MacBook Pro (16-inch, M1 Max, 2021) vs MacBook Pro (16-inch, M1 Pro, 2021)
Quick look
| Figure | MacBook Pro M1 Max1 | MacBook Pro M1 Pro2 |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £3,2993launch price | £2,3994launch price |
| Chip | M1 Max5chip | M1 Prochip |
| CPU | 10-coreCPU | 10-coreCPU |
| GPU | 32-core5GPU | 16-coreGPU |
| Memory | 32GBunified memory, base | 16GBunified memory, base |
| Storage | 1TBstorage, base | 512GBstorage, base |
| Battery life | Up to21 hrsvideo playback, claimed | Up to21 hrsvideo playback, claimed |
| Released | 26 October 20216ReleasedIn select Apple Stores; orderable online from 18 October 2021. | 26 October 20214ReleasedIn select Apple Stores; orderable online from 18 October 2021. |
| Security updates | Not available7Security updates | Not available8Security updates |
- Price
- The MacBook Pro M1 Max is £3,299 at launch, per Apple UK Store (archived 20 October 2021); the MacBook Pro M1 Pro is £2,399 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 M1 Max1 | MacBook Pro M1 Pro2 |
|---|---|---|
| Dimensions | 16.8 x 355.7 x 248.1 mm | 16.8 x 355.7 x 248.1 mm |
| Weight | 2.2 kg | 2.1 kg |
| Colours | Silver, Space Gray | Silver, Space Gray |
| Ports | Three Thunderbolt 4 (USB-C) ports, HDMI port, SDXC card slot, MagSafe 3 port, 3.5 mm 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.9 | No USB-A ports.10 |
| 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.11 | No Touch Bar.12 |
Display
| Specification | MacBook Pro M1 Max1 | MacBook Pro M1 Pro2 |
|---|---|---|
| Display size | 16.2 in | 16.2 in |
| Resolution | 3456 x 2234 | 3456 x 2234 |
| Pixel density | 254 ppi | 254 ppi |
| Display type | Liquid Retina XDR display | Liquid Retina XDR display |
| Brightness | 500 nits | 500 nits |
| Peak brightness (HDR) | 1,600 nits | 1,600 nits |
| Refresh rate | 120 Hz | 120 Hz |
| Wide colour (P3) | Yes | Yes |
| Nano-texture option | No nano-texture display option.11 | No nano-texture display option.12 |
Chip and memory
| Specification | MacBook Pro M1 Max1 | MacBook Pro M1 Pro2 |
|---|---|---|
| Chip | Apple M1 Max chip5 | Apple M1 Pro chip |
| Apple silicon | Yes | Yes |
| CPU cores | 10 | 10 |
| Performance cores | 8 | 8 |
| Efficiency cores | 2 | 2 |
| GPU cores | 325 | 16 |
| Neural Engine cores | 16 | 16 |
| Chip options | M1 Max with 10-core CPU and 24-core GPU, or M1 Max with 10-core CPU and 32-core GPU | M1 Pro with 10-core CPU and 16-core GPU5 |
| Memory (base) | 32GB | 16GB |
| Memory (maximum) | 64GB | 32GB5 |
| Memory options | 32GB or 64GB | 16GB or 32GB5 |
| Memory upgradeable by user | No, as Apple documents13 | No, as Apple documents13 |
| Memory bandwidth | 400 GB/s | 200 GB/s |
| Storage (base) | 1TB | 512GB |
| Storage (maximum) | 8TB | 8TB5 |
| Storage options | 1TB, 2TB, 4TB or 8TB | 512GB, 1TB, 2TB, 4TB or 8TB5 |
| Media engine | Hardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes, and ProRes RAWvideo decode enginetwo video encode enginestwo ProRes encode and decode engines | Hardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes, and ProRes RAWvideo decode enginevideo encode engineProRes encode and decode engine |
Battery and power
| Specification | MacBook Pro M1 Max1 | MacBook Pro M1 Pro2 |
|---|---|---|
| Battery capacity | 100 Wh | 100 Wh |
| Rated charge cycles | 1,000 cycles14 | 1,000 cycles14 |
| Video playback (claimed) | 21 h | 21 h |
| Wireless web (claimed) | 14 h | 14 h |
| Included power adapter | 140 W | 140 W |
| Fast charging | Yes | Yes |
Connectivity
| Specification | MacBook Pro M1 Max1 | MacBook Pro M1 Pro2 |
|---|---|---|
| Wi-Fi | 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 | 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 |
| Bluetooth | 5.0 | 5.0 |
| Ethernet | No Ethernet port.11 | No Ethernet port.12 |
| External displays (base) | 4 | 2 |
Camera and audio
| Specification | MacBook Pro M1 Max1 | MacBook Pro M1 Pro2 |
|---|---|---|
| Camera | 1080p FaceTime HD camera | 1080p FaceTime HD camera |
| 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 beamforming15 | Studio-quality three-mic array with high signal-to-noise ratio and directional beamforming |
Platform
| Specification | MacBook Pro M1 Max1 | MacBook Pro M1 Pro2 |
|---|---|---|
| Shipped with | macOS Monterey16 | macOS Monterey16 |
| Newest macOS | macOS 27 Golden Gate17 | macOS 27 Golden Gate18 |
| Model identifier | MacBookPro18,1, MacBookPro18,219 | MacBookPro18,1, MacBookPro18,219 |
| Model year | 2021 | 2021 |
Sources
Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2021) - Technical Specifications ·
↩Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2021) - Technical Specifications ·
↩- ↩
Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils game-changing MacBook Pro ·
↩Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2021) - Technical Specifications ·
↩Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils game-changing MacBook Pro ·
↩Security updates: no end date published.
↩Security updates: no end date published.
↩MacBook Pro (16-inch, M1 Max, 2021): No USB-A ports.
↩MacBook Pro (16-inch, M1 Pro, 2021): No USB-A ports.
↩MacBook Pro (16-inch, M1 Max, 2021): No Touch Bar. No nano-texture display option. No Ethernet port.
↩MacBook Pro (16-inch, M1 Pro, 2021): No Touch Bar. No nano-texture display option. No Ethernet port.
↩Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro: how to remove or install memory ·
↩Apple Support (UK) — Determine battery cycle count for Mac laptops ·
↩Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2021) - Technical Specifications ·
↩Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils game-changing MacBook Pro ·
↩Apple Support (UK) — macOS 27 Golden Gate is compatible with these computers ·
↩Apple Support (UK) — macOS 27 Golden Gate is compatible with these computers ·
↩Apple Support (UK) — Identify your MacBook Pro model ·
↩
Not published by Apple
MacBook Pro M1 Max. Apple doesn’t publish for this Mac: storage upgradeable by user. 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) — MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2021) - Technical Specifications, read 9 Oct 2026.
MacBook Pro M1 Pro. Apple doesn’t publish for this Mac: storage upgradeable by user. Geekbench 7: the Mac chart's only 16-inch (2021) M1 Pro entry lists 10 GPU cores, not the 16 this Mac has, so no figures are shown (chart read 10 Oct 2026). Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (16-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 M1 Max (16-inch, 2021)? · Should I upgrade my MacBook Pro M1 Pro (16-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.