The Apple M3 Pro was introduced in late 2023. Now, about one year later, the Apple M4 chip has been released on the market and it has 10 cores.
Is the 10-core M4 more powerful compared to the older 12-core M3 Pro? Here, we have compared both chips in-depth with benchmarks and performance to determine which gives you better value for money.
Main Differences
- M3 Pro has 12 CPU Cores and Threads compared to M4, which has 10 CPU Cores and Threads.
- M4 has a 4.41 GHz CPU Clock speed, while M3 Pro has a 4.05 GHz CPU Clock speed.
- M3 Pro is 7 months older
- M4 has an 1800 MHz GPU clock speed while M3 Pro has a 1600 MHz GPU clock speed.
- M4 has 10 GPU Cores compared to M3 Pro, which has 19 GPU Cores.
Specs Comparison
Before we take a look at benchmarks, let’s compare some specifications for both CPUs.
| Apple M4(10-core) | Apple M3 Pro(12-Core) | |
|---|---|---|
| Cores | 10 | 12 |
| Performance Cores | 4 | 6 |
| Efficiency Cores | 6 | 6 |
| Threads | 10 | 12 |
| Performance Threads | 4 | 6 |
| Efficiency Threads | 6 | 6 |
| Base Clock Speed (Performance Core) | 4.41 GHz | 4.05 GHz |
| Base Clock Speed (Efficiency Core) | 2.59 GHz | 2.75 GHz |
| Instruction Set | ARMv9 | ARMv8 |
| Socket | Apple M-Socket | Apple M-Socket |
| L1 Cache | 192K/core | 192K/core |
| L2 Cache | 16MB(shared) | 16MB(shared) |
| Multiplier | 44x | 40x |
| Fabrication Process | 3nm | 3nm |
| Transistors | 28 billion | 37 billion |
| TDP | 22 W | 30 W |
| Max Temperature | 100°C | 100°C |
| Integrated Graphics | Apple M4 GPU | Apple M3 Pro GPU |
| GPU Core | 10 | 19 |
| GPU Base Clock Speed | 500 MHz | 500 MHz |
| GPU Boost Clock Speed | 1800 MHz | 1600 MHz |
| Memory | LPDDR5X-7500 | LPDDR4X-6400 |
| Memory Size | 32 GB | 36 GB |
| Memory Channels | 4 | 3 |
| ECC Support | No | No |
| Release date | 07, May 2024 | 30, October 2023 |
Benchmarks
Now that we have compared basic specs, Let’s compare some popular benchmark standards between these two CPUs to find out which one comes out on top in performance.
PassMark Single Core (Higher is Better)
- M4 – 4601(+3%)
- M3 Pro – 4451
PassMark Multi-Core (Higher is Better)
- M4 – 24386
- M3 Pro – 25467(+4%)
Geekbench 6 Single Core (Higher is Better)
- M4 – 3869(+24%)
- M3 Pro – 3112
Geekbench 6 Multi-Core (Higher is Better)
- M4 – 13460
- M3 Pro – 15269(+13%)
Cinebench 2024 Single Core (Higher is Better)
- M4 – 174(+23%)
- M3 Pro – 141
Cinebench 2024 Multi-Core (Higher is Better)
- M4 – 976
- M3 Pro – 1060(+8%)
Productivity benchmark tests
If you are wondering how these chips compare to each other for productivity and content creation, like designing and video editing. Here, we are also sharing some productivity benchmarks with you.
Adobe After Effects (Higher is Better)
- M4 – 943
- M3 Pro – 1158(+22%)
Adobe Photoshop (Higher is Better)
- M4 – 10975(+7%)
- M3 Pro – 10192
Adobe Premiere Pro (Higher is Better)
- M4 – 4843(+3%)
- M3 Pro – 4672
Price
The brand new Apple MacBook Pro(2024) with M4(10-Core) costs $1400, and the lowest price for the Apple MacBook Pro(2023) with M3 Pro (12-Core) is available for resale at $1400. So, both are available at the same price.
Note: Prices are at the time of creation of this comparison. It may not have been updated to the latest price when you are looking at this comparison.
Conclusion – Which one should you buy?
Now, it’s time to look at all the data and figure out which one is the best option for you. First up, the Apple MacBook Pro(2023) with M3 Pro (12-Core) and Apple MacBook M4(10-Core) are available at the same price.
When it comes to the traditional benchmarks, the M4(10-Core) and M3 Pro (12-Core) perform almost similarly in multi-core benchmarks.
However, when it comes to single-core, the M4(10-core)performs better than the M3 Pro(12-core).
Now speaking about productivity and content creation benchmarks, both chips perform almost identically except for Adobe After Effects, where M4(10-Core) performs 22% better compared to M3 Pro (12-Core)
Apple chips aren’t particularly great at gaming, so we have skipped that comparison. If you are looking for a Gaming CPU, you are better off with Intel or AMD. They provide far better value compared to Apple.
In conclusion, Apple M4(10-Core) is the clear winner when it comes to performance, especially for single-core.
The M3 Pro(12-Core) does have some advantages in multicore tasks; however, the difference between the two isn’t very noticeable.
So, if you are looking for better value for money, then the MacBook Pro(2024) with M4(10-core) is significantly faster and has new features and other upgrades over the older M3 Pro Apple MacBook Pro.
