chip, but the M1 Pro is better, and the M1 Max is the best. The M1 Max is designed to be the best version, after all.

That doesn’t mean it’s the best option for you, though. The M1, M1 Pro, and M1 Max live side by side for the time being, serving different portions of Apple’s market. If you want a performant Mac with greater battery life that can handle day-to-day tasks with ease, the M1 is a great option. If you want the best performance and don’t mind compromising, stick with the M1 Pro or Max.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Jacob Roach
Senior Staff Writer, Computing
Jacob Roach is a writer covering computing and gaming at Digital Trends. After realizing Crysis wouldn't run on a laptop, he…
The M3 Max makes the MacBook Pro look like a nearly unbeatable laptop
Someone using a MacBook Pro on a table in front of a scenic background.

Apple announced an update to its MacBook Pros at today's Scary Fast event that brings the M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max under the hood. That might sound like a ho-hum generational chip refresh, especially coming just 10 months after the M2 Pro/Max models came out. But trust me -- these new MacBook Pros have become an unstoppable force, especially the new full-tilt model with the M3 Max.

The 14-inch MacBook Pro (which replaces the 13-inch MacBook Pro) will now have the option for the M3, M3 Pro, or M3 Max, while the 16-inch model gets the M3 Pro and an even more powerful M3 Max configuration. Across the board, these new M3 chips are built on the new 3nm technology, the same that's used in the new iPhone 15 models, only scaled up for the Mac. It's all about efficiency, with Apple claiming that the M3 chips provides the same performance at 30% less power.

Read more
Everything announced at Apple’s ‘Scary Fast’ event: iMac, M3, and more
Apple revealing new Macs at an event.

Apple's unexpected "Scary Fast" event has wrapped, and the 30-minute presentation was packed full of announcements. Headlining the showcase was Apple's new M3 chip, which is showing up in a variety of devices in just a week from now.

We have the lowdown on everything Apple announced at its unprecedented fall event, which kicks off the third generation of Apple's silicon with two major product updates.
M3 family of chips

Read more
Apple’s new M3 looks fast, but will it really be worth the upgrade?
Logos for Apple's M3 chips.

The new Apple M3 is the "most advanced chip ever built for a personal computer," according to Apple. Debuted during Apple's "Scary Fast" event and sporting a new process, the M3 promises up to 60% higher performance in some apps. But will it really be worth an upgrade over the M1 or M2?

We've already seen the M2 at work in devices like the Mac mini, and we'll have to wait until the M3 launches to really know how it performs. But based on what we know right now, here's how the M3 stacks up to the M2.

Read more