Intel Core Ultra 5 226V vs Apple M3

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CPU comparison with benchmarks


Intel Core Ultra 5 226V CPU1 vs CPU2 Apple M3
Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Apple M3

CPU comparison

Intel Core Ultra 5 226V or Apple M3 - 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 Intel Core Ultra 5 226V has 8 cores with 8 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 4.50 GHz. Up to 16 GB of memory is supported in 2 memory channels. The Intel Core Ultra 5 226V was released in Q3/2024.

The Apple M3 has 8 cores with 8 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 4.06 GHz. The CPU supports up to 24 GB of memory in 2 memory channels. The Apple M3 was released in Q4/2023.
Intel Core Ultra 5 (20) Family Apple M series (30)
Intel Core Ultra 200V (9) CPU group Apple M3 (6)
2 Generation 3
Lunar Lake Architecture M3
Notebook Segment Notebook
-- Predecessor Apple M2
-- Successor Apple M4

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

The Intel Core Ultra 5 226V has 8 CPU cores and can calculate 8 threads in parallel. The clock frequency of the Intel Core Ultra 5 226V is 2.20 GHz (4.50 GHz) while the Apple M3 has 8 CPU cores and 8 threads can calculate simultaneously. The clock frequency of the Apple M3 is at 0.70 GHz (4.06 GHz).

Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Characteristic Apple M3
8 Cores 8
8 Threads 8
hybrid (big.LITTLE) Core architecture hybrid (big.LITTLE)
No Hyperthreading No
No Overclocking ? No
2.20 GHz (4.50 GHz)
4x Lion Cove
A-Core 0.70 GHz (4.06 GHz)
4x Ibiza P-Core
-- (3.50 GHz)
4x Skymont
B-Core 0.74 GHz (2.75 GHz)
4x Ibiza E-Core

NPU AI performance

The performance values of the processor's AI unit. The isolated NPU performance is specified here, the total AI performance (NPU+CPU+iGPU) can be higher. Processors with support for artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) can process many calculations, especially audio, image and video processing, much faster than classic processors.

Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Characteristic Apple M3
Intel® AI Boost AI hardware Apple Neural Engine
Intel AI Boost NPU 4 @ 40 TOPS AI specifications 16 Neural cores @ 35 TOPS
-- NPU + CPU + iGPU --

Integrated graphics (iGPU)

The Intel Core Ultra 5 226V or Apple M3 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.

Intel Arc 130V GPU Apple M3 (10 Core)
0.60 GHz GPU frequency 0.39 GHz
1.85 GHz GPU (Turbo) 1.40 GHz
-- GPU Generation 3
5 nm Technology 3 nm
3 Max. displays 2
56 Compute units 160
896 Shader 1280
Yes Hardware Raytracing Yes
Intel XeSS Frame Generation No
32 GB Max. GPU Memory 24 GB
12.2 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.

Intel Arc 130V GPU Apple M3 (10 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 Codec VP9 Decode / Encode
Decode Codec VP8 Decode
Decode / Encode Codec AV1 Decode
Decode / Encode Codec AVC Decode
Decode Codec VC-1 Decode
Decode / Encode Codec JPEG Decode / Encode

Memory & PCIe

The Intel Core Ultra 5 226V can use up to 16 GB of memory in 2 memory channels. The maximum memory bandwidth is 136.5 GB/s. The Apple M3 supports up to 24 GB of memory in 2 memory channels and achieves a memory bandwidth of up to 102.4 GB/s.

Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Characteristic Apple M3
LPDDR5X-8533 Memory LPDDR5-6400
16 GB Max. Memory 24 GB
2 (Dual Channel) Memory channels 2 (Dual Channel)
136.5 GB/s Max. Bandwidth 102.4 GB/s
No ECC No
14.00 MB L2 Cache 20.00 MB
8.00 MB L3 Cache --
5.0 PCIe version 4.0
8 PCIe lanes --
31.5 GB/s PCIe Bandwidth --

Thermal Management

The thermal design power (TDP for short) of the Intel Core Ultra 5 226V is 17 W, while the Apple M3 has a TDP of 22 W. The TDP specifies the necessary cooling solution that is required to cool the processor sufficiently.

Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Characteristic Apple M3
17 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) 22 W
37 W TDP (PL2) --
-- TDP up --
-- TDP down 15 W
110 °C Tjunction max. 100 °C

Technical details

The Intel Core Ultra 5 226V is manufactured in 3 nm and has 22.00 MB cache. The Apple M3 is manufactured in 3 nm and has a 20.00 MB cache.

Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Characteristic Apple M3
3 nm Technology 3 nm
Monolithic Chip design Chiplet
x86-64 (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) Armv8-A (64 bit)
SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AVX2 ISA extensions Rosetta 2 x86-Emulation
BGA 2833 Socket --
VT-x, VT-x EPT, VT-d Virtualization Apple Virtualization Framework
Yes AES-NI Yes
Windows 11, Linux Operating systems macOS, iPadOS
Q3/2024 Release date Q4/2023
-- Release price --
show more data show more data


Rate these processors

Here you can rate the Intel Core Ultra 5 226V to help other visitors make their purchasing decisions. The average rating is 4.4 stars (15 ratings). Rate now:
Here you can rate the Apple M3 to help other visitors make their purchasing decisions. The average rating is 4.7 stars (1460 ratings). Rate now:

Average performance in benchmarks

Single core performance in 3 CPU benchmarks
Intel Core Ultra 5 226V (85%)
Apple M3 (100%)
Multi core performance in 3 CPU benchmarks
Intel Core Ultra 5 226V (87%)
Apple M3 (100%)

Cinebench 2024 (Single-Core)

The Cinebench 2024 benchmark is based on the Redshift rendering engine, which is also used in Maxon's 3D program Cinema 4D. The benchmark runs are each 10 minutes long to test whether the processor is limited by its heat generation.
Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Intel Core Ultra 5 226V
8C 8T @ 4.50 GHz
113 (82%)
Apple M3 Apple M3
8C 8T @ 4.06 GHz
137 (100%)

Cinebench 2024 (Multi-Core)

The Multi-Core test of the Cinebench 2024 benchmark uses all cpu cores to render using the Redshift rendering engine, which is also used in Maxons Cinema 4D. The benchmark run is 10 minutes long to test whether the processor is limited by its heat generation.
Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Intel Core Ultra 5 226V
8C 8T @ 4.50 GHz
592 (90%)
Apple M3 Apple M3
8C 8T @ 4.06 GHz
659 (100%)

Cinebench R23 (Single-Core)

Cinebench R23 is the successor of Cinebench R20 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.
Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Intel Core Ultra 5 226V
8C 8T @ 4.50 GHz
1746 (89%)
Apple M3 Apple M3
8C 8T @ 4.06 GHz
1965 (100%)

Cinebench R23 (Multi-Core)

Cinebench R23 is the successor of Cinebench R20 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.
Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Intel Core Ultra 5 226V
8C 8T @ 2.20 GHz
9041 (87%)
Apple M3 Apple M3
8C 8T @ 4.06 GHz
10437 (100%)

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a partial load benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. In the single-core test, only the fastest CPU core is measured. The test run simulates the performance in practice.
Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Intel Core Ultra 5 226V
8C 8T @ 4.50 GHz
2585 (83%)
Apple M3 Apple M3
8C 8T @ 4.06 GHz
3125 (100%)

Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)

The practical Geekbench 6 multi-core benchmark tests the system's performance under partial load. The processor's maximum power consumption is far from being used up.
Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Intel Core Ultra 5 226V
8C 8T @ 2.20 GHz
10053 (85%)
Apple M3 Apple M3
8C 8T @ 4.06 GHz
11863 (100%)

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.
Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Intel Core Ultra 5 226V
Intel Arc 130V @ 1.85 GHz
5180 (100%)
Apple M3 Apple M3
Apple M3 (10 Core) @ 1.40 GHz
3550 (69%)

CPU performance per watt (efficiency)

Efficiency of the processor under full load in the Cinebench R23 (multi-core) benchmark. The benchmark result is divided by the average energy required (CPU package power in watts). The higher the value, the more efficient the CPU is under full load.
Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Intel Core Ultra 5 226V
9,041 CB R23 MC @ 31 W
292 (62%)
Apple M3 Apple M3
10,437 CB R23 MC @ 22 W
474 (100%)

AI performance (NPU)

The performance values of the processor's AI unit. The isolated NPU performance is given here, the total AI performance (NPU+CPU+iGPU) can be higher.

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).
Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Intel Core Ultra 5 226V
8C 8T @ 2.20 GHz
40 (100%)
Apple M3 Apple M3
8C 8T @ 0.70 GHz
35 (88%)

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.
Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Intel Core Ultra 5 226V
8C 8T @ 4.50 GHz
0 (0%)
Apple M3 Apple M3
8C 8T @ 4.06 GHz
2150 (100%)

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.
Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Intel Core Ultra 5 226V
8C 8T @ 2.20 GHz
0 (0%)
Apple M3 Apple M3
8C 8T @ 4.06 GHz
10450 (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.
Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Intel Core Ultra 5 226V
8C 8T @ 2.20 GHz
0 (0%)
Apple M3 Apple M3
8C 8T @ 4.06 GHz
18951 (100%)

Devices using this processor

Intel Core Ultra 5 226V Apple M3
Unknown Apple iMac 24 (2023)

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