Adobe Premiere Pro 2025 isn't optimized for the new M4 MAX chip from Apple.

[catmandowolawolawu]

I would love for this to be addressed, since I found very little official information on it — only scattered community posts and insights.

I recently purchased and maxed out the Apple MacBook Pro M4 Max with:

16-core CPU

40-core GPU

16-core Neural Engine

128GB RAM

2TB SSD

I'm using it primarily for video editing — without proxies or transcoding — which is one of the main reasons I invested in this level of hardware.

After testing, I noticed that the latest versions of Premiere Pro and After Effects (v24.4 and 2025 builds) are:

Laggy when scrubbing, even with a basic timeline

Overloading the CPU (100–140%) while barely using the GPU (~2–5%)

Showing worse performance than my older M1 Pro system, especially in timeline responsiveness

After rolling back to Premiere Pro v24.2, I noticed

Scrubbing and responsiveness improved

CPU usage dropped

GPU usage slightly increased

Overall stability returned to what I would expect from a top-end system

This suggests that newer builds of Premiere are not yet fully optimized for the M4 Max architecture — or at the very least, the Metal rendering pipeline isn't offloading as much to the GPU.

I’m submitting this to ask if Adobe is aware of this optimization gap

Encourage the dev team to prioritize GPU utilization and performance on M4 Max chips

Help others who may be facing similar issues and don't realize that older versions run smoother

Thanks in advance — and I’d be happy to run further tests or benchmarks if needed.

[R Neil Haugen]

Without the details of the type of media you're working with ... codec, framesize/rate, bit-depth, and of course what effects you typically use, how many tracks video and audio, I'm not sure anybody could figure out anything.

In troubleshooting, details matter. Help them and us help you, please!

[MyerPj]

And as Neil has previous said, the gpu is not a second cpu, or a cpu helper. There are specific areas in PP where the gpu helps, otherwise it's mostly a cpu software. I don't think the codebase has changed much in recent years to effect the lack of optimization of the M4.

Just wondering, have you ever tried the proxy workflow? It's pretty slick, especially if you are working with h.264/5 media.

[catharina_2542]

I would like to second this! I have a similarly speced Macbook Pro here (only 64GB RAM) and some days I randomly can't even open my current project. I am working with Proxies for a 4k edit that I started on my 2019 MB Pro and am trying to finish on this new computer and am seriously considering going back to the old laptop because how can I not even open Premiere?! A restart of the computer has helped sometimes, but this is ridiculous.

[jamieclarke]

Hi @catmandowolawolawu - 
Thanks for submitting your bug report. We need a few more details to try to help with the issue.
Please see, How do I write a bug report?

As Neil has asked What type of media are you working with?  Can you right click on your file and choose "Media File Properties" then post a screenshot.

If you navigate to your preferences under the tab "Media Analysis & Transcription" and then uncheck everything does playback improve?

Can you check your audio hardware settings and make sure Default Input is set to "No Input"

Sorry for the frustration.

[mrk.serviciosdepaterna]

Hi there!
I just bought the new Mac mini M4 and it seems it doesn't get along with the last version of Adobe 2025. EG I was starting a new project with iphone videos, which are not heavy at all, and I couldn't even play them in the timeline. I also had issues importing them. At first I thought maybe it was something wrong with the computer but then I found this conversation, so that I think maybe the problem is that the new mac mini is not suitable for Adobe 2025.

Could you please light this situation up for me? 

Thanks in advance!

[MyerPj]

<<with iphone videos, which are not heavy at all,>>

Any possible more info on your media? That subjective description is not helpful.

You can use the free MediaInfo program to get info on your clips. screenshot of your clip info: https://mediaarea.net/en/MediaInfo

[mrk.serviciosdepaterna]

Thanks for your response!

Mac Mini M4 - 32GB RAM
Premiere Pro 2025 Version 25.3.0
iPhone Videos: 5-10 sec duration - between 7 and 19MB

The thing is, I used to work with a Mac from 2020 with 16GB RAM and I neved had this issue. 

Please, let me know if you need more info. Thanks!

[R Neil Haugen]

iPhone actually is normally VFR, variable framerate, and long-GOP, and between them, can be pretty hefty for an NLE.

More so than the same framesize and framerate of ProRes 422.

[markr66535257]

Yes, I found exactly the same issue with M4 Mac mini. Was shocked to discover it basically ground to a halt until I went back to PP 24. It was much better but still cannot render any of the built in VR effects "This effect requires GPU acceleration" So I have lost all those effects now. The media type and codec is irrelevant I'm just using apple prores or MXF files or MP4 files. So all legacy projects no longer work on 25. Felt Like a bit of a fool for buying the mini when it couldn't even run the latest PP 25. Surely you tested it at your end with your generic test project. It literally would not show a frame of video on 25. How did all the YouTube reviewers miss this massive issue???

[Warren Heaton]

@markr66535257 

Sorry to hear you're not seeing good performance.

Try starting a new Premiere Pro 25.x project on your Mac mimi M4 and then import an older project into that.

This resets things for the older project.

Also, format is everything - not just for a good workflow, but no one in a forum has any idea about what someone else is working with.  The more information provided up front about format and workflow usually  means fewer questions asked later when troubleshooting and resolving an issue.

[markr66535257]

Ok thanks. Worth noting that I simply installed and ran with 25 just like I have with all previous upgrades. No denying that something is different here especially if you are obliged to recommend a work around for it. If I was working with a radical format it would mean a lot however I’m working with formats I’ve been using for 25 years so something has changed. Adobe would ordinarily flag issues with legacy formats if they became the cause of issues.

I don’t have time to re-try 25 as I am on a deadline so must press on. It’s a little disappointing at £71.00 per month as the new features are very interesting.

Will the M4 Mac mini ever be able to use the VR effects that are currently saying they can't be used due to lack of GPU?

Thanks for your time on this

Mark

[jamieclarke]

Hi @markr66535257 - What new features are you looking at?  Can you post a screenshot of the error message you are receiving?

[Warren Heaton]

I'm getting pretty fantastic performance on a 16-inch MacBook Pro M4 Max 128GB/4TB, macOS Sequia 15.3.1, Premiere Pro 25.2.3, After Effects 25.2.2, and Media Encoder 25.2.0.

i've held off on the 25.3 updates because there may be an issue with Edit Original not opening as expected. 

[mrk.serviciosdepaterna]

Okay! Do you know if there's any possibility of getting back to a previous version of Premiere Pro 25.3.0? Maybe I that would fix the problem. Thanks!

[Warren Heaton]

@mrk.serviciosdepaterna 

Yes, to install and older version of Premiere Pro, click on the three bullet points near the app in Creative Cloud Desktop and then choose "Other versions".

Pictured: The More Options (•••) pop-up menu for Premiere Pro in Creative Cloud Desktop

Pictured: The "Other versions" list in Creative Cloud Desktop for Premiere Pro

If having trouble with MP4 in Premiere Pro 25.3, I would try rolling back to 25.2.3.  You can open the same Premiere Pro project file (.prproj) in 25.2.3 and 25.3.

[flabernardez]

I'm in a similar situation with my M4 MAX and 25.3 Premiere Pro: 

- I can't import mp4 videos

- Videos freezing and appearing Retrieving Frame Error continuously...

- I can't change the video rendering and player setting from project settings > general

Please fix this, that it a shame. Obviously, I'm going to change to resolve that it runs like a charm. Free to use. But it a big change for me to make this change because this reason. Adobe gets off professionals.

[Warren Heaton]

Hi @flabernardez 

Sorry to hear that you hare having trouble with MP4 in Premiere Pro 25.3.

Try rolling back to 25.2 or try transcoding your MP4 clips to ProRes 422 LT in Shutter Encoder (dontationware).  If transcoding your MP4 files, it does not need to be ProRes, but should be a CODEC that supports Smart Rendering in Premiere Pro.

[kes_akalaonu]

I can verify from M4 MAX Macbook Pro (similiar specs to yours) and M4 MAX Mac Studio (128 GB, 2 TB SSD, highest CPU available and more) that performance with Premiere and After Effects have been incredibly fast. And this is using an OWC Thunderbay 8 with Thunderbolt 4 connection, 3 SSDs each with Thunderbolt cables and Caldigit extension as well. I've been able to play back Nikon 8 bit, RED footage, Nikon N-RAW (through the beta) and other processor formats with ease. My AE comps with cache while idle  or regular RAM preview render fast than I have time to blink at times even with plugins like BorisFX, Maxon and the like.

What type of media are you using? What settings do you have enabled in your preferences, program monitor, timeline and more? What is your media cache and scratch disk locations set to?