MacBook Pro (14-inch, M5) vs MacBook Pro (14-inch, M1 Pro, 2021)
Quick look
| Figure | MacBook Pro M51 | MacBook Pro M1 Pro2 |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £1,9993last Apple UK store price | £1,8994launch price |
| Chip | M5chip | M1 Prochip |
| CPU | 10-coreCPU | 8-coreCPU |
| GPU | 10-coreGPU | 14-coreGPU |
| Memory | 16GBunified memory, base | 16GBunified memory, base |
| Storage | 1TB5storage, base | 512GBstorage, base |
| Battery life | Up to24 hrsvideo playback, claimed | Up to17 hrsvideo playback, claimed |
| Released | 22 October 20256ReleasedIn Apple Stores; pre-order from 15 October 2025. | 26 October 20214ReleasedIn select Apple Stores; orderable online from 18 October 2021. |
| Security updates | Not available7Security updates | Not available7Security updates |
- Price
- The MacBook Pro M5 is £1,999 as Apple’s last UK store price, per Apple UK Store (archived 5 October 2026); the MacBook Pro M1 Pro is £1,899 at launch, per Apple Newsroom (UK).
True to scale
Footprints from above, 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
| Specification | MacBook Pro M51 | MacBook Pro M1 Pro2 |
|---|---|---|
| Dimensions | 15.5 x 312.6 x 221.2 mm | 15.5 x 312.6 x 221.2 mm |
| Weight | 1.55 kg | 1.6 kg |
| Colours | Space Black, Silver | Silver, Space Gray |
| Ports | Three Thunderbolt 4 (USB-C) ports, HDMI port, SDXC card slot, MagSafe 3 port, 3.5mm headphone jack | Three Thunderbolt 4 (USB-C) ports, MagSafe 3 port, HDMI port, SDXC card slot, 3.5 mm headphone jack |
| Thunderbolt ports | 3 | 3 |
| Thunderbolt version | Thunderbolt 4 | Thunderbolt 4 |
| USB-A ports | No USB-A ports.8 | No USB-A ports.9 |
| HDMI | HDMI port | HDMI port |
| SD card slot | Yes | Yes |
| Headphone jack | Yes | Yes |
| MagSafe | Yes | Yes |
| Keyboard | Backlit Magic Keyboard with Touch ID | Backlit Magic Keyboard with Touch ID |
| Touch ID | Yes | Yes |
| Touch Bar | No Touch Bar.10 | No Touch Bar.11 |
Display
| Specification | MacBook Pro M51 | MacBook Pro M1 Pro2 |
|---|---|---|
| Display size | 14.2 in | 14.2 in |
| Resolution | 3024 x 1964 | 3024 x 1964 |
| Pixel density | 254 ppi | 254 ppi |
| Display type | Liquid Retina XDR display | Liquid Retina XDR display |
| Brightness | Not available12 | 500 nits |
| Brightness (SDR, outdoor) | 1,000 nits13 | Not available14 |
| Peak brightness (HDR) | 1,600 nits | 1,600 nits |
| Refresh rate | 120 Hz | 120 Hz |
| Wide colour (P3) | Yes | Yes |
| Nano-texture option | Yes | No nano-texture display option.11 |
Chip and memory
| Specification | MacBook Pro M51 | MacBook Pro M1 Pro2 |
|---|---|---|
| Chip | Apple M5 chip | Apple M1 Pro chip |
| Apple silicon | Yes | Yes |
| CPU cores | 10 | 8 |
| Super cores | 413 | Not available15 |
| Performance cores | Not available16 | 6 |
| Efficiency cores | 613 | 2 |
| GPU cores | 10 | 14 |
| Neural Engine cores | 16 | 16 |
| Chip options | M5 with 10-core CPU and 10-core GPU17 | M1 Pro with 8-core CPU and 14-core GPU, M1 Pro with 10-core CPU and 14-core GPU, or M1 Pro with 10-core CPU and 16-core GPU18 |
| Memory (base) | 16GB | 16GB |
| Memory (maximum) | 32GB | 32GB18 |
| Memory options | 16GB, 24GB or 32GB | 16GB or 32GB18 |
| Memory upgradeable by user | No, as Apple documents19 | No, as Apple documents19 |
| Memory bandwidth | 153 GB/s | 200 GB/s |
| Storage (base) | 1TB5 | 512GB |
| Storage (maximum) | 4TB | 8TB18 |
| Storage options | 512GB, 1TB, 2TB or 4TB | 512GB, 1TB, 2TB, 4TB or 8TB18 |
| Media engine | Hardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes and ProRes RAWvideo decode enginevideo encode engineProRes encode and decode engineAV1 decode | Hardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes, and ProRes RAWvideo decode enginevideo encode engineProRes encode and decode engine |
Battery and power
| Specification | MacBook Pro M51 | MacBook Pro M1 Pro2 |
|---|---|---|
| Battery capacity | 72.4 Wh | 70 Wh |
| Rated charge cycles | 1,000 cycles20 | 1,000 cycles20 |
| Video playback (claimed)21 | 24 h | 17 h |
| Wireless web (claimed) | 16 h | 11 h |
| Included power adapter | No power adapter in the box.10 | 67 W |
| Fast charging | Yes | Yes |
Connectivity
| Specification | MacBook Pro M51 | MacBook Pro M1 Pro2 |
|---|---|---|
| Wi-Fi | Wi‑Fi 6E (802.11ax) | 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 |
| Bluetooth | 5.3 | 5.0 |
| Ethernet | No Ethernet port.10 | No Ethernet port.11 |
| External displays (base) | 2 | 2 |
Camera and audio
| Specification | MacBook Pro M51 | MacBook Pro M1 Pro2 |
|---|---|---|
| Camera | 12MP Center Stage camera with support for Desk View | 1080p FaceTime HD camera |
| Camera resolution | 12 MP | Not available22 |
| Speakers | High-fidelity six-speaker sound system with force-cancelling woofers | High-fidelity six-speaker sound system with force-cancelling woofers |
| Microphones | Studio-quality three-mic array with high signal-to-noise ratio and directional beamforming23 | Studio-quality three-mic array with high signal-to-noise ratio and directional beamforming |
Platform
| Specification | MacBook Pro M51 | MacBook Pro M1 Pro2 |
|---|---|---|
| Shipped with | Not available24 | macOS Monterey25 |
| Newest macOS | macOS 27 Golden Gate26 | macOS 27 Golden Gate26 |
| Model identifier | Mac17,227 | MacBookPro18,3, MacBookPro18,428 |
| Model year | 2025 | 2021 |
Sources
Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (14-inch, M5) - Tech Specs ·
↩Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (14-inch, 2021) - Technical Specifications ·
↩- ↩
Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils game-changing MacBook Pro ·
↩Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple introduces MacBook Pro with all-new M5 Pro and M5 Max ·
↩Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils new 14‑inch MacBook Pro powered by the M5 chip ·
↩Security updates: no end date published.
↩MacBook Pro (14-inch, M5): No USB-A ports.
↩MacBook Pro (14-inch, M1 Pro, 2021): No USB-A ports.
↩MacBook Pro (14-inch, M5): No Touch Bar. No power adapter in the box. No Ethernet port.
↩MacBook Pro (14-inch, M1 Pro, 2021): No Touch Bar. No nano-texture display option. No Ethernet port.
↩Doesn’t apply: Apple’s one SDR brightness figure is the outdoor one
↩Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (14-inch, M5) - Tech Specs ·
↩Doesn’t apply: Apple lists no outdoor brightness for this display
↩Doesn’t apply: this chip has no super cores
↩Apple names this chip’s cores differently: 4 super cores, 6 efficiency cores
↩Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (14-inch, M5) - Tech Specs ·
↩Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (14-inch, 2021) - Technical Specifications ·
↩Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro: how to remove or install memory ·
↩Apple Support (UK) — Determine battery cycle count for Mac laptops ·
↩Two different Apple tests. MacBook Pro M5: Video streaming. MacBook Pro M1 Pro: Apple TV app movie playback.
↩Not published by Apple (Apple states resolution: 1080p FaceTime HD camera)
↩Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (14-inch, M5) - Tech Specs ·
↩Not published by Apple.
↩Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils game-changing MacBook Pro ·
↩Apple Support (UK) — macOS 27 Golden Gate is compatible with these computers ·
↩Apple Support (UK) — Identify your MacBook Pro model ·
↩Apple Support (UK) — Identify your MacBook Pro model ·
↩Geekbench Browser (Primate Labs) ·
↩
Not published by Apple
MacBook Pro M5. Apple doesn’t publish for this Mac: storage upgradeable by user. Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (14-inch, M5) - Tech Specs; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils new 14‑inch MacBook Pro powered by the M5 chip; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your MacBook Pro model, read 9 Oct 2026.
MacBook Pro M1 Pro. Apple doesn’t publish for this Mac: storage upgradeable by user. Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (14-inch, 2021) - Technical Specifications, 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 MacBook Pro M5 (14-inch)? · Should I upgrade my MacBook Pro M1 Pro (14-inch, 2021)?
Other comparisons
The pairs a buyer of either Mac would also weigh. Any two Macs in the catalogue can be compared from the chooser.