Comparing Python on a M1 MacBook Pro Max with Intel MacBookPro (2016)

Python is probably the most widely used programming language in Cheminformatics at the moment and several readers have asked me to run a couple of benchmark tests. I’ve already tested a Jupyter notebookand that worked fine, the RDKit comparison also includes a fair amount of python code. Fortunately there are a few benchmarks that are well documented here https://benchmarksgame-team.pages.debian.net/benchmarksgame/index.html.

I used a couple of the benchmarks using the python implementation

Mandelbrot

Plot the Mandelbrot set [-1.5-i,0.5+i] on an N-by-N bitmap. Write output byte-by-byte in portable bitmap format.

Command used

N-body

Model the orbits of Jovian planets, using the same simple symplectic-integrator.

Command used

Binary-Trees

Command used

The timings are shown in the table below.

TestIntel timeM1 max timeM2 Air timeM2 Mac Studio
Mandelbrot2 min 44s34s54s15 s
N-body7 min 17s3 min 57s4 min 21s4 min 2s
BinaryTrees46 sec12 secs16 secs6 secs

List of tools tested https://macinchem.co.uk/software-reviews/cheminformatics-and-compchem-on-apple-silicon/

Last update 4 July 2023