Apple M5 Ultra (36-core) vs Intel Core i9-9900K
—Single-core40.4
—Multi-core41.2
52.5Gamingspec-based47.4
7 spec wins — Apple M5 Ultra (36-core)1 spec wins — Intel Core i9-9900K
InnoReviews verdict
No overall winner yet: Apple M5 Ultra (36-core) lacks the published benchmark results an Inno Score requires, so there is no Inno Score to compare — we don't rank chips on their spec sheet alone. The spec table below still shows every difference we track.
Which would you pick?
Key differences
Reasons to pick the Apple M5 Ultra (36-core)
- 350% higher cores: 36 vs 8
- 300% higher Max memory: 512 GB vs 128 GB
- 125% higher threads: 36 vs 16
- 79% lower process: 3 nm vs 14 nm
- 50% higher Performance cores: 12 vs 8
Reasons to pick the Intel Core i9-9900K
- Lower launch price: $488 vs $12,299
General
| Spec | Apple M5 Ultra (36-core) | Intel Core i9-9900K |
|---|---|---|
| Announced | 2026 | 2018 |
| Socket | — | LGA1151-v2 |
| Process | 3 nm+79% | 14 nm |
| Base TDP | — | 95 W |
| Max turbo power | — | 119 W |
| Unlocked multiplier | — | Yes |
| Cooler included | — | No |
Cores & Clocks
| Spec | Apple M5 Ultra (36-core) | Intel Core i9-9900K |
|---|---|---|
| Cores | 36+350% | 8 |
| Performance cores | 12+50% | 8 |
| Efficiency cores | 24 | 0 |
| Threads | 36+125% | 16 |
| Base clock | — | 3.6 GHz |
| Boost clock | 4.6 GHz | 5 GHz+9% |
| L2 cache | — | 2 MB |
| L3 cache | — | 16 MB |
Integrated GPU
| Spec | Apple M5 Ultra (36-core) | Intel Core i9-9900K |
|---|---|---|
| iGPU | Apple 80-core GPU | Intel UHD Graphics 630 |
| iGPU clock | — | 1,200 MHz |
Memory
| Spec | Apple M5 Ultra (36-core) | Intel Core i9-9900K |
|---|---|---|
| Memory support | — | DDR4-2666 |
| Max memory | 512 GB+300% | 128 GB |
| Memory channels | — | 2 |
Platform
| Spec | Apple M5 Ultra (36-core) | Intel Core i9-9900K |
|---|---|---|
| PCIe version | — | 3 |
| CPU PCIe lanes | — | 16 |
Benchmarks
| Spec | Apple M5 Ultra (36-core) | Intel Core i9-9900K |
|---|---|---|
| Geekbench 6 (single) | — | 1,720Bottom 42% |
| Geekbench 6 (multi) | — | 8,800Bottom 45% |
| Cinebench R23 (single) | — | 1,280Bottom 32% |
| Cinebench R23 (multi) | — | 12,400Bottom 47% |
| PassMark | — | 18,600Bottom 32% |
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