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Apple M2 Max vs Apple M5: Comparison
Apple M2 Max and Apple M5 differ on cache: Apple M2 Max at 36MB L2 + 4MB L1, Apple M5 at 16MB L2 + 4MB L1, which puts Apple M2 Max ahead on that measure. In Blender Cycles (CPU) the Apple M5 scores 275 against 261 for the Apple M2 Max, a lead of 5%.
Specs
| Specification |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Brand | Apple | Apple |
| Form Factor | Laptop | Laptop |
| Model Number | M2 Max | M5 |
| Core/Thread Count | 12 Core / 12 Thread (8 Performance + 4 Efficiency) | 10 Core / 10 Thread (4 Performance + 6 Efficiency) |
| TDP | 30 W | 22 W |
| Cache | 36MB L2 + 4MB L1 | 16MB L2 + 4MB L1 |
| Series | Apple Silicon | Apple Silicon |
| CPU Process Node | 5 Nanometers | 3 Nanometers (Enhanced) |
| Architecture | Apple Silicon, Second Generation | Apple Silicon, Fifth Generation |
Benchmarks
Measured results, not specifications. Percentages are the gap to the leading product in each test.
Blender Cycles (CPU)
Blender 4.5, Blender Open Data (CC0). Median of monster + junkshop + classroom, combined samples/min.
Blender renders 3D scenes by tracing light through them, which loads every core at once. The score measures sustained multi-core throughput, so a chip that wins here can still lose at gaming, where one or two fast cores matter more. Figures come from Blender's Open Data project, which places no restriction on reuse, and we publish the median of every submission for that chip on the same Blender version.