M4 Max Chip Up to 25% Faster Than M2 Ultra in First Benchmark Results

The first Geekbench 6 benchmark results for the high-end M4 Max chip with a 16-core CPU surfaced today, and they show that the chip is up to 25% faster than the high-end M2 Ultra chip with a 24-core CPU in terms of peak multi-core CPU performance.

M4 M4 Pro vs M4 Max Feature
M4 Pro chip benchmark results already surfaced in the Geekbench 6 database on Thursday. Based on the results available so far, the M4 Max appears to be up to 20% faster than the M4 Pro in terms of peak multi-core CPU performance.

Here is a comparison of the results (averaged):

  • MacBook Pro with M4 Max (16-core CPU): 26,675 multi-core score (highest result), 26,445 multi-core score (3 results)
  • Mac mini with M4 Pro (14-core CPU): 22,094 multi-core score (11 results)
  • Mac Studio with M2 Ultra (24-core CPU): 21,351 (More than 600 results)

M4 Max is now the fastest-ever Apple silicon chip in the Geekbench 6 database, surpassing the M2 Ultra that Apple released in the Mac Studio and Mac Pro in June 2023.

As we mentioned in our previous reporting, you can now purchase a Mac mini with a 14-core M4 Pro for $1,599 in the U.S. and get similar to faster peak performance than a Mac Studio with the 24-core M2 Ultra, a configuration that starts at $3,999. And if you want up to 25% faster performance than the M2 Ultra, the 16-inch MacBook Pro with the 16-core M4 Max starts at the same $3,999 price as the Mac Studio.

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

Popular Stories

iOS 26 on iPhone Feature

Here's When iOS 26 Rolls Out Today in Every Time Zone [Update: Out Now!]

Monday September 15, 2025 12:00 am PDT by
Update 10:06 a.m.: iOS 26 is rolling out now, though it may take a bit for all users to see it, so keep checking! Today's the day! Apple is about to release iOS 26, which will deliver the biggest redesign since iOS 7 and bring a range of new features and improvements to iPhones worldwide. It's Apple's biggest software update of the year, and Apple announced at last week's iPhone event that...
Tim Cook Rainbow

Apple Reportedly Plans to Launch These 10 Products in 'Coming Months'

Sunday September 14, 2025 8:45 am PDT by
Apple's annual September event is now in the rearview mirror, with the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, iPhone Air, Apple Watch Series 11, Apple Watch Ultra 3, Apple Watch SE 3, and AirPods Pro 3 set to launch this Friday, September 19. As always, there is more to come. In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said Apple plans to release many products in the...
iOS 26 Battery Glass Feature

Apple Says Installing iOS 26 Might Impact Battery Life

Monday September 15, 2025 10:56 am PDT by
In the iOS 26 release notes, Apple is warning iPhone users that installing the new software might have a temporary impact on battery life, which is normal. A new support document explains that major iOS updates require background setup like indexing data and files for search, downloading new assets, and updating apps. Further, Apple says that new features could require more resources,...
iphone 17 lineup

iPhone 17 Models Launch on September 19 With These New Features

Friday September 12, 2025 7:58 am PDT by
Apple will launch its new iPhone 17 lineup and ultra-thin iPhone Air in stores on Friday, September 19, and the company has already shown off the new devices at its fall event, which ran with the the tagline "Awe dropping." The iPhone 17 series brings a host of new features and enhancements. Here's a rundown of the biggest upgrades and changes: iPhone 17 Display Changes The iPhone...
AirPods Pro Firmware Feature

AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 Get iOS 26 Features With New Firmware Update

Monday September 15, 2025 10:50 am PDT by
Apple today released updated firmware for the AirPods Pro 2 and the AirPods 4, introducing support for the new AirPods features that are included in iOS 26, iPadOS 26, and macOS Tahoe. The firmware has a build number of 8A356, and it replaces the current 7E93 firmware. With Apple's new software updates, the AirPods Pro 2 and the AirPods 4 support better audio quality for phone calls and...
apple n1 chip

Apple's New N1 Chip in iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone Air Has a Wi-Fi 7 Limitation

Saturday September 13, 2025 10:01 am PDT by
The latest iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, and iPhone Air models are equipped with Apple's all-new N1 chip for Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and Thread connectivity. However, the chip has a Wi-Fi 7 bandwidth limitation. According to FCC documents reviewed by MacRumors, the N1 chip in all of the new iPhone models supports up to 160 MHz channel bandwidth for Wi-Fi 7, short of the...
iPhone 17 Pro Air Boxes

iPhone Air and iPhone 17 Pro Boxes Revealed

Sunday September 14, 2025 1:36 pm PDT by
T-Mobile President Jon Freier today shared real-world photos of Apple's boxes for the iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 models, which launch on Friday. Image Credit: Jon Freier Apple has typically included iPhone box renders in its product environmental reports, but it did not do so for the latest models. However, Apple's iPhone Upgrade Program page does offer some images of the boxes, ...

Top Rated Comments

nick9191 Avatar
12 months ago

I think M5 series will be the perfect upgrade from M1s and M2s
M5 will probably have a big focus on graphics. They won’t be going to 2nm next year so the CPU speed increases won’t be as impressive, I think graphics will be the focus.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dannys1 Avatar
12 months ago
For everyone going on about the Ultra, it's advantage isn't JUST CPU. Don't forget it has many more GPU cores. You also can't rely on just one synthetic CPU bench mark - i'm sure there are real world uses where it performs better. It still has 800GB/s memory bandwidth - plus much higher amounts of RAM to spec it with.

There's still many reasons someone might want or need a Mac Studio over an M4 Max equipped MacBook Pro (beyond form factory) and the M4 Pro Mac mini is not a Studio replacement based on just a CPU result alone.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
PsykX Avatar
12 months ago
"The fastest CPU in the Geekbench database"

Two things :
1. The fastest chip on Earth is in a LAPTOP
2. ...UNPLUGGED !

?
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
canadianreader Avatar
12 months ago
I think M5 series will be the perfect upgrade from M1s and M2s
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DrWojtek Avatar
12 months ago
M4 Max surpasses desktop 4060 Ti OpenCL score. Almost on 4070 level.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
WarmWinterHat Avatar
12 months ago

So, more that 2x power from M1 is not worthy. Com´on!
If you're in no-way constrained or feeling the M1 is slow, no, it's not worth it at the moment.

Benchmark numbers mean nothing without a use case.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)