Apple’s New Mac Studio Is the Most Powerful Mac Ever

Mar 05, 2025

Jeremy Gray

A person in a bright green shirt works at a desk with two large monitors displaying video editing software. A Mac mini and multiple peripherals are on the desk, and the room has wooden accents and low lighting.

Alongside the new MacBook Air, Apple announced its most powerful Mac ever, the M4 Max-powered Mac Studio.

Featuring the M4 Max announced last fall and all-new M3 Ultra chip, the new Mac Studio desktop promises “groundbreaking pro performance” and better connectivity. Thunderbolt 5 has arrived in the Mac Studio, empowering users to deliver transfer speeds up to 120 Gb/s, up to three times faster than the prior generation. Thunderbolt 5 enables users to connect an external expansion chassis to their Mac Studio. Those using the M3 Ultra Mac Studio can connect up to eight Pro Display XDRs at full 6K resolution.

Apple calls the Mac Studio an AI powerhouse, “capable of running large language model (LLMs) with over 600 billion parameters entirely in memory.” The Mac Studio with M3 Ultra supports up to 512GB of unified memory, the most ever in a personal computer — not just a Mac, but any personal computer.

The Mac Studio comes with either the M4 Max or the brand-new M3 Ultra

“The new Mac Studio is the most powerful Mac we’ve ever made,” says John Ternus, Apple’s senior vice president of Hardware Engineering.

“A complete game-changer for pros around the world — powering both home and pro studios — Mac Studio sits in a class of its own, offering a staggering amount of performance in a compact, quiet design that fits beautifully on your desk. With this new Mac Studio, we’re delivering even more extreme performance with M4 Max and M3 Ultra, support for half a terabyte of unified memory, up to 16TB of superfast storage, and Thunderbolt 5 connectivity. Mac Studio truly is the ultimate pro desktop.”

A person sits at a keyboard in a music studio, facing two computer monitors displaying music production software. A "RECORDING" sign and speakers are on the desk. Papers and electronic devices are on the wooden desk.

While the M3 Ultra gets high marks for its unified memory and connectivity performance, there is much more to it than that. The brand-new M3 Ultra delivers nearly twice as much performance as the M4 Max in CPU- and GPU-intensive workloads. It is also up to 2.6 times faster than the Mac Studio with M1 Ultra and 6.4 times faster than the 16-core Intel Xeon W-based Mac Pro.

M3 Ultra features up to 32 CPU cores, 24 of which are performance cores. This is another record for Mac, and 50 percent more than the M2 Ultra. M3 Ultra has up to an 80-core GPU, yet another record.

Mac Studio with M3 Ultra starts with 96GB of unified memory, configurable up to 512GB, and up to 16TB of SSD storage. Apple notes that that’s enough space for over 12 hours of 8K ProRes video. Speaking of video, the new Mac Studio with M3 Ultra is up to 1.4 times faster with 8K video rendering in Final Cut Pro compared to the Mac Studio with M1 Ultra and up to four times faster than the most powerful Intel-based Mac Pro.

A sleek computer monitor displays graphic design software, showing an image of a person in futuristic red clothing and sunglasses. The setup includes a compact silver computer and a modern, minimalist stand.

Although the M3 Ultra is a record-setting chip, the Mac Studio with M4 Max is no slouch. Apple positions it as the “perfect choice” for photographers, video editors, and other creative pros. The M4 Max features an up to 16-core CPU and up to 40 GPU cores. It is up to 3.5 times faster than the Mac Studio with M1 Max and up to 6.1 times faster than the most powerful Intel-based 27-inch iMac.

Mac Studio with M4 Max starts with 36GB of unified memory, although it supports up to 128GB.

The M4 Max features two ProRes accelerators, driving “outstanding” 4K ProRes video editing capabilities. It is up to 1.6 times faster in Photoshop compared to the Mac Studio with M1 Max, and up to 2.9 times faster than the most powerful Intel-baed iMac. It promises significantly speedier video performance as well.

A large computer monitor displaying 3D modeling and rendering software interfaces sits atop a sleek, minimalist silver stand. Below the monitor is a compact, silver desktop computer with ventilation and ports. The screen shows colorful digital designs.

Pricing and Availability

The Mac Studio starts at $1,999 and is available to order today ahead of release on March 12.

The base model features an M4 Max chip with a 14-core CPU, 32-core GPU, 36GB of unified memory, and 512GB of SSD storage. It features two USB-C ports on the front alongside an SD card slot, plus four Thunderbolt 5, two USB-A, HDMI, and 10Gb Ethernet ports on the rear. This machine supports up to five displays.

Front view of a compact, silver computer unit. It features a minimalist design with a smooth surface. The lower section is perforated for ventilation, while the front has two narrow vertical slots and a circular power indicator.

Rear view of a silver computer with perforated metal design. Visible ports include Thunderbolt, USB-C, USB-A, HDMI, Ethernet, and a power button on the right side. A power connector is centrally located.

The M3 Ultra Mac Studio starts at $3,999 and comes standard with 96GB of unified memory and 1TB of storage. This chip has a 28-core CPU and a 60-core GPU. It trades in its two front USB-C ports for a pair of Thunderbolt 5 ports, joining the same arrangement of rear ports, bringing it to six Thunderbolt 5 ports. The machine supports up to eight displays in total.

If someone wants the ultimate Mac Studio power, including the most powerful M3 Ultra with 32 CPU cores and 80 GPU cores, plus 512GB of memory and a 16TB SSD, the price skyrockets to an eye-watering $14,099. The most powerful Mac ever does not come cheap.

Image credits: Apple