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iMac (24-inch, M3, 2023, Four ports) vs iMac (24-inch, M1, 2021)

iMac (24-inch, M3, 2023, Four ports)1iMac (24-inch, M1, 2021)2

Quick look

Quick look: iMac M3 against iMac M1
FigureiMac M31iMac M12
Price£1,5993launch price£1,2494launch price
ChipM3chipM1chip
CPU8-coreCPU8-coreCPU
GPU10-coreGPU7-coreGPU
Memory8GBunified memory, base8GBunified memory, base
Storage256GBstorage, base256GBstorage, base
Display24-inchdisplay24-inchdisplay
Released7 November 20233ReleasedIn Apple Stores; orderable online from 30 October 2023.May 20215Release date, month onlyOrderable online from 30 April 2021.
Security updatesNot available6Security updatesNot available6Security updates
Price
The iMac M3 is £1,599 at launch, per Apple Newsroom (UK); the iMac M1 is £1,249 at launch, per Apple Newsroom (UK).

True to scale

iMac (24-inch, M3, 2023, Four ports) · 547 × 461 mm frontiMac (24-inch, M1, 2021) · 547 × 461 mm front

Front faces, from Apple’s published dimensions, drawn to one scale and superposed. Corner rounding is our drawing convention, not a measurement.

Specifications

Each figure is from the source marked by its Mac’s name unless it carries its own small number, which links to where that figure was read.

Body

Body: Apple iMac (24-inch, M3, 2023, Four ports) against Apple iMac (24-inch, M1, 2021)
SpecificationiMac M31iMac M12
Dimensions461 x 547 x 147 mm461 x 547 x 147 mm
Weight4.48 kg4.46 kg
ColoursBlue, Green, Pink, Silver, Yellow, Orange, PurpleBlue, Green, Pink, Silver7
PortsTwo Thunderbolt / USB 4 ports, two USB 3 ports (up to 10Gb/s), 3.5 mm headphone jack, Gigabit EthernetTwo Thunderbolt / USB 4 ports, 3.5mm headphone jack
Thunderbolt ports22
Thunderbolt versionThunderbolt 3Thunderbolt 3
USB-A portsNot available8No USB-A ports.9
HDMINo HDMI port.10No HDMI port.11
SD card slotNo SD card slot.10No SD card slot.11
Headphone jackYesYes
KeyboardMagic Keyboard with Touch IDMagic Keyboard
Touch IDYesNo Touch ID.9

Display

Display: Apple iMac (24-inch, M3, 2023, Four ports) against Apple iMac (24-inch, M1, 2021)
SpecificationiMac M31iMac M12
Display size24 in24 in
Resolution4480 x 25204480 x 2520
Pixel density218 ppi218 ppi
Display type4.5K Retina display4.5K Retina display
Brightness500 nits500 nits
Wide colour (P3)YesYes
Nano-texture optionNo nano-texture display option.10No nano-texture display option.11

Chip and memory

Chip and memory: Apple iMac (24-inch, M3, 2023, Four ports) against Apple iMac (24-inch, M1, 2021)
SpecificationiMac M31iMac M12
ChipApple M3 chipApple M1 chip
Apple siliconYesYes
CPU cores88
Performance cores44
Efficiency cores44
GPU cores107
Neural Engine cores1616
Chip optionsM3 with 8-core CPU and 10-core GPUM1 with 8-core CPU and 7-core GPU or 8-core GPU
Memory (base)8GB8GB
Memory (maximum)24GB16GB
Memory options8GB, 16GB or 24GB8GB or 16GB
Memory upgradeable by userNo, as Apple documents12No, as Apple documents12
Memory bandwidth100 GB/sNot available13
Storage (base)256GB256GB
Storage (maximum)2TB2TB
Storage options256GB, 512GB, 1TB or 2TB256GB, 512GB, 1TB or 2TB
Media engineHardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes and ProRes RAWvideo decode enginevideo encode engineProRes encode and decode engineAV1 decodeNot available13

Battery and power

Battery and power: Apple iMac (24-inch, M3, 2023, Four ports) against Apple iMac (24-inch, M1, 2021)
SpecificationiMac M31iMac M12
Included power adapter143 W14143 W

Connectivity

Connectivity: Apple iMac (24-inch, M3, 2023, Four ports) against Apple iMac (24-inch, M1, 2021)
SpecificationiMac M31iMac M12
Wi-FiWi‑Fi 6E (802.11ax)802.11ax Wi-Fi 6
Bluetooth5.35.0
EthernetGigabit EthernetGigabit Ethernet configurable15
External displays (base)11

Camera and audio

Camera and audio: Apple iMac (24-inch, M3, 2023, Four ports) against Apple iMac (24-inch, M1, 2021)
SpecificationiMac M31iMac M12
Camera1080p FaceTime HD camera1080p FaceTime HD camera
SpeakersHigh-fidelity six-speaker system with force-cancelling woofersHigh-fidelity six-speaker system with force-cancelling woofers
MicrophonesStudio-quality three-mic array with high signal-to-noise ratio and directional beamformingStudio-quality three-mic array with high signal-to-noise ratio and directional beamforming

Platform

Platform: Apple iMac (24-inch, M3, 2023, Four ports) against Apple iMac (24-inch, M1, 2021)
SpecificationiMac M31iMac M12
Newest macOSmacOS 27 Golden Gate16macOS 27 Golden Gate16
Model identifierMac15,517iMac21,218
Model year20232021

Benchmarks

Benchmarks: Apple iMac (24-inch, M3, 2023, Four ports) against Apple iMac (24-inch, M1, 2021)
SpecificationiMac M31iMac M12
Geekbench 7 (CPU, single-core)2,748192,16819
Geekbench 7 (CPU, multi-core)11,671198,36519

Sources

  1. Apple Support (UK) — iMac (24-inch, 2023, Four ports) - Tech Specs · Default for iMac M3 · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  2. Apple Support (UK) — iMac (24-inch, M1, 2021) - Technical Specifications · Default for iMac M1 · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  3. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple supercharges 24-inch iMac with new M3 chip · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  4. Apple Newsroom (UK) — iMac features all-new design in vibrant colours, M1 chip, and 4.5K Retina display · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  5. Apple Newsroom (UK) — iMac features all-new design in vibrant colours, M1 chip, and 4.5K Retina display · Apple’s figure · read 3 Oct 2026

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  6. Security updates: no end date published. Checked: endoflife.date. Read 22 Sep 2026

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  7. Apple Support (UK) — Identify your iMac model · Apple’s figure · read 2 Oct 2026

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  8. Not published by Apple. Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — iMac (24-inch, 2023, Four ports) - Tech Specs; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your iMac model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple supercharges 24-inch iMac with new M3 chip. Read 9 Oct 2026

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  9. iMac (24-inch, M1, 2021): No USB-A ports. No Touch ID. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — iMac (24-inch, M1, 2021) - Technical Specifications. Read 15 Sep 2026

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  10. iMac (24-inch, M3, 2023, Four ports): No HDMI port. No SD card slot. No nano-texture display option. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — iMac (24-inch, 2023, Four ports) - Tech Specs. Read 9 Oct 2026

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  11. iMac (24-inch, M1, 2021): No HDMI port. No SD card slot. No nano-texture display option. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — iMac (24-inch, M1, 2021) - Technical Specifications. Read 9 Oct 2026

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  12. Apple Support (UK) — Install memory in an iMac · Apple’s figure · read 18 Oct 2026

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  13. Not published by Apple. Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — iMac (24-inch, M1, 2021) - Technical Specifications; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your iMac model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — iMac features all-new design in vibrant colours, M1 chip, and 4.5K Retina display. Read 9 Oct 2026

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  14. Apple Support (UK) — iMac (24-inch, 2023, Four ports) - Tech Specs · Apple’s figure · read 9 Oct 2026

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  15. Apple Support (UK) — iMac (24-inch, M1, 2021) - Technical Specifications · Apple’s figure · read 11 Oct 2026

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  16. Apple Support (UK) — macOS 27 Golden Gate is compatible with these computers · Apple’s figure · read 22 Sep 2026

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  17. Apple Support (UK) — Identify your iMac model · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  18. Apple Support (UK) — Identify your iMac model · Apple’s figure · read 10 Oct 2026

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  19. Geekbench Browser (Primate Labs) · third-party figure · read 11 Oct 2026

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Not published by Apple

iMac M3. Apple doesn’t publish for this Mac: refresh rate, storage upgradeable by user, maximum continuous power, the macOS it shipped with. Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — iMac (24-inch, 2023, Four ports) - Tech Specs; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your iMac model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple supercharges 24-inch iMac with new M3 chip, read 9 Oct 2026.

iMac M1. Apple doesn’t publish for this Mac: refresh rate, storage upgradeable by user, maximum continuous power, the macOS it shipped with. Geekbench 7 Metal: the Mac chart row for this Mac does not state its GPU core count, so no Metal score is shown (chart read 10 Oct 2026). Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — iMac (24-inch, M1, 2021) - Technical Specifications; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your iMac model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — iMac features all-new design in vibrant colours, M1 chip, and 4.5K Retina display, read 9 Oct 2026.

If you own one of them

Whether to move is a different question from which is better. Each Mac has a page on it: what its successor changes (the newest Mac in its line where Apple sells one, otherwise the Mac this site treats as its replacement, which can be in another line), what it fetches and whether it still gets updates. Should I upgrade my iMac M3 (24-inch, 2023, Four ports)? · Should I upgrade my iMac M1 (24-inch, 2021)?

The pairs a buyer of either Mac would also weigh. Any two Macs in the catalogue can be compared from the chooser.