Apple has released the MacBook Pro with the M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, finally completing the lineup started by the M5 MacBook Pro several months ago. But is it worth it to pay $2199 for the M5 Pro model over the $1699 M5 version? Or a whopping $3599 for the M5 Max model? And what exactly does the extra $500 or $1900 get you? Let’s find out!
Screens
The MacBook Pro comes in 2 sizes, a 14-inch size with a 14.2” screen, and a 16-inch size with a 16.2” screen.
Both screens have basically the same 14:9 aspect ratio that is a bit taller than the usual 16:10 to accommodate the notch at the top. The pixel density is about 254 PPI, so its both bigger in size and resolution detail than the MacBook Air.
Other than that, the screens are the same regardless of which chip you pick, including the option to upgrade to a Nano-texture display, which reduces glare and reflections, for an extra $150.
M5 Chips: CPU Performance
The main differentiator between the MacBook Pro models is of course the M5 chip. On the CPU side, the M5 chip has 10 cores, with 4 super cores and 6 efficiency cores.
The new “super core” naming is basically what used to be called performance cores.
The M5 Pro has either a 15-core CPU with 5 super cores and 10 of the new performance cores, or an 18-core CPU with 6 super cores and 12 performance cores if you pay $200 extra. But there are no longer any efficiency cores.
Looking at the detailed specs, these new “performance cores” fall in between the new super cores and efficiency cores. Their cache sizes are closer to efficiency cores, while their clock speeds are closer to the super cores.
The M5 Max chip offers only 18 CPU cores, the same as the M5 Pro. Just like in previous generations, the difference between Max and Pro lies mainly in other areas and not so much in CPU performance.
Speaking of CPU performance, single core won’t be much different since they are all M5 generation chips, so let’s jump to multi-core.
Looking at Cinebench numbers, going from the M5 to the 15-core M5 Pro is about a 71% performance increase. From there, moving to the 18 cores found in the higher-tier M5 Pro or either M5 Max chip gives an additional 12-14%.
M5 Chips: GPU Performance
Now let’s look at the graphics side. The GPU is where the 3 chips differ greatly. The base M5 chip has 10 GPU cores, while the M5 Pro offers either 16 GPU cores with the 15-core CPU, or 20 GPU cores with the 18-core CPU, for an extra $200. This $200 upgrade for 20% more CPU cores and 25% more GPU cores seems quite worthwhile if you need the extra performance.
The M5 Max is basically double the Pro, at either 32 or 40 GPU cores. The price for the extra 25% GPU cores in this case says it is $300, but you actually need to pay $500 more, bringing the starting M5 Max price from $3599 to $4099, because this option forces you to upgrade the memory from 36GB to 48GB as well.
For GPU performance, I looked at Geekbench Metal scores. While the M5 chip has been out for a while so there is a benchmark number, the M5 Pro and Max don’t have it yet, so I searched and averaged the 6 latest entries, rounded to the nearest half thousand, to approximate the performance level of each chip.
Moving up from the M5 to the M5 Pro gives around 62% additional performance. Adding 4 extra or 25% more GPU cores to get the 20-core M5 Pro model gives around 13% more performance. And stepping up to the M5 Max 32-core GPU gives another 62% boost. However, I couldn’t really find much difference in scores with the 40-core version of the Max chip, only about 2% higher.
I think the benchmark probably has some issues with the 2 M5 Max chips currently, but an additional 8 cores is 25% more, so that’s the most you can expect if they can be fully utilized.
Final note on the GPU: The M5 generation of chips now have neural accelerators built-into each GPU core, which means more GPU cores could have even more benefits for AI performance. However, this is even more of a niche category and will likely heavily depend on the AI application, so I won’t try to quantify this.
M5 Chips: Memory Bandwidth and Media Engine
Another factor between the M5 chips that might affect performance in certain specific applications is the memory bandwidth. The M5 has 153 GB/s of memory bandwidth, while the M5 Pro doubles that to 307. The M5 Max once again doubles memory bandwidth to 614 GB/s.
And while the M5 and M5 Pro have the same media engine capabilities, the M5 Max has double the number of video encode and ProRes encode/decode engines.
Fans, Performance, and Size
The last thing I’ll say about performance is the fan situation. The M5 MacBook Pro only has 1 cooling fan, and reports are that it will still overheat under sustained load, at which point performance can start to drop.
The M5 Pro and Max machines should be better at handling heat, as they have 2 active cooling fans. However, if sustained performance is important, you should definitely consider going for the 16-inch model, as the 14-inch machine just isn’t able to dissipate the heat properly to take full advantage of these chips. That’s true not only for the M5 Max chip, but also for the M5 Pro chip as well.
So those wanting sustained high-performance should definitely spend the extra money for the 16” model. The cost difference between the 14” and 16” models with the M5 Pro chip is $500, as you are also forced to choose the higher tier 18/16 core M5 Pro, which is $200 by itself. Though you do also get a larger power adapter (more on that later). This means the 16” size upgrade cost is $300.
Go ahead and give this video a thumbs up if you agree with me that Apple should really try to improve the thermals on the 14” MacBook Pro so their powerful chips can be more fully utilized instead of wasted.
Ports
When it comes to ports, the MacBook Pro has nearly the same ports regardless of chip, except that the M5 chip version only has Thunderbolt 4, which provides speeds up to 40 Gbps) instead of Thunderbolt 5, which can go up to 120 Gbps.
External Display Support
Another big difference due to the chip is external display support. The M5 chip only supports up to 2 external displays across the Thunderbolt and HDMI ports at up 4K 144Hz. If you want 4K at 240 Hz, only 1 display can be used.
With the M5 Pro, you can use up to 3 displays at 4K/144, but still only a single display can be run at 4K/240. However, you can use a second display at 4K/200 in addition to that single display.
Step up to the M5 Max and you’ll be able to run up to 4 external displays at 4K/144, or, finally, 2 displays at 4K/240 Hz. It seems that only the M5 Max chip supports DisplayPort 2.1 speeds over the Thunderbolt 5 ports, as this note is missing from the M5 Pro.
Memory and Storage
When it comes to memory, the M5 MacBook Pro starts with 16 GB and can be upgraded to 24GB for $200 more, or 32GB for $400, keeping a consistent $25 / GB upgrade price.
The M5 Pro MacBook Pro starts at 24 GB, and can be upgraded to 48 GB for $400 more, which is a better price of $16.67 / GB. You can even upgrade to 64 GB for only $600 more, which is an even better per unit price of $15 / GB.
However, the 64 GB configuration is only available if you choose the $200 upgrade to the 18/20 core Pro chip, so it requires a minimum of $800 extra.
The M5 Max MacBook Pro starts at 36 GB of memory, which is only available with the 32-core GPU Max chip. If you want any more memory, you also need to shell out the extra $300 for the 40-core GPU, which comes with the $200 upgrade to 48 GB of memory bundled in.
From there, you can pay an extra $200 to get to 64 GB, or an extra $1000 for 128 GB, both of which has a unit cost of $12.50 / GB.
For storage, the M5 and M5 Pro MacBook Pros start at 1 TB, and you can choose to upgrade to 2 TB for $400, which is a cost of $400 per TB. Or you can move to 4 TB for $1000, which is a cost of $333 / TB.
The M5 Max MacBook Pro starts at 2 TB, and you can go to 4 TB for $600, or all the way to 8 TB for $1800 extra. Both upgrades have a per unit cost of $300 / TB.
Audio
For sound, while all MacBook Pros offer a “high-fidelity” 6 speaker system, the larger 16 inch model will have a superior sound due to having room for larger speakers. You can’t really get around physics.
Wireless and Bluetooth
When it comes to connectivity, since the MacBook Pro with M5 chip was released way earlier, it only supports Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3, while the M5 Pro and Max models have Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6.
This is because they have the N1 chip while the older M5 model does not. As a consequence, the M5 MacBook Pro also doesn’t support Thread networking, while the M5 Pro and Max do.
Battery Life and Charging
When it comes to power, the 14” MacBook Pros come with a 72.4 watt-hour battery, while the 16” machines have a 100 watt-hour battery, which is 38% larger. Of course, some of that battery is used up by the larger screen, but we also see some reduction in battery life as you go up in chip levels.
The M5 chip, which only comes in 14” size, gives you 16 hours of web and 24 hours of video. The M5 Pro chip in the same 14” size lowers it to 14 hours of web and 22 hours of video, 8-13% less. Going to Max lowers it even further to just 13 and 20 hours, about 7-9% less than the Pro chip.
For the M5 Pro, going up to the larger 16 inch battery gives you 17 and 24 hours, about 9-21% more battery life. For the Max chip, you get 16 and 22 hours, about 10-23% more than the 14 inch version.
The other difference is in the power adapters. On the 14 inch size, the M5 or lower-tier M5 Pro with 15 CPU cores comes with a 70 watt adapter by default, or you can pay $20 more to get a 96 watt adapter, which is more useful when paired with the M5 Pro or Max chips as it enables High Power Mode.
Still on the 14 inch size, the higher-tier M5 Pro with 18 CPU cores or any M5 Max chip comes with the 96 watt adapter included with no other option.
On the 16 inch size, you get a 140 watt power adapter regardless of the chip you choose. Indeed, you can’t choose anything but an 18-core CPU chip anyway, so you can think of it as the 140 watt adapter replacing the 96 watt adapter.
Size and Weight
And finally, while the physical dimensions of the machine are not affected by the chip inside, the weight actually is.
The 14” MacBook Pro with M5 chip weighs 3.4 lbs, while the M5 Pro weighs 3.5 lbs, or 3% more. The M5 Max model weighs 3.56 lbs, which is 5% more than the M5 model and 2% more than the M5 Pro.
The 16” MacBook Pro with any chip weighs 4.7 lbs, which is 34% more than the 14” M5 Pro and 32% more than the 14” M5 Max.
The 16” machine is also .05 inches or 8% thicker than the 14”.
Value Comparison: 14” M5 vs M5 Pro MacBook Pro
Alright, let’s summarize the pricing of each base model to see exactly what you get for your money.
If you upgrade from the $1699 14” MacBook Pro with M5 chip to the $2199 14” with M5 Pro, paying an extra $500 gets you:
- The M5 Pro chip with 5 more, faster CPU cores with 71% more performance, 6 extra GPU cores with 62% more performance, and double the memory bandwidth
- 24 GB of memory instead of 16
- Support for 3 external displays instead of 2
- 3 Thunderbolt 5 ports at 120 Gbps speeds instead of Thunderbolt 4 ports at 40 Gbps
- The N1 networking chip that supports Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and Thread vs. Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3, and no Thread
- The same size battery but with 8-13% less battery life
- And a 3% heavier weight
If we assume the memory upgrade eats up $200 of the cost difference, that leaves $300 for mainly the extra performance. If you have a use for extreme Thunderbolt speed or Wi-Fi 7, those are nice too, as well the external display support. This 14” MacBook Pro is probably the best one to get for a good balance between performance, portability, and price.
Value Comparison: 14” vs 16” M5 Pro MacBook Pro
The 16” model gives you some mandatory extra upgrades as well, as it starts at $2699. Paying that extra $500 gets you:
- A 30% larger screen area
- Better cooling to improve sustained performance, which is necessary if you want to draw out the full power of these chips without thermal throttling
- The higher-tier M5 Pro chip with 3 extra CPU cores (about 13% faster in Cinebench), and 4 extra GPU cores (13% faster in Metal benchmarks)
- Better sound quality due to larger speakers
- A 38% larger battery with 9-21% more battery life
- A 140 watt power adapter instead of the 70 watt, which not only charges faster but lets you use high power mode to maximize performance
- And an 8% thicker and 34% heavier machine
So the chip upgrade is listed at $200, which means it’s $300 for everything else.
For those who don’t mind a heavier laptop and want to get the best sustained performance, have the most screen real estate and best audio for things like video editing and watching, then the 16” model is the way to go. This is true for M5 Pro, but especially for M5 Max.
However, if you just leave your computer alone while it processes heavy tasks and you’re not sitting around losing money while waiting for things to finish, then you may be just fine with the 14” model, even if it overheats and slows down for a bit.
Value Comparison: 14” M5 Pro vs M5 Max MacBook Pro
If we compare the 14” $2199 M5 Pro computer to the $3599 M5 Max model, the extra $1400 gets you:
- The M5 Max chip with 3 extra CPU cores (13% faster in Cinebench), twice as many GPU cores (82% faster in Geekbench Metal), double the video encoders, and double the memory bandwidth
- 36 GB of memory instead of 24
- 2 TB of storage instead of 1
- Support for 4 external displays instead of 3, and at faster speeds
- The same size battery but with 7-9% less battery life
- A 96 watt power adapter, which also supports high power mode, vs a 70 watt adapter
- And a 2% heavier machine
The Max chip upgrade is incredibly expensive. If you count the memory upgrade cost as $200 and storage at $400, that means the M5 Max chip upgrade is $1000 more than the low-tier M5 Pro, or $800 extra from the high-tier M5 Pro.
For that, it’s mostly the extra graphics, and potentially AI, power you are paying for, besides the extra video encoder and memory bandwidth. So only get the M5 Max if you have such needs.
And if you do, seriously consider putting in the extra $300 for the 16” model so you can get the most of the performance you paid for, along with all of the other extra benefits.
