Xeon 6960P vs Apple M5 Pro 18-Core
Aggregate performance score
Xeon 6960P outperforms M5 Pro 18-Core by a whopping 129% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Contents
Primary details
Comparing processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in the ranking | 175 | 17 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Market segment | Laptop | Server |
| Power efficiency | no data | 6.30 |
| Designer | Apple | Intel |
| Manufacturer | no data | Intel |
| Architecture codename | no data | Granite Rapids (2024−2026) |
| Release date | 3 March 2026 (less than a year ago) | 24 September 2024 (1 year ago) |
Detailed specifications
Basic parameters of M5 Pro 18-Core and Xeon 6960P: number of cores, number of threads, base frequency and turbo boost clock, lithography, cache size and multiplier lock state. These parameters indirectly say of CPU speed, though for more precise assessment you have to consider their test results.
| Physical cores | 18 (Octadeca-Core) | 72 (Doheptaconta-Core) |
| Threads | 18 | 144 |
| Base clock speed | no data | 2.7 GHz |
| Boost clock speed | 4.61 GHz | 3.9 GHz |
| L1 cache | no data | 112 KB (per core) |
| L2 cache | 32 MB | 2 MB (per core) |
| L3 cache | 24 MB | 432 MB (shared) |
| Chip lithography | 3 nm | Intel 3 nm |
| Maximum case temperature (TCase) | no data | 80 °C |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
Compatibility
Information on M5 Pro 18-Core and Xeon 6960P compatibility with other computer components: motherboard (look for socket type), power supply unit (look for power consumption) etc. Useful when planning a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. Note that power consumption of some processors can well exceed their nominal TDP, even without overclocking. Some can even double their declared thermals given that the motherboard allows to tune the CPU power parameters.
| Number of CPUs in a configuration | no data | 2 |
| Socket | no data | FCLGA7529 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | no data | 500 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by M5 Pro 18-Core and Xeon 6960P. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| Instruction set extensions | no data | Intel® AMX, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX, Intel® AVX2, Intel® AVX-512 |
| AES-NI | - | + |
| AVX | - | + |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | no data | + |
| Speed Shift | no data | + |
| Turbo Boost Technology | no data | 2.0 |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | no data | + |
| TSX | - | + |
| Deep Learning Boost | - | + |
Security technologies
M5 Pro 18-Core and Xeon 6960P technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | no data | + |
| EDB | no data | + |
| SGX | no data | + |
| OS Guard | no data | + |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by M5 Pro 18-Core and Xeon 6960P are enumerated here.
| VT-d | no data | + |
| VT-x | no data | + |
| EPT | no data | + |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by M5 Pro 18-Core and Xeon 6960P. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | no data | DDR5(6400MT/s), MRDIMM(8800MT/s) |
| Maximum memory size | no data | 3 TB |
| Max memory channels | no data | 12 |
| ECC memory support | - | + |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card | no data | N/A |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by M5 Pro 18-Core and Xeon 6960P.
| PCIe version | no data | 5.0 |
| PCI Express lanes | no data | 96 |
Synthetic benchmarks
Various benchmark results of the processors in comparison. Overall score is measured in points in 0-100 range, higher is better.
Combined synthetic benchmark score
This is our combined benchmark performance rating.
Passmark
Passmark CPU Mark is a widespread benchmark, consisting of 8 different types of workload, including integer and floating point math, extended instructions, compression, encryption and physics calculation. There is also one separate single-threaded scenario measuring single-core performance. Other than that, Passmark measures multi-core performance.
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 33.02 | 75.51 |
| Recency | 3 March 2026 | 24 September 2024 |
| Physical cores | 18 | 72 |
| Threads | 18 | 144 |
Apple M5 Pro 18-Core has an age advantage of 1 year.
Xeon 6960P, on the other hand, has a 129% higher aggregate performance score, and 300% more physical cores and 700% more threads.
The Intel Xeon 6960P is our recommended choice as it beats the Apple M5 Pro 18-Core in performance tests.
Be aware that Apple M5 Pro 18-Core is a notebook processor while Xeon 6960P is a server/workstation one.
Other comparisons
We've compiled a selection of CPU comparisons, ranging from closely matched processors to other comparisons that may be of interest.
