Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) vs Apple A9

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CPU comparison with benchmarks


Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) CPU1 vs CPU2 Apple A9
Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) Apple A9

CPU comparison

Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) or Apple A9 - which processor is faster? In this comparison we look at the differences and analyze which of these two CPUs is better. We compare the technical data and benchmark results.

The Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) has 6 cores with 6 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 3.23 GHz. Up to 6 GB of memory is supported in 1 memory channels. The Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) was released in Q3/2021.

The Apple A9 has 2 cores with 2 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 1.85 GHz. The CPU supports up to 2 GB of memory in 1 memory channels. The Apple A9 was released in Q3/2015.
Apple A series (22) Family Apple A series (22)
Apple A15 (2) CPU group Apple A9/A9X (2)
15 Generation 9
A15 Architecture A9
Mobile Segment Mobile
-- Predecessor Apple A8
-- Successor Apple A10 Fusion

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

The Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) is a 6 core processor with a clock frequency of 3.23 GHz. The Apple A9 has 2 CPU cores with a clock frequency of 1.85 GHz.

Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) Characteristic Apple A9
6 Cores 2
6 Threads 2
hybrid (big.LITTLE) Core architecture normal
No Hyperthreading No
No Overclocking ? No
3.23 GHz
2x Avalanche
A-Core 1.85 GHz
2x Twister
2.02 GHz
4x Blizzard
B-Core --

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

Processors with the support of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) can process many calculations, especially audio, image and video processing, much faster than classic processors. Algorithms for ML improve their performance the more data they have collected via software. ML tasks can be processed up to 10,000 times faster than with a classic processor.

Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) Characteristic Apple A9
Apple Neural Engine AI hardware --
16 Neural cores @ 15.8 TOPS AI specifications --

Internal Graphics

The integrated graphics unit of a processor is not only responsible for the pure image output on the system, but can also significantly increase the efficiency of the system with the support of modern video codecs.

Apple A15 (4 GPU Cores) GPU Apple A9
1.34 GHz GPU frequency 0.65 GHz
-- GPU (Turbo) --
12 GPU Generation 6
5 nm Technology 16 nm
3 Max. displays 1
16 Compute units 24
512 Shader 192
No Hardware Raytracing No
No Frame Generation No
6 GB Max. GPU Memory 4 GB
-- DirectX Version --

Hardware codec support

A photo or video codec that is accelerated in hardware can greatly accelerate the working speed of a processor and extend the battery life of notebooks or smartphones when playing videos.

Apple A15 (4 GPU Cores) GPU Apple A9
Decode / Encode Codec h265 / HEVC (8 bit) No
Decode / Encode Codec h265 / HEVC (10 bit) No
Decode / Encode Codec h264 Decode
Decode / Encode Codec VP9 No
Decode / Encode Codec VP8 Decode
No Codec AV1 No
Decode Codec AVC Decode
Decode Codec VC-1 Decode
Decode / Encode Codec JPEG Decode / Encode

Memory & PCIe

The Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) supports a maximum of 6 GB of memory in 1 memory channels. The Apple A9 can connect up to 2 GB of memory in 1 memory channels.

Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) Characteristic Apple A9
LPDDR4X-4266 Memory LPDDR4-3200
6 GB Max. Memory 2 GB
1 (Single Channel) Memory channels 1 (Single Channel)
34.1 GB/s Max. Bandwidth 25.6 GB/s
No ECC No
16.00 MB L2 Cache 3.00 MB
32.00 MB L3 Cache 4.00 MB
-- PCIe version --
-- PCIe lanes --
-- PCIe Bandwidth --

Thermal Management

The TDP (Thermal Design Power) of a processor specifies the required cooling solution. The Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) has a TDP of 7.25 W, that of the Apple A9 is 5 W.

Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) Characteristic Apple A9
7.25 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) 5 W
-- TDP (PL2) --
-- TDP up --
-- TDP down --
-- Tjunction max. --

Technical details

The Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) has a 48.00 MB cache, while the Apple A9 cache has a total of 7.00 MB.

Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) Characteristic Apple A9
5 nm Technology 16 nm
Chiplet Chip design Chiplet
Armv8-A (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) Armv8-A (64 bit)
-- ISA extensions --
-- Socket --
None Virtualization None
No AES-NI No
iOS Operating systems iOS
Q3/2021 Release date Q3/2015
-- Release price --
show more data show more data


Rate these processors

Here you can rate the Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) to help other visitors make their purchasing decisions. The average rating is 4.0 stars (2 ratings). Rate now:
Here you can rate the Apple A9 to help other visitors make their purchasing decisions. The average rating is 5.0 stars (1 ratings). Rate now:


Average performance in benchmarks

⌀ Single core performance in 2 CPU benchmarks
⌀ Multi core performance in 2 CPU benchmarks

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Single-Core)

Geekbench 5 is a cross plattform benchmark that heavily uses the systems memory. A fast memory will push the result a lot. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.
Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU)
6C 6T @ 3.23 GHz
1745 (100%)
Apple A9 Apple A9
2C 2T @ 1.85 GHz
558 (32%)

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Multi-Core)

Geekbench 5 is a cross plattform benchmark that heavily uses the systems memory. A fast memory will push the result a lot. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.
Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU)
6C 6T @ 3.23 GHz
4777 (100%)
Apple A9 Apple A9
2C 2T @ 1.85 GHz
1024 (21%)

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. What is new is an optimized utilization of newer CPU architectures, e.g. based on the big.LITTLE concept and combining CPU cores of different sizes. The single-core benchmark only evaluates the performance of the fastest CPU core, the number of CPU cores in a processor is irrelevant here.
Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU)
6C 6T @ 3.23 GHz
2245 (100%)
Apple A9 Apple A9
2C 2T @ 1.85 GHz
632 (28%)

Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. What is new is an optimized utilization of newer CPU architectures, e.g. based on the big.LITTLE concept and combining CPU cores of different sizes. The multi-core benchmark evaluates the performance of all of the processor's CPU cores. Virtual thread improvements such as AMD SMT or Intel's Hyper-Threading have a positive impact on the benchmark result.
Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU)
6C 6T @ 3.23 GHz
5402 (100%)
Apple A9 Apple A9
2C 2T @ 1.85 GHz
921 (17%)

iGPU - FP32 Performance (Single-precision GFLOPS)

The theoretical computing performance of the internal graphics unit of the processor with simple accuracy (32 bit) in GFLOPS. GFLOPS indicates how many billion floating point operations the iGPU can perform per second.
Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU)
Apple A15 (4 GPU Cores) @ 1.34 GHz
1370 (100%)
Apple A9 Apple A9
Apple A9 @ 0.65 GHz
250 (18%)

AnTuTu 9 Benchmark

The AnTuTu 9 benchmark is very well suited to measuring the performance of a smartphone. AnTuTu 9 is quite heavy on 3D graphics and can now also use the "Metal" graphics interface. In AnTuTu, memory and UX (user experience) are also tested by simulating browser and app usage. AnTuTu version 9 can compare any ARM CPU running on Android or iOS. Devices may not be directly comparable when benchmarked on different operating systems.

In the AnTuTu 9 benchmark, the single-core performance of a processor is only slightly weighted. The rating is made up of the multi-core performance of the processor, the speed of the working memory, and the performance of the internal graphics.
Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU)
6C 6T @ 3.23 GHz
806250 (100%)
Apple A9 Apple A9
2C 2T @ 1.85 GHz
0 (0%)

AnTuTu 8 Benchmark

The AnTuTu 8 Benchmark measures the performance of a SoC. AnTuTu benchmarks the CPU, GPU, Memory as well as the UX (User Experience) by simulating browser and app usage. AnTuTu can benchmark any ARM CPU that runs under Android or iOS. Devices may not be directly compareable if the benchmark has been performed under different operating systems.

In the AnTuTu 8 benchmark, the single-core performance of a processor is only slightly weighted. The evaluation consists of the multi-core performance of the processor, the speed of the RAM and the performance of the internal graphics.
Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU)
6C 6T @ 3.23 GHz
0 (0%)
Apple A9 Apple A9
2C 2T @ 1.85 GHz
172160 (100%)

Estimated results for PassMark CPU Mark

Some of the CPUs listed below have been benchmarked by CPU-monkey. However the majority of CPUs have not been tested and the results have been estimated by a CPU-monkey’s secret proprietary formula. As such they do not accurately reflect the actual Passmark CPU mark values and are not endorsed by PassMark Software Pty Ltd.
Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU)
6C 6T @ 3.23 GHz
0 (0%)
Apple A9 Apple A9
2C 2T @ 1.85 GHz
2053 (100%)

Performance for Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML)

Processors with the support of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) can process many calculations, especially audio, image and video processing, much faster than classic processors. The performance is given in the number (trillions) of arithmetic operations per second (TOPS).
Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU)
6C 6T @ 3.23 GHz
15.8 (100%)
Apple A9 Apple A9
2C 2T @ 1.85 GHz
0 (0%)

Devices using this processor

Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) Apple A9
Apple iPhone 13 mini
Apple iPhone 13
Apple iPhone 6s
Apple iPhone SE (1. Gen)

News and articles for the Apple A15 Bionic (4-GPU) and the Apple A9


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