The iMac got M6 today, and like the MacBook Pro announced alongside it, the update is all inside. The 24 inch design, the 4.5K display and all seven colors carry over. What's new is the chip, Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6, faster storage and 2.5 gigabit Ethernet.

It starts at $1,499. Pre-orders open tomorrow, October 28, and it arrives in customers' hands and Apple Stores on Friday, November 6.

The price is the first thing to know. $1,499 is where Apple moved the iMac in June, when it raised prices across the Mac lineup over memory costs. Before that the iMac started at $1,299. Apple didn't bring the old price back with M6, and the $1,499 model is also the one where you need to read the specs page carefully.

The new iMac with M6 in green, yellow, orange, pink, purple, blue and silver
All seven colors carry over. Image: Apple

Two iMacs at Two Prices

Apple sells the new iMac in two versions, and the gap between them is bigger than two CPU cores.

  • $1,499: M6 with a 10 core CPU (two super cores, three performance, five efficiency) and 10 core GPU, two Thunderbolt 4 ports, one external display, and a standard Magic Keyboard without Touch ID
  • $1,699: M6 with a 12 core CPU (two super, four performance, six efficiency) and 12 core GPU, four Thunderbolt 4 ports, two external displays, 2.5Gb Ethernet and Magic Keyboard with Touch ID included

Both start with 16GB of memory and a 256GB SSD. The 10 core model tops out at 24GB of memory and 1TB of storage, while the 12 core model goes to 32GB and 2TB. Nano-texture glass is only offered on the 12 core model. Ethernet is an add on for the $1,499 version.

The good news is that this binning is more honest than the one on the new iPad mini. Both iMacs keep the dual 16 core Neural Engine, so the cheaper model isn't giving up the hardware behind Apple's AI pitch. It gives up graphics cores, ports and a second display. For a family computer that's a fair trade. For anyone who plans to plug in a dock, a drive and a monitor, the two ports on the base model will feel tight fast, and the $200 step up buys a lot.

A 256GB starting SSD on a $1,499 desktop in 2026 is the part I'd push back on. Photo libraries and local AI models eat that quickly, and going up to 512GB adds to an already higher price.

What M6 Adds

M6, the same chip that arrived in the Mac mini in August, gives the iMac two more CPU cores and two more GPU cores at the top end, Neural Accelerators in every GPU core, and a dual 16 core Neural Engine. Apple's numbers against the M4 iMac:

  • Up to 1.5 times faster in apps like Microsoft Excel
  • Up to 2 times faster graphics, including photo editing in Affinity and ray traced games
  • Up to 5 times faster on device AI prompt processing in LM Studio
  • Up to 2 times faster SSD reads and writes

Apple ran those tests against a 10 core M4 iMac with 32GB of memory and doesn't say which M6 configuration it used, so expect the $1,499 model to land below the top numbers. The headline number for older machines is up to 18 times faster than the most popular Intel iMac, and that's the audience this update is really for.

iMac with M6 in orange showing Siri AI answering a question about a product page in Safari
Siri AI on the iMac with M6. Image: Apple

Same Display, Faster Connections

The 4.5K Retina display is unchanged: 4480 by 2520, 500 nits, P3 wide color, and a 23.5 inch actual diagonal. There's still no larger iMac, and no ProMotion or brighter panel on this one.

Connectivity is where the iMac moves forward. Apple's N1 chip brings Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6 and Thread, and Ethernet jumps from 1 gigabit to 2.5. The 12 core model's four Thunderbolt 4 ports can drive two 6K displays at once.

The back of the iMac with M6 showing its Thunderbolt 4 ports
The 12 core model gets four Thunderbolt 4 ports. Image: Apple

The 12MP Center Stage camera with Desk View, the six speaker system and the three mic array carry over, along with color matched USB-C accessories.

A FaceTime call on iMac with Desk View showing a cookie being decorated on a countertop
Center Stage and Desk View carry over. Image: Apple

macOS 27 and Siri AI

The iMac ships with macOS 27 Golden Gate. Siri AI, still labeled beta, requires macOS 27.2 and works in English, French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese and Spanish. On the Mac it lives in Spotlight and the system context menus, and a keyboard shortcut lets you ask about anything on screen. Apple's fine print says Siri AI and other server based features have daily usage limits, with expanded access to cost extra in the future.

Price and Availability

The iMac with M6 starts at $1,499 ($1,449 for education) with the 10 core chip, and $1,699 ($1,599 for education) with the 12 core chip. Colors are blue, green, pink, yellow, purple, orange and silver.

Pre-orders open Wednesday, October 28 at apple.com and in the Apple Store app in 35 countries and regions, including the US. It arrives and hits Apple Stores on Friday, November 6.

If you're replacing an Intel iMac or an M1 in the kitchen, this is an easy recommendation, and I'd lean toward the $1,699 model for the ports and Touch ID alone. If you bought an M4 iMac, there's nothing here worth replacing it for.

A color matched keyboard and mouse below an iMac with M6 in purple
Color matched Magic accessories still come in the box. Image: Apple