Apple M3 vs Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU)

CPU comparison with benchmarks

Apple M3		Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU)
CPU comparison Apple M3 or Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU) - 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 M3 has 8 cores with 8 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 4.06 GHz. Up to 24 GB of memory is supported in 2 memory channels. The Apple M3 was released in Q4/2023. The Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU) has 10 cores with 10 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 3.50 GHz. The CPU supports up to 32 GB of memory in 2 memory channels. The Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU) was released in Q1/2023.
Apple M series (23)	Family	Apple M series (23)
Apple M3 (6)	CPU group	Apple M2 (8)
3	Generation	2
M3	Architecture	M2
Mobile	Segment	Mobile
Apple M2	Predecessor	Apple M1 Pro (10-CPU 14-GPU)
--	Successor	Apple M3 Pro (11-CPU 14-GPU)
CPU Cores and Base Frequency The Apple M3 has 8 CPU cores and can calculate 8 threads in parallel. The clock frequency of the Apple M3 is 0.70 GHz (4.06 GHz) while the Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU) has 10 CPU cores and 10 threads can calculate simultaneously. The clock frequency of the Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU) is at 0.66 GHz (3.50 GHz).
Apple M3	Characteristic	Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU)
8	Cores	10
8	Threads	10
hybrid (big.LITTLE)	Core architecture	hybrid (big.LITTLE)
No	Hyperthreading	No
No	Overclocking ?	No
0.70 GHz (4.06 GHz) 4x P-Core	A-Core	0.66 GHz (3.50 GHz) 6x Avalanche
0.74 GHz (2.75 GHz) 4x E-Core	B-Core	0.60 GHz (2.42 GHz) 4x Blizzard
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 M3	Characteristic	Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU)
Apple Neural Engine	AI hardware	Apple Neural Engine
16 Neural cores @ 35 TOPS	AI specifications	16 Neural cores @ 15.8 TOPS
Internal Graphics The Apple M3 or Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU) has integrated graphics, called iGPU for short. The iGPU uses the system's main memory as graphics memory and sits on the processor's die.
Apple M3 (10 Core)	GPU	Apple M2 Pro (16 Core)
0.39 GHz	GPU frequency	0.45 GHz
1.40 GHz	GPU (Turbo)	1.40 GHz
3	GPU Generation	2
3 nm	Technology	5 nm
2	Max. displays	3
160	Compute units	256
1280	Shader	2048
Yes	Hardware Raytracing	No
No	Frame Generation	No
24 GB	Max. GPU Memory	32 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 M3 (10 Core)	GPU	Apple M2 Pro (16 Core)
Decode / Encode	Codec h265 / HEVC (8 bit)	Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode	Codec h265 / HEVC (10 bit)	Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode	Codec h264	Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode	Codec VP9	Decode / Encode
Decode	Codec VP8	Decode
Decode	Codec AV1	No
Decode	Codec AVC	Decode
Decode	Codec VC-1	Decode
Decode / Encode	Codec JPEG	Decode / Encode

Memory & PCIe The Apple M3 can use up to 24 GB of memory in 2 memory channels. The maximum memory bandwidth is 102.4 GB/s. The Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU) supports up to 32 GB of memory in 2 memory channels and achieves a memory bandwidth of up to 102.4 GB/s.
Apple M3	Characteristic	Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU)
LPDDR5-6400	Memory	LPDDR5-6400
24 GB	Max. Memory	32 GB
2 (Dual Channel)	Memory channels	2 (Dual Channel)
102.4 GB/s	Max. Bandwidth	102.4 GB/s
No	ECC	No
20.00 MB	L2 Cache	28.00 MB
--	L3 Cache	--
4.0	PCIe version	4.0
--	PCIe lanes	--
--	PCIe Bandwidth	--
Thermal Management The thermal design power (TDP for short) of the Apple M3 is 22 W, while the Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU) has a TDP of 30 W. The TDP specifies the necessary cooling solution that is required to cool the processor sufficiently.
Apple M3	Characteristic	Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU)
22 W	TDP (PL1 / PBP)	30 W
--	TDP (PL2)	--
--	TDP up	--
15 W	TDP down	--
100 °C	Tjunction max.	100 °C
Technical details The Apple M3 is manufactured in 3 nm and has 20.00 MB cache. The Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU) is manufactured in 5 nm and has a 28.00 MB cache.
Apple M3	Characteristic	Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU)
3 nm	Technology	5 nm
Chiplet	Chip design	Chiplet
Armv8-A (64 bit)	Instruction set (ISA)	Armv8.5-A (64 bit)
Rosetta 2 x86-Emulation	ISA extensions	Rosetta 2 x86-Emulation
--	Socket	--
Apple Virtualization Framework	Virtualization	Apple Virtualization Framework
Yes	AES-NI	Yes
macOS, iPadOS	Operating systems	macOS, iPadOS
Q4/2023	Release date	Q1/2023
--	Release price	--
show more data		show more data
Apple M3 8C 8T @ 0.70 GHz (4.06 GHz) buy now on Amazon and save! Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU) 10C 10T @ 0.66 GHz (3.50 GHz) buy now on Amazon and save!

Devices using this processor
Apple M3	Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU)
Apple iMac 24 (2023)	Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023) Apple mac mini (2023)

Comparison of the two processors

In this CPU comparison we look at the Apple M3 and the Apple M2 Pro with 10 CPU cores and 16 iGPU cores. Like its predecessors (Apple M1 and Apple M2), the Apple M3 again relies on 8 CPU cores, which are available in a hybrid core design. 4 fast P-cores are replaced by another 4 E-cores, which are smaller and slower but work more efficiently.

The structure of the Apple M2 Pro with 10 CPU cores is quite similar. It has 6 large P-cores which are also complemented by 4 economical E-cores. The clock frequency here is up to 3.5 GHz, the Apple M3 achieves a slightly higher clock frequency of 4.06 GHz.

As is typical for Apple, both processors cannot be overclocked and can only process one thread per CPU core at the same time. Both processors also have hardware-accelerated AI, which reaches 35 TOPS in the Apple M3. The Apple M2 Pro (10 CPU 16 GPU) also has 16 AI cores, but these can only calculate just under 16 TOPS.

The processors' integrated graphics cards differ primarily in the number of execution units and texture shaders; the graphics frequency is identical at 1.4 GHz for both processors. The iGPU of the Apple M3 has a theoretical computing power of 3.55 TFLOPS, that of the Apple M2 Pro even achieves 5.68 TFLOPS.

This means that both graphics solutions are quite fast and would even be suitable for some computer games. However, macOS' game support is very limited, so you don't have a very large selection of computer games here.

Apple was able to further increase the efficiency of the newer Apple M3 compared to the Apple M2 Pro. Under full load, the Apple M3 achieved 474 points (10,437 Cinebench R23 multi-core points with a CPU package power of 22 watts). The Apple M2 Pro has 12,125 CB R23 points with 30 watts of CPU package power, which results in a score of 404.

Popular comparisons containing this CPUs

1.		Apple M3 vs Intel Core i9-13900H
2.		Apple M1 vs Apple M3
3.		Apple M3 vs Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU)
4.		Apple M3 vs Apple M1 Pro (8-CPU)
5.		Apple M3 vs Apple M2 (8-GPU)
6.		Apple M2 vs Apple M3
7.		Apple M2 Pro (12-CPU 19-GPU) vs Apple M2 Pro (10-CPU 16-GPU)
8.		Apple M3 vs Intel Core i9-14900K
9.		Apple M3 vs Intel Core i9-13900K
10.		Apple M3 vs Intel Core i7-12850HX

back to index