Apple M6 12 Cores
vs
Apple M4 10 Cores

vs

CPU Comparison Result

Below are the results of a comparison of Apple M6 12 Cores and Apple M4 10 Cores processors based on key performance characteristics, as well as power consumption and much more.

Advantages

  • More Total Cores: 12 (12 vs 10)
  • Higher Technology: 2 nm (2 nm vs Second-generation 3 nm)
  • Newer Launch Date: August 2026 (August 2026 vs May 2024)
  • Higher Memory Type: LPDDR5X unified memory (Unified memory vs LPDDR5X unified memory)

Basic

Apple
Label Name
Apple
August 2026
Launch Date
May 2024
Laptop
Platform
Laptop
-
CPU Architecture
Apple custom ARM architecture
Apple M6
CPU Name
Apple M4
Apple M6 12 Cores
Model Name
?
The Intel processor number is just one of several factors - along with processor brand, system configurations, and system-level benchmarks - to be considered when choosing the right processor for your computing needs.
Apple M4 10-Core
TSMC N2
Foundry
TSMC
M6
Generation
M4

CPU Specifications

4.61 GHz
Performance-core Multi-Core Max Frequency
-
4.80 GHz
Super-core Max Frequency
-
12
Total Cores
?
Cores is a hardware term that describes the number of independent central processing units in a single computing component (die or chip).
10
12
Total Threads
?
Where applicable, Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology is only available on Performance-cores.
10
4
Performance-cores
4
6
Efficient-cores
6
2
Super-cores
-
-
Max Turbo Frequency
?
Max Turbo Frequency is the maximum single-core frequency at which the processor is capable of operating using Intel® Turbo Boost Technology and, if present, Intel® Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0 and Intel® Thermal Velocity Boost. Frequency is typically measured in gigahertz (GHz), or billion cycles per second.
4.46 GHz
3.20 GHz
Efficient-core Max Turbo Frequency
?
Maximum E-core turbo frequency derived from Intel® Turbo Boost Technology.
2.89 GHz
-
Performance-core Max Turbo Frequency
?
Maximum P-core turbo frequency derived from Intel® Turbo Boost Technology.
4.46 GHz
2 nm
Technology
?
Lithography refers to the semiconductor technology used to manufacture an integrated circuit, and is reported in nanometer (nm), indicative of the size of features built on the semiconductor.
Second-generation 3 nm
-
Transistor Count
28 billion

Memory Specifications

Unified memory
Memory Type
?
Intel® processors come in four different types: Single Channel, Dual Channel, Triple Channel, and Flex Mode. Maximum supported memory speed may be lower when populating multiple DIMMs per channel on products that support multiple memory channels.
LPDDR5X unified memory
10667 MT/s
LPDDR5 Speed
-
32 GB
Max Memory Size
?
Max memory size refers to the maximum memory capacity supported by the processor.
32 GB
170 GB/s
Max Memory Bandwidth
?
Max Memory bandwidth is the maximum rate at which data can be read from or stored into a semiconductor memory by the processor (in GB/s).
120 GB/s
-
Maximum Memory Speed
7500 MT/s

GPU Specifications

DisplayPort 1.4 over Thunderbolt 4; HDMI
External Display Standard
Thunderbolt / DisplayPort 1.4 over USB-C; HDMI
Apple M6 12-core GPU
GPU Name
Apple M4 10-core GPU
Supported
Hardware-accelerated ray tracing
Supported
Up to 8K at 60Hz or 5K at 120Hz or 4K at 240Hz
Max External Display Resolution
Up to 8K at 60Hz or 4K at 240Hz
H.264, HEVC, ProRes, ProRes RAW, AV1
Video Decode
H.264, HEVC, ProRes, ProRes RAW, AV1; hardware-accelerated; frame rate not disclosed
H.264, HEVC, ProRes, ProRes RAW
Video Encode
H.264, HEVC, ProRes, ProRes RAW; hardware-accelerated; frame rate not disclosed
12
Graphics Core Count
10
Up to 8K at 60Hz or 5K at 120Hz or 4K at 240Hz
Max Resolution
Up to 8K at 60Hz or 4K at 240Hz
3
Number of Displays Supported
-
-
GPU APIs
Metal
Hardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes and ProRes RAW; AV1 decode
Media Engine
Hardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes and ProRes RAW; AV1 decode
1
Video Decode Engines
1
1
Video Encode Engines
1
1
ProRes Encode/Decode Engines
1

AI Specifications

Dual 16-core Neural Engine; Neural Accelerators in each GPU core
AI Engine
Apple Neural Engine with next-generation ML accelerators
32
Neural Engine Core Count
16
Dual 16-core Neural Engine
NPU Name
16-core Neural Engine
-
NPU Performance
38 TOPS

Connectivity

-
Bluetooth Support
Supported
-
Bluetooth Version
5.3
-
Wi-Fi Standard
Wi-Fi 6E (802.11ax)

Interfaces and Ports

Thunderbolt 4
Thunderbolt Support
Thunderbolt 4
-
USB Version
USB 4 up to 40Gb/s
Supported
USB4 Support
USB4

Benchmarks

Geekbench 6 Single Core
Apple M6 12 Cores
4501 +20%
Apple M4 10 Cores
3747
Geekbench 6 Multi Core
Apple M6 12 Cores
21312 +42%
Apple M4 10 Cores
14978
Cinebench 2024 Single Core
Apple M6 12 Cores
220 +26%
Apple M4 10 Cores
174
Cinebench 2024 Multi Core
Apple M6 12 Cores
1368 +49%
Apple M4 10 Cores
921