Apple M5 Pro GPU (20-core) vs Max GPU (40-core)
VS
Apple M5 Pro GPU (20-core)
Custom
Apple M5 Max GPU (40-core)
Custom
We compared two integrated laptop professional GPUs: the Apple M5 Pro GPU (20-core) with 320 pipelines and 2560 shaders against the Max GPU (40-core) that utilizes 640 pipelines and 5120 shaders. Here you will find complete details about specs, efficiency, performance tests, and more.
Review
Gaming
Performance in DirectX, OpenCL, and Vulkan games
Workstation
Perf. in 3D modeling, video editing and rendering apps
AI/ML
Capabilities for machine learning and AI-related tasks
Energy Efficiency
Power consumption efficiency in different scenarios
NanoReview Final Score
Overall video card score
Key differences
Reasons to consider the Apple M5 Max GPU (40-core)
- Performs significantly better (up to 77%) in 3DMark Steel Nomad Lite
- 2x higher maximum theoretical performance (16.6 vs 8.3 TFLOPS)
- Has 2x higher memory bandwidth: 614 vs 307 GB/s
- Achieves 66% more points in the GeekBench 6 Compute test (146K vs 87K)
- Has 2x more shading units (5120 vs 2560)
Benchmarks
Graphics cards’ performance in recent benchmarking apps3D Mark
Steel Nomad Lite Score
| Solar Bay | 46865 | 79263 |
| Wild Life Extreme | 23737 | 42423 |
GeekBench 6 OpenCL
GB6 Compute Score
| Background Blur | 177.6 img/sec | 257 img/sec |
| Face Detection | 114.5 img/sec | 182.1 img/sec |
| Horizon Detection | 3.19 Gpixels/sec | 5.4 Gpixels/sec |
| Edge Detection | 4.45 Gpixels/sec | 8.33 Gpixels/sec |
| Gaussian Blur | 4.59 Gpixels/sec | 8.86 Gpixels/sec |
| Feature Matching | 0.96 Gpixels/sec | 1.28 Gpixels/sec |
| Stereo Matching | 250.4 Gpixels/sec | 455.4 Gpixels/sec |
| Particle Physics | 12529.9 FPS | 21658 FPS |
| API | OpenCL | OpenCL |
Cinebench 2024 GPU
Cinebench 2024 GPU
Blender
Blender GPU
Recent User Tests
Apple M5 Pro GPU (20-core)
No benchmark results yet
Apple M5 Max GPU (40-core)
| Date | Benchmark | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 📘 2026-04-16 -> Apple lover | Geekbench 6 OpenCL | 146276 |
| 📘 2026-03-25 (Steven) | Cinebench 2024 | 9283 |
| 📘 2026-03-25 (Steven) | Steel Nomad Light | 18486 |
Artificial Intelligence Tests
Performance in machine learning and artificial intelligence tasksGeekBench 6 ML
GB6 ML Single Precision
GB6 ML Half Precision
GB6 ML Quantized
| Image Classification (SP) | 8870 | 10711 |
| Image Segmentation (HP) | 28795 | 42406 |
| Image Super Resolution (Q) | 34820 | 42905 |
| Face Detection (HP) | 55699 | 73489 |
| Pose Estimation (Q) | 212347 | 289766 |
| Text Classification (SP) | 3018 | 6087 |
| Machine Translation (HP) | 9102 | 8881 |
| Object Detection (SP) | 8163 | 10130 |
| Depth Estimation (Q) | 70908 | 84224 |
| Style Transfer (SP) | 152297 | 264552 |
| Framework | Core ML | Core ML |
| Backend | GPU | GPU |
Specifications
Technical specifications of Apple M5 Pro GPU (20-core) and Max GPU (40-core)General
| Vendor | Apple | Apple |
| Build | Integrated | Integrated |
| Released | March 3, 2026 | March 3, 2026 |
| Case | Laptop | Laptop |
| Purpose | Professional | Professional |
| Segment | Mid-range | Mid-range |
| Architecture | Apple M GPU | Apple M GPU |
| GPU Codename | Custom | Custom |
| Recommended CPU | - Apple M5 Pro (18-Core) or above | - Apple M5 Max (40-сore GPU) or above |
| Used in CPUs | - Apple M5 Pro (18-Core) | - Apple M5 Max (40-сore GPU) |
Laptop GPU ranking (21st and 6th place)
Graphics Processing Unit
| Boost Clock | 1620 MHz | 1620 MHz |
| Shading Units | 2560 | 5120 |
| Texture Mapping Units (TMUs) | 160 | 320 |
| Render Output Units (ROPs) | 80 | 160 |
| Compute Units (Pipelines) | 320 | 640 |
| Instructions Per Cycle | 2 IPC | 2 IPC |
Raw Performance
| Pixel Fill Rate | 130 GPixel/s | 259 GPixel/s |
| Texture Fill Rate | 259 GTexel/s | 518 GTexel/s |
FLOPS (FP32)
Physical
| Interface | Custom | Custom |
| TGP | 28 W | - |
| Manufacturing | TSMC | TSMC |
| Fabrication Process | 3 nm | 3 nm |
| Transistor Count | 28 billion | 28 billion |
| Max. Temperature | 100°C | 100°C |
Memory
| Memory Type | System Shared | System Shared |
| Memory Clock | 9600 MHz | 9600 MHz |
| Bus | 256-bit | 512-bit |
| ECC | No | No |
Memory Bandwidth
API
| Ray Tracing | Yes | Yes |
| DLSS | No | No |
Cast your vote
Total votes: 6