Apple’s M4, M4 Pro, and M4 Max compared to past generations, and to each other
Apple's week of Mac announcements has wrapped up this morning with the launch of the new M4 MacBook Pros, and we now have a full picture of the M4 chip lineup that will drive the Mac for the next year or so (excepting the M4 Ultra, if we end up getting one).
Because Apple staggered its product and chip announcements, we've gathered some basic specs from all versions of the M4, M4 Pro, and M4 Max to help compare them to the outgoing M2 and M3 chip families, including the slightly cut-down versions that Apple sells in the cheaper new Macs. We've also rounded up some of Apple's performance claims, so people with older Macs can see exactly what they're getting if they upgrade (Apple still likes to use the M1 as a baseline, acknowledging that the year-over-year gains are sometimes minor and that many people are still getting by just fine with some version of the M1 chip).
Comparing all the M4 chips| CPU P/E-cores | GPU cores | RAM options | Display support (including internal) | Memory bandwidth | Available in | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apple M4 (low) | 4/4 | 8 | 16/24GB | Up to two | 120GB/s | $1,299 iMac |
| Apple M4 (high) | 4/6 | 10 | 16/24/32GB | Up to three | 120GB/s | $1,499 iMac, $599 Mac mini, $1,599 MacBook Pro |
| Apple M4 Pro (low) | 8/4 | 16 | 24/48/64GB | Up to three | 273GB/s | $1,399 Mac mini, $1,999 14-inch MBP |
| Apple M4 Pro (high) | 10/4 | 20 | 24/48/64GB | Up to three | 273GB/s | $1,599 Mac mini, $2,199 14-inch MBP, $2,499 16-inch MBP |
| Apple M4 Max (low) | 10/4 | 32 | 36GB | Up to five | 410GB/s | $3,199 14-inch MBP, $3,499 16-inch MBP |
| Apple M4 Max (high) | 12/4 | 40 | 48/64/128GB | Up to five | 546GB/s | $3,699 14-inch MBP, $3,999 16-inch MBP |
At least as far as the Mac is concerned, Apple has technically released six different chips this week under three different brand names. The M4, M4 Pro, and M4 Max all have one slightly cut-down entry-level version with fewer CPU and GPU cores and one more-expensive, fully enabled version.
Generally, in the places where Apple offers both versions of each chip, you can upgrade to the better CPU/GPU without also having to pay for more RAM or anything else. But the M4 Max is an exception-buying the fully enabled M3 Max also requires you to pay for a jump from 36GB to 48GB of memory, making the total cost an additional $500. Apple's site lists it, somewhat misleadingly, as a $300 addition, but toggling the selection also automatically selects the $200 RAM upgrade.