challenger A
Nikon
Z9
2021
VS
challenger B
Sony
α9 III
2023
ReviewsSony α9 III
Nikon Z9 vs Sony α9 III — full comparison
Visual summary
— Reads in 5 seconds
9,0/ 10
PhotoExceptionnel
8,7/ 10
VideoExcellent
Nikon
Z9
7,5/ 10
PhotoTrès bon
7,1/ 10
VideoTrès bon
Sony
α9 III
Nikon Z9Sony α9 III
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Standout strengths
— Where each camera shines
Nikon
Z9
Top advantages
- 102 400Extended ISO max2× vs Sony α9 III
- 45.7 MPMegapixels1,9× vs Sony α9 III
- 1000RAW buffer12,2× vs Sony α9 III
- 64Native ISO min3,9× vs Sony α9 III
Sony
α9 III
Top advantages
- 120 fpsMax video fps4× vs Nikon Z9
- 759AF points1,5× vs Nikon Z9
- 8 stopsIBIS rating+33 % vs Nikon Z9
- 0 msRolling shutter+3,8 vs Nikon Z9
Detailed spec-by-spec
— Round by round, the eight categories
Round 1
Sensor
SpecNikon Z9Sony α9 III
Sensor format
Full Frame
Full Frame
Sensor type
Stacked CMOS
Stacked CMOS
Megapixels
45.7 MP
24.6 MP
Sensor size
35.9 × 23.9 mm
36 × 24 mm
Native ISO min
64
250
Native ISO max
25 600
25 600
Extended ISO max
102 400
51 200
Dynamic range (EV)
11.3 EV
10 EV
Round 2
Autofocus
SpecNikon Z9Sony α9 III
AF points
493
759
AF coverage
100 %
92 %
Eye AF (human)
Oui
Oui
Eye AF (animal)
Oui
Oui
AF low light (EV)
-8.5 EV
-5 EV
Round 3
Speed & burst
SpecNikon Z9Sony α9 III
Electronic burst
120 fps
120 fps
RAW buffer
1000
82
Max shutter speed
1/32000
1/80000
Round 4
Video
SpecNikon Z9Sony α9 III
Max video resolution
8K
4K
Max video fps
30 fps
120 fps
Max bitrate
5780 Mb/s
600 Mb/s
Video codecs
H.264, H.265, ProRes, ProRes RAW, RAW
XAVC HS, XAVC S, XAVC S-I, H.265, H.264
Recording modes
All-I, Long-GOP
All-I, Long-GOP
Chroma subsampling
4:2:0, 4:2:2
4:2:0, 4:2:2
Bit depth
12-bit
10-bit
Log profile
Oui
Oui
Log profiles
N-Log, HLG
S-Log3, S-Cinetone, HLG
Internal RAW
Oui
Non
External RAW
ProRes RAW
ProRes RAW, Blackmagic RAW
Rolling shutter
3.8 ms
0 ms
4K crop
1×
1×
Oversampling
Oui
Oui
Open Gate
Non
Non
Anamorphic desqueeze
1.3x, 1.5x, 1.8x, 2.0x
1.3x, 1.5x, 2.0x
LUT support
user LUTs, in-camera LUT preview
user LUTs, in-camera LUT preview
Monitoring tools
waveform, vectorscope, histogram, zebras
waveform, histogram, zebras
Active cooling
Non
Non
Unlimited recording
Oui
Oui
Dual Native ISO
Non
Non
Proxy recording
Oui
Oui
XLR input
Non
Non
32-bit float audio
Non
Non
Genlock + Time Code
Oui
Non
Round 5
Stabilisation
SpecNikon Z9Sony α9 III
In-body stabilisation
Oui
Oui
IBIS rating
6 stops
8 stops
Round 6
Build
SpecNikon Z9Sony α9 III
Weather sealing
Oui
Oui
Dual card slots
Oui
Oui
Card types
CFexpress Type B
CFexpress Type A, SD UHS-II
Round 7
Ergonomics & screen
SpecNikon Z9Sony α9 III
Weight
1340 g
702 g
Dimensions
149 x 149.5 x 90.5
136.1 x 96.9 x 82.9
Viewfinder type
OLED EVF
EVF
Viewfinder resolution
3.69 M dots
9.44 M dots
Viewfinder magnification
0.8×
0.9×
Screen size
3.2″
3.2″
Screen resolution
2.10 M dots
2.10 M dots
Screen articulation
tilt
vari-angle
Touchscreen
Oui
Oui
Round 8
Connectivity & battery
SpecNikon Z9Sony α9 III
Battery life (CIPA)
740 clichés
530 clichés
USB type
USB-C
USB-C 3.2 Gen2 (10 Gbps)
HDMI type
Full HDMI
Full (Type A)
Wi-Fi
Oui
Oui
Bluetooth
Oui
Oui