Apple M3 Ultra vs Apple M5 Max (40-core GPU)
[ VERDICT ]
Winner: Apple M5 Max (40-core GPU) (97/100)
Apple M5 Max (40-core GPU) leads overall with a score of 97/100 compared to Apple M3 Ultra (94/100), offering superior measured performance and technical specifications.
Benchmark Performance Comparison
Normalized Lab Scores| Benchmark | Apple M3 Ultra | Apple M5 Max (40-core GPU) |
|---|---|---|
| Efficiency | 84.0 Very Good | 92.0 Excellent WINNER |
| Performance | 89.0 Very Good | 100.0 Excellent WINNER |
Detailed Technical Specifications
CPU
| Specification | Apple M3 Ultra | Apple M5 Max (40-core GPU) |
|---|---|---|
| Base Frequency (E) | 2.75 GHz | 4.38 GHz |
| Base Frequency (P) | 4.05 GHz | 4.61 GHz |
| E-Cores | 8 | 12 |
| E-Threads | 8 | 12 |
| L1 Cache | 192K (per core) | 192K (per core) |
| L2 Cache | 64MB (shared) | — |
| Multiplier | 40x | 46x |
| P-Cores | 24 | 6 |
| P-Threads | 24 | 6 |
| Total Cores | 32 | 18 |
| Total Threads | 32 | 18 |
| Unlocked Multiplier | No | No |
GeekBench v6
| Specification | Apple M3 Ultra | Apple M5 Max (40-core GPU) |
|---|---|---|
| Background blur | 63.2 images/sec | 106.1 images/sec |
| Clang compilation | 319.2 Klines/sec | 271.1 Klines/sec |
| File compression | 2690 MB/sec | 2990 MB/sec |
| HTML 5 Browser | 819.6 pages/sec | 811.7 pages/sec |
| PDF Renderer | 701.5 Mpixels/sec | 764 Mpixels/sec |
| Photo processing | 190.9 images/sec | 303.8 images/sec |
| Ray tracing | 61.5 Mpixels/sec | 47.8 Mpixels/sec |
| Text processing | 327.5 pages/sec | 457.1 pages/sec |
General
| Specification | Apple M3 Ultra | Apple M5 Max (40-core GPU) |
|---|---|---|
| Codename | Apple M3 | Apple M5 |
| Instruction Set | ARMv8 | ARMv9 |
| Integrated GPU | Apple M3 Ultra GPU (80-core) | Apple M5 Max GPU (40-core) |
| Released | March 5, 2025 | March 3, 2026 |
| Type | Desktop | Laptop |
| Vendor | Apple | Apple |
Memory Support
| Specification | Apple M3 Ultra | Apple M5 Max (40-core GPU) |
|---|---|---|
| ECC Support | No | No |
| Max. Memory Bandwidth | 819.3 GB/s | 614 GB/s |
| Max. Memory Size | 512 GB | 128 GB |
| Memory Channels | 64 | 32 |
| Memory Types | - LPDDR5-6400 | - LPDDR5X-9600 |
Package
| Specification | Apple M3 Ultra | Apple M5 Max (40-core GPU) |
|---|---|---|
| Fabrication Process | 3 nm | 3 nm |
| Peak Temperature | 100°C | 100°C |
| Socket | Apple M-Socket | Apple M-Socket |
| TDP (PL1) | 140 W | 72 W |
| Transistors | 184 billions | 28 billions |
PassMark
| Specification | Apple M3 Ultra | Apple M5 Max (40-core GPU) |
|---|---|---|
| Data compression | 1076.9 MBytes/sec | 689.6 MBytes/sec |
| Data encryption | 49.4 GBytes/sec | 40.8 GBytes/sec |
| Extended instructions | 55.1B Matrices/sec | 33.4B Matrices/sec |
| Find prime numbers | 1063M Primes/sec | 553M Primes/sec |
| Floating point math | 183.5 GOps/sec | 186.1 GOps/sec |
| Integer math | 181.6 GOps/sec | 132.6 GOps/sec |
| Physics | 8863 Frames/sec | 6847 Frames/sec |
| Random string sorting | 123.1M Strings/sec | 84.9M Strings/sec |
Performance Per Watt
| Specification | Apple M3 Ultra | Apple M5 Max (40-core GPU) |
|---|---|---|
| Blender / Watt | 5.13 PPW | 8.1 PPW |
| Cinebench 2024 / Watt | 19.7 PPW | 28.8 PPW |
| Geekbench 6 Multi / Watt | 200.9 PPW | 419.7 PPW |
| Passmark CPU Mark / Watt | 520.4 PPW | 798.1 PPW |
Recent User Tests
| Specification | Apple M3 Ultra | Apple M5 Max (40-core GPU) |
|---|---|---|
| Date | Benchmark | Benchmark |
| 📘 2025-03-16(Tyler) | Cinebench 2024 | — |
| 📘 2025-03-17(Luigi9212) | Cinebench 2024 | — |
| 📘 2025-08-13(Losito) | Cinebench 2024 | — |
| 📘 2026-07-03->Apple lover | — | GeekBench |
iGPU
| Specification | Apple M3 Ultra | Apple M5 Max (40-core GPU) |
|---|---|---|
| Execution Units | 1280 | 640 |
| GPU Boost Clock | 1380 MHz | 1620 MHz |
| Integrated Graphics | Apple M3 Ultra GPU (80-core) | Apple M5 Max GPU (40-core) |
| ROPs | 320 | 160 |
| Shading Units | 10240 | 5120 |
| TGP | 140 W | — |
| TMUs | 640 | 320 |
Cinebench
| Specification | Apple M3 Ultra | Apple M5 Max (40-core GPU) |
|---|---|---|
| Cinebench 2026 (Multi) | — | 9428 |
| Cinebench 2026 (Single) | — | 734 |
Looking for More Comparisons?
Browse all available head-to-head comparisons or select new devices in the comparison hub.