M2 Pro and M2 Max MacBook Pros Feature Faster SSD Write Speeds, Tests Show

The new 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros powered by the M2 Pro and M2 Max chips feature faster SSD write speeds compared to their predecessors, according to tests and reviews of the new laptops.

Apple MacBook Pro M2 Feature Blue Green
This week, select reviewers and media outlets had the chance to review the new MacBook Pros ahead of their availability starting Tuesday, January 24. As part of their reviews, Macworld and Tom's Guide tested the SSD read and write speeds of the M2 Pro and M2 Max chips in Apple's latest laptops.

When Macworld tested with the Blackmagic disk speed app, the 16-inch MacBook Pro with M2 Pro in a 2TB storage configuration achieved a read speed of 5,372 MB/s and a write speed of 6,491 MB/s. The previous-generation 14-inch MacBook Pro with an M1 Pro chip and 1TB of storage scored a slightly higher 5,797 MB/s read speed than the 16-inch M2 Pro; however, it scored a lower write speed of 5,321 MB/s.

toms guide mbp ssd speeds

Blackmagic disk speed results according to tests by Tom's Guide (read/write)

Test results published by Tom's Guide also show that the new M2 Pro has faster write speeds than the M1 Pro, but slightly slower read speeds. Testing the 14-inch MacBook Pro with M2 Max, the laptop scored similarly to the 16-inch M2 Pro, achieving a read speed of 5,319 MB/s and a write speed of 6,402 MB/s.

Although the new MacBook Pros have slightly slower read speeds according to these tests, users are unlikely to notice a difference in everyday performance unless they work with significantly large files. Storage speed and performance is also affected by other factors, such as the storage capacity.

Last year, it emerged that Apple significantly cut SSD speeds for the M2 base model MacBook Air by including one less SSD chip in the laptop. With 256GB of storage capacity, the MacBook Air features a single 256GB NAND chip, leading to up to 50% slower read speeds and up to 30% slower write speeds compared to the previous MacBook Air with two 128GB NAND chips. Apple argued in a statement that the MacBook Air has "even faster" real-world performance.

Reviews of the latest M2 Pro and M2 Max chips in the updated 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros praised the fast performance of the new chips, even longer battery life, and an upgraded HDMI 2.1 port. Thanks to the efficiency of the new chips, the updated 16-inch MacBook Pro features the longest battery life ever in a Mac, lasting up to 22 hours.

Related Roundup: MacBook Pro
Buyer's Guide: MacBook Pro (Caution)
Related Forum: MacBook Pro

Popular Stories

ios 19 messages app

Apple Sues Jon Prosser Over iOS 26 Leaks

Thursday July 17, 2025 8:40 pm PDT by
Earlier this year, YouTuber Jon Prosser shared multiple videos showing off what he claimed to be re-created renderings of what was then presumed to be called iOS 19 and which was eventually unveiled by Apple as iOS 26 at WWDC in June. In his first video back in January, Prosser showed off a Camera app redesign with a simpler set of buttons for moving between photo and video modes, and he...
iPhone 17 Pro on Desk Centered 1

iPhone 17 Pro Launching in Two Months With These 16 New Features

Thursday July 17, 2025 8:33 am PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are less than two months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models.Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone X through iPhone 14 Pro ...
iPhone 17 Pro Dark Blue and Orange

Ranked: The Best Features Rumored for the iPhone 17 Lineup

Wednesday July 16, 2025 4:17 pm PDT by
We have just under two months to go until the debut of Apple's iPhone 17 models, and rumors have been ramping up in recent weeks. We went through everything we know so far, pulling out the most exciting rumors and highlighting some other changes that aren't going to be so great. Top Tier Ultra Thin iPhone 17 Air - The iPhone 17 Air is 2025's most exciting iPhone rumor, because it's the...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Homescreen

Foldable iPhone's Thickness and Price Range Detailed in New Reports

Wednesday July 16, 2025 11:31 am PDT by
Apple's long-rumored foldable iPhone will likely have a starting price between $1,800 and $2,000 in the U.S., analysts at investment banking firm UBS said this week. If so, the foldable iPhone would cost more than a MacBook Pro, which starts at $1,599. With a starting price of at least $1,800, the foldable iPhone would be the most expensive iPhone model ever released, topping the Pro Max at...
iOS 26 on Three iPhones

Here's When to Expect the iOS 26 Public Beta

Tuesday July 15, 2025 11:07 am PDT by
Apple previously announced that a public beta of iOS 26 would be available in July, and now a more specific timeframe has surfaced. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today said that Apple's public betas should be released on or around Wednesday, July 23. In other words, expect the public betas of iOS 26, iPadOS 26, macOS 26, and more to be available at some point next week. Apple will be releasing...
iPhone 17 Colors

All 15 New iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro Colors Revealed in Latest Leak

Wednesday July 16, 2025 6:50 am PDT by
We may finally have a definitive list of all color options for the iPhone 17 series, ahead of the devices launching in September. MacRumors concept In a report for Macworld today, Filipe Espósito said he obtained an "internal document" that allegedly reveals all of the color options for the upcoming iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max models. The report includes ...
iPhone 17 Air Thumb 2 Blue Electric Boogaloo

iPhone 17 Air's Limited Battery Capacity Leaked

Friday July 18, 2025 12:03 pm PDT by
The battery capacity of Apple's rumored iPhone 17 Air will be below the 3,000 mAh mark, according to a recent post from Instant Digital, an account with more than 1.4 million followers on Chinese social media platform Weibo. Thanks to iOS 26's new Adaptive Power Mode, though, the account said that the iPhone 17 Air should achieve full-day battery life. A previous rumor pegged the iPhone...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro Coming Soon With These 16 New Features

Friday July 11, 2025 12:40 pm PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are only two months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models. Latest Rumors These rumors surfaced in June and July:A redesigned Dynamic Island: It has been rumored that all iPhone 17 models will have a redesigned Dynamic Island interface — it might ...
Generic iPhone 17 Feature With Full Width Dynamic Island

iPhone 17 Series Is Less Than Two Months Away: Everything We Know

Friday July 18, 2025 4:23 am PDT by
Apple is expected to hold its annual iPhone announcement event during the week of September 8, 2025, with September 9 or 10 emerging as the most likely dates. Like the iPhone 16 series, this year's lineup is expected to include four models – but with a twist. The ‌Plus device is being replaced with an all-new ultra-thin model, while the iPhone 17 Pro and ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ Max are set to...

Top Rated Comments

femike Avatar
33 months ago

You can't compare the write speed of a 1TB to a 2TB drive ( see the bottom of the article RE the 256 vs 512 differences !)
That is just a bad test. Its basic and obvious requirement and they failed it. Testing SSD performance between M1 and M2 CPU's, you must have the all other variables the same, well, as close as you possible can get them. At least have the same SSD size, and that's just the start. The people doing these 'tests' have no technical background, they are just gadget fans.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Carlson-online Avatar
33 months ago
You can't compare the write speed of a 1TB to a 2TB drive ( see the bottom of the article RE the 256 vs 512 differences !)
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
petej Avatar
33 months ago
Writing to disk is now faster than reading from disk. Some Black Magic there.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ScooterComputer Avatar
33 months ago

And, it looks like - from the first few written reviews - the Mac Mini M2 Pro's SSDs match the macBook Pros in terms of speed ... *sigh of relief*
I’ve been watching the review-verse waiting to get this confirmed, but so far have not. I find it interesting how many reviewers have received the highest-end model of both M2 MacBook Pro and M2 mini, neither of which are ‘typical’ units consumers will be buying. I have yet to find a single reliable review of the base M2 mini where the 256GB SSD situation is discussed. If I were to bet, right now my money is on Apple cheaping out just like the did on the M2 Air and going for a single single-channel NAND chip… which is simply unacceptable for a company of Apple’s wealth and marketing/PR narrative. We shall see!
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
senttoschool Avatar
33 months ago

AKA it's got PCIe 4. It would have been handy to put that in the article rather than some of the nonsense rabbiting that did make it in.
This statement is wrong. Apple Silicon does not use PCIe for internal storage. In fact, Apple Silicon has a pretty weird storage system in that the SSD controller is built into the SoC. The SSD is simply "dumb" storage. In the PC world, SSDs contain the controller and the flash memory.

If the SSD is faster on M2 Pro/Max, it's because the controller on the SoC got an upgrade or the flash memory modules got an upgrade.

Also, M1 already had PCIe 4.

Source: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/when-will-apple-silicon-support-pcie-5.2288812/
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Love-hate ? relationship Avatar
33 months ago
What the hell is this

Comparing 1tb with 2tb ?

Just for the clicks ?
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)