Follow us
Share link
Submit benchmark
VS
Apple M4 (10-CPU) vs Apple A18
Last updated:
Summary
The Apple M4 (10-CPU) and the Apple A18 were developed by Apple to meet different requirements in the field of mobile hardware.
The Apple M4 (10-CPU) is primarily used in tablets and compact computers, while the Apple A18 with the codename Donan was optimized for use in smartphones. Both chips use the 3 nm manufacturing process. The Apple M4 (10-CPU) is characterized by an architecture with 10 cores and a memory bandwidth of 120 GB/s.
It has 20 MB of Level 2 cache, but lacks a Level 3 cache. In comparison, the Apple A18 offers a memory bandwidth of 60 GB/s and 24 MB of Level 3 cache. In benchmarks, the Apple M4 (10-CPU) achieves higher single-core performance and significantly higher multi-core performance than the Apple A18.
In gaming scenarios, the Apple M4 (10-CPU) offers more stable performance due to the Apple M4 (10 Core) graphics unit with more cores. The Apple A18 (5 GPU Cores), on the other hand, is designed for the thermal conditions of compact smartphones. The thermal design of the Apple M4 (10-CPU) allows for higher sustained loads in larger housings, while the Apple A18 focuses on maximum energy efficiency.
Since both processors are built into fixed systems, the price-performance ratio depends on the respective end device. For computationally intensive applications, the Apple M4 (10-CPU) is the preferred choice. The Apple A18 is suitable for everyday mobile use where efficiency and low heat generation are important.
Overall, the Apple M4 (10-CPU) offers more performance reserves for professional software.
The Apple M4 (10-CPU) is primarily used in tablets and compact computers, while the Apple A18 with the codename Donan was optimized for use in smartphones. Both chips use the 3 nm manufacturing process. The Apple M4 (10-CPU) is characterized by an architecture with 10 cores and a memory bandwidth of 120 GB/s.
It has 20 MB of Level 2 cache, but lacks a Level 3 cache. In comparison, the Apple A18 offers a memory bandwidth of 60 GB/s and 24 MB of Level 3 cache. In benchmarks, the Apple M4 (10-CPU) achieves higher single-core performance and significantly higher multi-core performance than the Apple A18.
In gaming scenarios, the Apple M4 (10-CPU) offers more stable performance due to the Apple M4 (10 Core) graphics unit with more cores. The Apple A18 (5 GPU Cores), on the other hand, is designed for the thermal conditions of compact smartphones. The thermal design of the Apple M4 (10-CPU) allows for higher sustained loads in larger housings, while the Apple A18 focuses on maximum energy efficiency.
Since both processors are built into fixed systems, the price-performance ratio depends on the respective end device. For computationally intensive applications, the Apple M4 (10-CPU) is the preferred choice. The Apple A18 is suitable for everyday mobile use where efficiency and low heat generation are important.
Overall, the Apple M4 (10-CPU) offers more performance reserves for professional software.
Apple M4 (10-CPU)
- Manufacturing in 3 nm process for high efficiency
- Memory bandwidth of 120 GB/s
- Integrated Apple M4 (10 Core) graphics
- High multi-core performance for demanding tasks
Apple A18
- Efficient 3 nm architecture with codename Donan
- Integrated Level 3 cache of 24 MB
- Integrated Apple A18 (5 GPU Cores) graphics
- Optimized for use in compact smartphones
Benchmarks
Performance Overview
Average performance across multiple benchmarks
Single-core performance
Multi-core performance
Geekbench 6 Single-Core
Single-core performance
Apple M4 (10-CPU)
100 %
10C / 10T · 4.46 GHz
Apple A18
89 %
6C / 6T · 4.04 GHz
Geekbench 6 Multi-Core
Multi-core performance
Apple M4 (10-CPU)
100 %
10C / 10T · 0.91 GHz
Apple A18
56 %
6C / 6T · 4.04 GHz
iGPU - FP32 Performance (Single-precision GFLOPS)
Apple M4 (10-CPU)
100 %
Apple M4 (10 Core)
Apple A18
50 %
Apple A18 (5 GPU Cores)
AI performance (NPU)
Apple M4 (10-CPU)
100 %
10C / 10T · 0.91 GHz
Apple A18
100 %
6C / 6T · 0.70 GHz
More benchmarks
Cinebench 2026 (ST)
218 entries
218 entries
Cinebench 2026 (MC)
219 entries
219 entries
Cinebench 2024 (SC)
427 entries
427 entries
Cinebench 2024 (MC)
422 entries
422 entries
Cinebench R23 (SC)
690 entries
690 entries
Cinebench R23 (MC)
665 entries
665 entries
Geekbench 6 (SC)
1,989 entries
1,989 entries
Geekbench 6 (MC)
1,927 entries
1,927 entries
Geekbench 5 (SC)
2,512 entries
2,512 entries
Geekbench 5 (MC)
2,483 entries
2,483 entries
FP32 SP (iGPU)
2,219 entries
2,219 entries
PassMark CPU-Mark
2,504 entries
2,504 entries
CPU performance per watt (efficiency)
140 entries
140 entries
AI performance (NPU)
218 entries
218 entries
Specifications
At a glance
|
Wischen
|
Apple M4 (10-CPU) | Apple A18 |
|---|---|---|
| Family | Apple M series (38) | Apple A series (27) |
| CPU group | Apple M4 (7) | Apple A18 (2) |
| Architecture | M4 | Donan |
| Technology | 3 nm | 3 nm |
| Segment | Notebook | Smartphone / Tablet |
| Socket | ||
| Predecessor | Apple M3 | Apple A16 Bionic |
| Successor | Apple M5 (10-CPU) | Apple A19 |
CPU Cores and Base Frequency
|
Wischen
|
Apple M4 (10-CPU) | Apple A18 |
|---|---|---|
| CPU Cores / Threads | 10 / 10 | 6 / 6 |
| Hyperthreading / SMT | ✗ | ✗ |
| Core architecture | hybrid (big.LITTLE) | hybrid (big.LITTLE) |
| Core Cluster 1: | 4x Donan P-Core 0.91 - 4.46 GHz |
2x Donan P-Core 0.70 - 4.04 GHz |
| Core Cluster 2: | 6x Donan E-Core 0.90 - 2.89 GHz |
4x Donan E-Core 0.74 - 2.30 GHz |
| L2-Cache | 20.00 MB | 20.00 MB |
| L3-Cache | 24.00 MB | |
| Overclocking | ✗ | ✗ |
Integrated graphics (iGPU)
|
Wischen
|
Apple M4 (10-CPU) | Apple A18 |
|---|---|---|
| GPU name | Apple M4 (10 Core) | Apple A18 (5 GPU Cores) |
| GPU frequency | 0.34 - 1.58 GHz | 0.39 - 1.68 GHz |
| CUs / Shader | 160 / 1280 | 20 / 640 |
| Raytracing | ✓ | ✗ |
| Max. displays | 3 | 1 |
| Max. GPU Memory | 24 GB | 8 GB |
| Technology | 3 nm | 3 nm |
| Release date | Q2/2024 | Q3/2024 |
NPU AI performance
|
Wischen
|
Apple M4 (10-CPU) | Apple A18 |
|---|---|---|
| AI hardware | Apple Neural Engine | Apple Neural Engine |
| AI specifications | 16 Neural cores @ 38 TOPS | 16 Neural cores @ 38 TOPS |
| NPU + CPU + iGPU |
Memory & PCIe
|
Wischen
|
Apple M4 (10-CPU) | Apple A18 |
|---|---|---|
| Memory | LPDDR5X-7500 (120.0 GB/s) | LPDDR5X-7500 (60.0 GB/s) |
| Max. Memory | 32 GB | 8 GB |
| Memory channels | 2 | 1 |
| ECC | No | No |
| PCIe | 4.0 | |
| PCIe Bandwidth |
Thermal Management
|
Wischen
|
Apple M4 (10-CPU) | Apple A18 |
|---|---|---|
| TDP | 25 W | 12 W |
| TDP (PL2) | ||
| TDP up | ||
| TDP down | ||
| T. junction max. | 100 °C |
Technical details
|
Wischen
|
Apple M4 (10-CPU) | Apple A18 |
|---|---|---|
| Chip design | Monolithic | Chiplet |
| AES-NI | ✓ | ✗ |
| Operating systems | macOS, iPadOS | iOS |
| Instruction set | Armv9.2-A (64 bit) | Armv9-A (64 bit) |
| ISA extensions | Rosetta 2 x86-Emulation, AVX2, SME | |
| Release date | Q2/2024 | Q3/2024 |
| Release price | ||
| Documents | Technical data sheet |
User Reviews
Your rating
Here you can rate one or both of the processors. The average rating of Apple M4 (10-CPU) is 4.7 stars (613 ratings), while Apple A18 has received 4.0 stars (216 ratings).
Click on the stars to rate one or both processors.
Most popular CPUs in both categories
1
Apple M5 Max (18-CPU 32-GPU)
18C / 18T · 4.61 GHz
2
Apple M2 Ultra (76-GPU)
24C / 24T · 3.50 GHz
3
Apple M5 Max (18-CPU 40-GPU)
18C / 18T · 4.61 GHz
4
Apple M1 Ultra (64-GPU)
20C / 20T · 3.20 GHz
5
Apple M1 Ultra (48-GPU)
20C / 20T · 3.20 GHz
6
Apple M2 Ultra (60-GPU)
24C / 24T · 3.50 GHz
7
Apple M1 Pro (8-CPU)
8C / 8T · 3.20 GHz
8
Apple M4 (10-CPU)
10C / 10T · 4.46 GHz
9
Apple A18
6C / 6T · 4.04 GHz
Popular Comparisons
