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Mac Studio (M2 Max, 2023) vs MacBook Pro (16-inch, M2 Pro, 2023)

Mac Studio (M2 Max, 2023)1MacBook Pro (16-inch, M2 Pro, 2023)2

Quick look

Quick look: Mac Studio M2 Max against MacBook Pro M2 Pro
FigureMac Studio M2 Max1MacBook Pro M2 Pro2
Price£2,0993launch price£2,6994launch price
ChipM2 MaxchipM2 Prochip
CPU12-coreCPU12-coreCPU
GPU30-coreGPU19-coreGPU
Memory32GBunified memory, base16GBunified memory, base
Storage512GBstorage, base512GBstorage, base
Battery life Not available5No batteryUp to22 hrsvideo playback, claimed
Released13 June 20233ReleasedIn Apple Stores; orderable online from 5 June 2023.24 January 20234ReleasedIn Apple Stores; orderable online from 17 January 2023.
Security updatesNot available6Security updatesNot available6Security updates
Price
The Mac Studio M2 Max is £2,099 at launch, per Apple Newsroom (UK); the MacBook Pro M2 Pro is £2,699 at launch, per Apple Newsroom (UK).
Kind of Mac
The Mac Studio M2 Max is a desktop; the MacBook Pro M2 Pro is a laptop. The MacBook Pro M2 Pro has a built-in 16.2-inch display, a camera and a battery, whereas the Mac Studio M2 Max has none of them.

True to scale

Mac Studio (M2 Max, 2023) · 197 × 95 mm frontMacBook Pro (16-inch, M2 Pro, 2023) · 355.7 × 248.1 mm footprint

A desktop and a laptop are different shapes, so they stand side by side rather than superposed: the front face of one and the footprint of the other, from Apple’s published dimensions, at one scale. 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 Mac Studio (M2 Max, 2023) against Apple MacBook Pro (16-inch, M2 Pro, 2023)
SpecificationMac Studio M2 Max1MacBook Pro M2 Pro2
Dimensions95 x 197 x 197 mm16.8 x 355.7 x 248.1 mm
Weight2.7 kg2.15 kg
ColoursSilverSilver, Space Grey
PortsFour Thunderbolt 4 ports, two USB-A ports (up to 5Gb/s), HDMI port, 10Gb Ethernet, 3.5mm headphone jack; on front (M2 Max): two USB-C ports (up to 10Gb/s), SDXC card slot (UHS-II)Three Thunderbolt 4 (USB-C) ports, MagSafe 3 port, HDMI port, SDXC card slot, 3.5mm headphone jack
Thunderbolt ports43
Thunderbolt versionThunderbolt 4Thunderbolt 4
USB-A ports2No USB-A ports.7
HDMIHDMI portHDMI port
SD card slotYesYes
Headphone jackYesYes
MagSafeNot available8Yes
KeyboardNot available9Backlit Magic Keyboard with Touch ID
Touch IDNot available10Yes
Touch BarNot available11No Touch Bar.12

Display

Display: Apple Mac Studio (M2 Max, 2023) against Apple MacBook Pro (16-inch, M2 Pro, 2023)
SpecificationMac Studio M2 Max1MacBook Pro M2 Pro2
Display sizeNot available1316.2 in
ResolutionNot available133456 x 2234
Pixel densityNot available13254 ppi
Display typeNot available13Liquid Retina XDR display
BrightnessNot available13500 nits
Peak brightness (HDR)Not available131,600 nits
Refresh rateNot available13120 Hz
Wide colour (P3)Not available13Yes
Nano-texture optionNot available13No nano-texture display option.12

Chip and memory

Chip and memory: Apple Mac Studio (M2 Max, 2023) against Apple MacBook Pro (16-inch, M2 Pro, 2023)
SpecificationMac Studio M2 Max1MacBook Pro M2 Pro2
ChipApple M2 Max chipApple M2 Pro chip
Apple siliconYesYes
CPU cores1212
Performance cores88
Efficiency cores44
GPU cores3019
Neural Engine cores1616
Chip optionsM2 Max with 12-core CPU and 30-core GPU, or M2 Max with 12-core CPU and 38-core GPU14M2 Pro with 12-core CPU and 19-core GPU15
Memory (base)32GB16GB
Memory (maximum)96GB1432GB15
Memory options32GB, 64GB or 96GB (96GB with 38-core GPU)1416GB or 32GB15
Memory upgradeable by userNot available16No, as Apple documents17
Memory bandwidth400 GB/s200 GB/s
Storage (base)512GB512GB
Storage (maximum)8TB148TB15
Storage options512GB, 1TB, 2TB, 4TB or 8TB14512GB, 1TB, 2TB, 4TB or 8TB15
Media engineHardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes and ProRes RAWvideo decode enginetwo video encode enginestwo ProRes encode and decode enginesHardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes and ProRes RAWvideo decode enginevideo encode engineProRes encode and decode engine

Battery and power

Battery and power: Apple Mac Studio (M2 Max, 2023) against Apple MacBook Pro (16-inch, M2 Pro, 2023)
SpecificationMac Studio M2 Max1MacBook Pro M2 Pro2
Battery capacityNot available5100 Wh
Rated charge cyclesNot available51,000 cycles18
Video playback (claimed)Not available522 h
Wireless web (claimed)Not available515 h
Included power adapterNot available19140 W
Fast chargingNot available5Yes
Maximum continuous power370 WNot available20

Connectivity

Connectivity: Apple Mac Studio (M2 Max, 2023) against Apple MacBook Pro (16-inch, M2 Pro, 2023)
SpecificationMac Studio M2 Max1MacBook Pro M2 Pro2
Wi-FiWi-Fi 6E (802.11ax)Wi‑Fi 6E (802.11ax)
Bluetooth5.35.3
Ethernet10Gb Ethernet (Nbase-T Ethernet with support for 1Gb, 2.5Gb, 5Gb and 10Gb Ethernet using RJ-45 connector)No Ethernet port.12
External displays (base)52

Camera and audio

Camera and audio: Apple Mac Studio (M2 Max, 2023) against Apple MacBook Pro (16-inch, M2 Pro, 2023)
SpecificationMac Studio M2 Max1MacBook Pro M2 Pro2
CameraNot available211080p FaceTime HD camera
SpeakersBuilt-in speaker22High-fidelity six-speaker sound system with force-cancelling woofers
MicrophonesNot available16Studio-quality three-mic array with high signal-to-noise ratio and directional beamforming

Platform

Platform: Apple Mac Studio (M2 Max, 2023) against Apple MacBook Pro (16-inch, M2 Pro, 2023)
SpecificationMac Studio M2 Max1MacBook Pro M2 Pro2
Shipped withmacOS Ventura23Not available24
Newest macOSmacOS 27 Golden Gate25macOS 27 Golden Gate25
Model identifierMac14,1326Mac14,6, Mac14,1027
Model year20232023

Sources

  1. Apple Support (UK) — Mac Studio (2023) - Tech Specs · Default for Mac Studio M2 Max · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  2. Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2023) - Tech Specs · Default for MacBook Pro M2 Pro · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  3. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils new Mac Studio and brings Apple silicon to Mac Pro · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  4. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils MacBook Pro featuring M2 Pro and M2 Max · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  5. Doesn’t apply: no battery

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

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  7. MacBook Pro (16-inch, M2 Pro, 2023): No USB-A ports. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2023) - Tech Specs. Read 15 Sep 2026

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  8. Doesn’t apply: MagSafe is a notebook charging port

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  9. Doesn’t apply: no built-in keyboard

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  10. Doesn’t apply: no built-in keyboard, and Touch ID is a keyboard feature

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  11. Doesn’t apply: the Touch Bar was only fitted to MacBook Pro

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  12. MacBook Pro (16-inch, M2 Pro, 2023): No Touch Bar. No nano-texture display option. No Ethernet port. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2023) - Tech Specs. Read 9 Oct 2026

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  13. Doesn’t apply: no built-in display

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  14. Apple Support (UK) — Mac Studio (2023) - Tech Specs · Apple’s figure · read 2 Oct 2026

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  15. Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2023) - Tech Specs · Apple’s figure · read 2 Oct 2026

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  16. Not published by Apple. Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — Mac Studio (2023) - Tech Specs; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils new Mac Studio and brings Apple silicon to Mac Pro; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your Mac Studio model. Read 9 Oct 2026

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  17. Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro: how to remove or install memory · Apple’s figure · read 18 Oct 2026

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  18. Apple Support (UK) — Determine battery cycle count for Mac laptops · Apple’s figure · read 15 Oct 2026

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  19. Doesn’t apply: internal power supply, no power adapter in the box

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  20. Doesn’t apply: a notebook lists its power adapter, not a maximum continuous power

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  21. Doesn’t apply: no built-in camera

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  22. Apple Support (UK) — Mac Studio (2023) - Tech Specs · Apple’s figure · read 9 Oct 2026

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  23. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils new Mac Studio and brings Apple silicon to Mac Pro · Apple’s figure · read 9 Oct 2026

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  24. Not published by Apple. Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2023) - Tech Specs; Identify your MacBook Pro model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils MacBook Pro featuring M2 Pro and M2 Max. Read 9 Oct 2026

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

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  26. Apple Support (UK) — Identify your Mac Studio model · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  27. Apple Support (UK) — Identify your MacBook Pro model · Apple’s figure · read 9 Oct 2026

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Not published by Apple

Mac Studio M2 Max. Apple doesn’t publish for this Mac: storage upgradeable by user. Geekbench 7: the Mac chart lists the Mac Studio M2 Max only with a 38-core GPU, not the 30-core GPU this Mac has, so no figures are shown (chart read 10 Oct 2026). Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — Mac Studio (2023) - Tech Specs; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils new Mac Studio and brings Apple silicon to Mac Pro; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your Mac Studio model, read 9 Oct 2026.

MacBook Pro M2 Pro. Apple doesn’t publish for this Mac: storage upgradeable by user. Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2023) - Tech Specs; Identify your MacBook Pro model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils MacBook Pro featuring M2 Pro and M2 Max, 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 Mac Studio M2 Max (2023)? · Should I upgrade my MacBook Pro M2 Pro (16-inch, 2023)?

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