The whole point of upgrading the MacBook Pro with the new M5 Pro or M5 Max processors is to boost performance. Although Apple has yet to announce the new high-speed chip variants, we can still make solid estimates of the increase to be expected. Spoiler alert: WOW.
Here’s the hefty CPU and GPU performance jumps to expect from the upcoming M5 Pro and M5 Max processors.
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M5 Pro and M5 Max build out Apple’s latest processor family
Apple launched the M5 in the fall, and even put it into a MacBook Pro, but only the base variant was available at the time. Still, it brought a nice boost in performance over previous versions of the chip.
But that model is intended for executives who write a lot of emails and make Zoom calls, not graphics professionals. They need a more advanced version of the chip for video editing, 3D rendering and more.
That’s what the MacBook Pro with M5 Pro or M5 Max is for. But how much faster will they be than the versions from professionals current M4 family? We can make some educated estimates.
Performance: MacBook Pro with M5 Max could be fastest Mac yet
Just so there’s no confusion, Apple has so far said nothing about M5 Pro or M5 Max processors. But that hasn’t stopped the chips from appearing in numerous leaks and industry reports. All indications point to a release in the near future.
And given what we know about the base M5, and comparing its performance to previous M4 family of processors, we can project the speed of the upcoming versions, including when handling graphics .
By comparing the performance of the base M4 to that of the M4 Pro, taking what we know about the base M5 shows the M5 Pro could end up with a Geekbench 6 CPU score of about 23,800. That’s better than the M4 Max, the best chip available for the current top-of-the-line MacBook Pro.
And by comparing the base M4 performance to the M4 Max, the speed of the base M5 shows that the M5 Max could potentially earn a Geekbench 6 CPU score over 30,000. That would beat the Mac Studio with M3 Ultra, the current fastest Mac available!
Estimating the GPU performance of the upcoming processors by once again comparing differences in the Geekbench 6 Metal scores earned by M4 variants and extending that to the M5 family, the M5 Pro could score an unimpressive 148,000, but the M5 Max could have better graphics performance than the M3 Ultra.
While these M5 Max performance scores are jaw dropping, they can’t match what’s expected to come from the M4 Ultra in the next-gen Mac Studio.
Just don’t expect a redesign
Processor performance matters because all the reports on the next MacBook Pro version indicate that it will be a “chip-and-ship” update. Apple is anticipated to keep the same thin design with a 14-inch or 16-inch LCD and a range of ports.
Speaking of things not changing, there have been no rumors about a price hike. So expect the cost to start at $1,599.
As for the release date, Apple CEO Tim Cook teased on Thursday that we can expect new products to launch next week. There could be as many as five announcements in the days leading up to a “special Apple Experience” on March 4. It’s likely the MacBook Pro with M5 Pro or M5 Max will be part of this event.
The 14-inch MacBook Pro with M5 brings next-generation speed and powerful on-device AI to personal, professional and creative tasks. Featuring all-day battery life and a breathtaking Liquid Retina XDR display with up to 1600 nits peak brightness, it’s pro in every way.
Along with its faster CPU and unified memory, M5 features a more powerful GPU with a Neural Accelerator built into each core, delivering faster AI performance.
- Great single-core CPU performance
- Great GPU improvements
- Notably faster SSD speeds
- Excellent display and speaker system
- Same price as previous generation
- Identical design to 3 previous generations
- No Wi-Fi 7 or Thunderbolt 5
- Battery life unchanged from M4
- 16GB base RAM feels limiting for "Pro" machine in 2025.
Ed Hardy has been writing full-time about tech for 25 years, and using it for much longer than that. His intro to Apple was a Macintosh Classic II (which he still has), but now he uses a 13-inch iPad Pro as his primary computer. He’s written for NotebookReview, TabletPCReview, and Brighthand, as well as other sites.
