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Apple - M4 Ultra vs AMD - Ryzen 5 9600X

Last updated · How Mars Score works
M4 UltraAPPLERENDER
Probe A
Apple
M4 Ultra
63.1/ 100C
Cores54· 40%
Benchmarks72· 40%
Platform—· 20%
Ryzen 5 9600XAMDRENDER
Probe B
AMD
Ryzen 5 9600X
48.8/ 100D
Cores51· 40%
Benchmarks47· 40%
Platform—· 20%
Quick verdict

Between the M4 Ultra and Ryzen 5 9600X, the M4 Ultra comes out ahead in cores and cinebench r23 (multi), while the Ryzen 5 9600X wins on tdp and boost clock. Overall, the M4 Ultra scores 63.1 and the Ryzen 5 9600X scores 48.8 on our Mars Score.

Buying advice

Which should you buy?

The M4 Ultra is the clear pick on raw spec strength, leading by 14.3 points on the Mars Score. The margin is wide enough that the underdog only makes sense if its individual strengths line up with what you specifically need.

Pick the M4 Ultra if you push the hardware — gaming, on-device AI, heavy multitasking — and the extra compute headroom is worth the trade-offs. The biggest gaps in its favor are cores, cinebench r23 (multi), l3 cache.

Pick the Ryzen 5 9600X if you care most about tdp and boost clock. Its strongest claims are tdp, boost clock.

There are no meaningful ties on the headline specs — every popular-comparison metric has a winner.

Bottom line: the M4 Ultra is the safer default. The other model is the right choice only when its specific advantages line up with your priorities.

Why Apple - M4 Ultra wins

  • ▲Cores — 433.33% more. 32 vs 6.
  • ▲Cinebench R23 (multi) — 202.30% more. 52600 vs 17400.
  • ▲L3 cache — 100.00% more. 64 MB vs 32 MB.

Why AMD - Ryzen 5 9600X wins

  • ▲TDP — 55.00 W less. 65 vs 120.
  • ▲Boost clock — 20.00% more. 5.4 GHz vs 4.5 GHz.
Full readout

Spec comparison

Cores

SpecApple - M4 UltraAMD - Ryzen 5 9600X
Coresⓘ32lead6
Threadsⓘ32lead12
Base clockⓘ0 GHz3.9 GHzlead
Boost clockⓘ4.5 GHz5.4 GHzlead
L3 cacheⓘ64 MBlead32 MB

Platform

SpecApple - M4 UltraAMD - Ryzen 5 9600X
SocketⓘSolderedAM5
TDPⓘ120 W65 Wlead
Integrated graphicsⓘtruetrue
DDR5ⓘtruetrue

Benchmarks

SpecApple - M4 UltraAMD - Ryzen 5 9600X
Cinebench R23 (multi)ⓘ52600lead17400
Cinebench R23 (single)ⓘ2290lead2110
Reader questions

Frequently asked

Drill down

Spec-level deep dives

Cores→Threads→Base clock→Boost clock→L3 cache→Socket→TDP→Integrated graphics→DDR5→Cinebench R23 (multi)→Cinebench R23 (single)→
By manufacturer

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