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  1. Table of Contents
  2. Top
  3. Main Differences
  4. Design
    1. Portability
    2. Build Quality
    3. Body
    4. In The Box
    5. Ergonomics & Comfort
    6. Viewfinder
    7. Screen
    8. Menu System
    9. Built-In Lens
    10. Sensor
    11. Battery
  5. Photo General
    1. Photo Shooting Speed
    2. Photo AF-C Tracking
    3. Photo AF-C Center Point
    4. Photo Image Stabilization
  6. Photo Image Quality
    1. Photo RAW Dynamic Range
    2. Photo RAW Sharpness
    3. Photo RAW Noise
  7. Pictures Sample Gallery
    1. The Skate Park Picture
    2. The Polish Church Picture
    3. The Studio Picture
    4. The Stairway Picture
  8. Video General
    1. Video Features
    2. Audio
    3. Video File Format And Compression
  9. 4k Video
    1. 4k Video Frame Rate
    2. 4k Video Internal Recording
    3. 4k Video Autofocus Performance
    4. 4k Video Quality
    5. 4k Video Rolling Shutter Effect
  10. Full HD Video
    1. FHD Video Frame Rate
    2. FHD Video Internal Recording
    3. FHD Video Autofocus Performance
    4. FHD Video Quality
    5. FHD Video Rolling Shutter Effect
  11. Video Image Quality
    1. Video Dynamic Range
    2. Luminosity Patch Detection
  12. Storage And Connectivity
    1. Storage
    2. Inputs / Outputs
  13. Comments

Sony α7 IV vs Nikon Z 6III

Side-by-Side Comparison

Products

Sony α7 IV
Nikon Z 6III

Tested using Methodology v0.13

Updated Dec 18, 2024 05:33 PM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com

Tested using Methodology v0.13

Updated Feb 10, 2025 07:39 PM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Sony α7 IV Picture
Nikon Z 6III Picture

Variants

  • α7 IV (Black (Body Only))
  • α7 IV (Black W/ 24-105mm lens)
  • Z 6III (Black (Body Only))
  • Z 6III (Black W/ 24-70mm lens)

Our Verdict

Sony α7 IV

Nikon Z 6III

The Nikon Z 6III is better overall than the Sony α7 IV, though they're both top dogs in the class of hybrid full-frame mirrorless cameras. While the Sony has a more reliable autofocus system and a more established lens ecosystem, the Nikon offers better video specs, faster burst shooting, significantly less rolling shutter distortion, better ergonomics, and a higher-resolution EVF. Having said that, the Sony does have a higher-resolution sensor, so you may still prefer it for landscapes and other kinds of photography.

0 

Check Price

Black (Body Only)
α7 IV
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black (Body Only)
Z 6III
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black W/ 24-105mm lens
α7 IV
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black W/ 24-70mm lens
Z 6III
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com

Main Differences for
Travel Photography

Threshold 

0.10

Travel Photography 

7.7
7.9

Minimum Shutter Speed Achieved 
 

1/30 s
1/6 s

Portability 
 

3.9
3.1

Full Comparison

Design

Portability 
 

3.9
3.1

Portability Picture  

Sony α7 IV Portability Picture
Nikon Z 6III Portability Picture

Height 
 

3.8" (9.6 cm)
4.0" (10.2 cm)

Width 
 

5.6" (14.3 cm)
5.8" (14.8 cm)

Depth 
 

3.2" (8.1 cm)
3.4" (8.7 cm)

Volume 
 

67.9 in³ (1,112.0 cm³)
79.7 in³ (1,305.3 cm³)

Weight 
 

1.47 lbs (0.67 kg)
1.65 lbs (0.75 kg)
Show text

Build Quality 
 

9.0
8.5

Build Quality Picture  

Sony α7 IV Build Quality Picture
Nikon Z 6III Build Quality Picture
Show text

Body  

Body Picture  

Sony α7 IV Body Picture
Nikon Z 6III Body Picture

Body Type 
 

SLR-Style
SLR-Style

Water Resistance 
 

Weather-Sealed
Weather-Sealed

Mirrorless 
 

Yes
Yes

Rugged 
 

No
No

Hot Shoe 
 

Yes
Yes

Customizable Button 
 

Yes
Yes

Command Dial 
 

4
2

Tripod Mount 
 

Yes
Yes

Lens Mount 
 

E-Mount
Z Mount

Built-In Flash 
 

No
No

Fastest Shutter Speed 
 

1/8,000 s
1/8,000 s
Show text

In The Box  

In The Box Picture  

Sony α7 IV In The Box Picture
Nikon Z 6III In The Box Picture
Show text

Ergonomics & Comfort 
 

8.5
9.0

Hand Grip Picture  

Sony α7 IV Hand Grip Picture
Nikon Z 6III Hand Grip Picture

Hand Grip: Small Hand 
 

Yes
Yes

Hand Grip: Medium Hand 
 

Yes
Yes

Hand Grip: Large Hand 
 

Yes
Yes

Hand Grip: Extra-Large Hand 
 

Yes
Yes
Show text

Viewfinder 
 

EVF Menu Picture  

Sony α7 IV EVF Menu Picture
Nikon Z 6III EVF Menu Picture

Viewfinder Type 
 

Electronic
Electronic

Advertised Coverage 
 

100%
100%

Advertised Resolution 
 

3.69 million dots
5.76 million dots

Advertised Magnification 
 

0.78
0.8
Show text

Screen 
 

9.2
9.5

Screen Picture  

Sony α7 IV Screen Picture
Nikon Z 6III Screen Picture

Screen Articulation Type 
 

Fully-Articulated
Fully-Articulated

Screen Max Brightness 
 

800 cd/m²
760 cd/m²

Advertised Resolution 
 

1.04 million dots
2.10 million dots

Size 
 

3.0" (7.5 cm)
3.1" (8.0 cm)

Touchscreen 
 

Yes
Yes
Show text

Menu System 
 

9.0
9.0

Screen Menu Picture  

Sony α7 IV Screen Menu Picture
Nikon Z 6III Screen Menu Picture

Guide Mode 
 

Yes
Yes

App Name 
 

Creators' App
Nikon SnapBridge
Show text

Built-In Lens 
 

0.0
0.0

Aperture Vs Focal Length  

Sony α7 IV Aperture Vs Focal Length
Nikon Z 6III Aperture Vs Focal Length

Maximum Aperture 
 

No built-in lens
No built-in lens

Max Aperture (Full-Frame Equivalent) 
 

N/A
N/A

Minimum Focal Length 
 

N/A
N/A

Maximum Focal Length 
 

N/A
N/A

Max Focal Length (Full-Frame Equivalent) 
 

N/A
N/A

Optical Image Stabilization 
 

No
No

Light Falloff Picture  

Sony α7 IV Light Falloff Picture
Nikon Z 6III Light Falloff Picture

Luminance 
 

N/A
N/A

Light Falloff 
 

N/A
N/A

Sensor 
 

Sensor Type 
 

BSI CMOS
Partially Stacked CMOS

Advertised Effective Pixels 
 

33 MP
24.5 MP

Processor 
 

BIONZ XR
EXPEED 7

Sensor Size 
 

Full Frame
Full Frame

Extended ISO Minimum 
 

50
50

Native ISO Minimum (Base ISO) 
 

100
100

Native ISO Maximum 
 

51,200
64,000

Tested Firmware 
 

Version 1.10
1.00
Show text

Battery 
 

8.6
8.3

Battery Type 
 

Sony NP-FZ100
Nikon EN-EL15C

USB Charging 
 

Yes
Yes

Power Delivery While Recording 
 

Yes
Yes

Advertised Battery Life In Photo 
 

580 photos
360 photos

Tested Battery Life In Video 
 

105 min
124 min
Show text
Photo General

Photo Shooting Speed 
 

7.9
8.9

Low Speed Continuous 
 

4 fps
1 fps

High Speed Continuous 
 

10 fps
14 fps

Silent Shooting Continuous 
 

10 fps
120 fps

Raw Buffer Size 
 

10,000 Photos
200 Photos

JPEG Buffer Size 
 

10,000 Photos
200 Photos

Buffer Empty Time 
 

0 s
0 s
Show text

Photo AF-C Tracking 
 

8.7
8.2

Autofocus Tracking Shots  

tracking-run-01-01
Run 01
AF-C Tracking 01
tracking-run-01-01
Run 01
AF-C Tracking 01

Perfect Focus Hit Rate 
 

77%
69%

Usable Focus Hit Rate 
 

94%
95%
Show text

Photo AF-C Center Point 
 

9.7
9.2

Autofocus Center Point Shots  

center-point-run-01-01
Run 01
AF-C Center Point 01
center-point-run-01-01
Run 01
AF-C Center Point 01

Perfect Focus Hit Rate 
 

96%
90%

Usable Focus Hit Rate 
 

99%
98%
Show text

Photo Image Stabilization 
 

6.6
8.8

Stabilization Slideshow  

Minimum Shutter Speed Achieved 
 

1/30 s
1/6 s

In-Body Image Stabilization 
 

Yes
Yes
Show text
Photo Image Quality

Photo RAW Dynamic Range 
 

8.7
8.6

Dynamic Range Scene  

Sony α7 IV Dynamic Range Scene
Nikon Z 6III Dynamic Range Scene

Dynamic Range At Base ISO 
 

11.0 f-stops
10.7 f-stops

Dynamic Range At 1/500s Exposure Time 
 

9.6 f-stops
9.2 f-stops

Dynamic Range At 1/2000s Exposure Time 
 

7.5 f-stops
8.2 f-stops

Dynamic Range At 1/4000s Exposure Time 
 

6.9 f-stops
7.5 f-stops
Show text

Photo RAW Sharpness 
 

9.0
8.9

Sharpness Scene Crop  

Sony α7 IV Sharpness Scene Crop
Nikon Z 6III Sharpness Scene Crop

MTF Graph  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Vertical Edge MTF50 At Base ISO 
 

2,116 LW/PH
2,511 LW/PH

Horizontal Edge MTF50 At Base ISO 
 

2,630 LW/PH
2,065 LW/PH
Show text

Photo RAW Noise 
 

7.7
7.9

Noise Scene Crop  

Sony α7 IV Noise Scene Crop
Nikon Z 6III Noise Scene Crop

Noise Vs Exposure Time  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

SNR 18% At 1/8 Exposure Time (125 ms) 
 

34.5 dB
34.6 dB

SNR 18% At 1/30 Exposure Time (33 ms) 
 

32.2 dB
32.6 dB

SNR 18% At 1/125 Exposure Time (8 ms) 
 

27.7 dB
28.6 dB

SNR 18% At 1/500 Exposure Time (2 ms) 
 

22.3 dB
23.4 dB
Show text
Pictures Sample Gallery

The Skate Park Picture 
 

Sample Gallery - Skate Park   

Sony α7 IV Sample Gallery - Skate Park
Nikon Z 6III Sample Gallery - Skate Park

JPEG Skate Park Picture  

RAW Skate Park Picture  

The Polish Church Picture 
 

Sample Gallery - Church  

Sony α7 IV Sample Gallery - Church
Nikon Z 6III Sample Gallery - Church

JPEG Polish Church Picture  

RAW Polish Church Picture  

The Studio Picture 
 

Sample Gallery - Studio  

Sony α7 IV Sample Gallery - Studio
Nikon Z 6III Sample Gallery - Studio

JPEG Studio Picture  

RAW Studio Picture  

The Stairway Picture 
 

Sample Gallery - Stairway  

Sony α7 IV Sample Gallery - Stairway
Nikon Z 6III Sample Gallery - Stairway

JPEG Stairway Picture  

RAW Stairway Picture  

Video General

Video Features  

Full HD Video 
 

Yes
Yes

4k Video 
 

Yes
Yes

6k Video 
 

No
Yes

Clean HDMI Output 
 

Yes
Yes

Advertised Max Chroma Sampling Over HDMI 
 

4:2:2
Not Advertised

Advertised Max Bit Depth Over HDMI 
 

10 bits
10 bits

Log Picture Profile 
 

Yes
Yes

Recording Light  
 

No
No
Show text

Audio  

Audio Test Sample 
 

Audio Recording 
 

Stereo
Stereo

Microphone Level Display 
 

Yes
Yes

Video File Format And Compression  

MP4 H.264 / MPEG-4 AVC 
 

Yes
Yes

MP4 H.265 / HEVC 
 

Yes
No

MOV H.264 / MPEG-4 AVC 
 

No
No

MOV H.265 / HEVC 
 

No
Yes

AVCHD H.264 / MPEG-4 AVC 
 

Yes
No

All-I Compression 
 

Yes
No
Show text
4k Video

4k Video Frame Rate 
 

9.0
9.7

240 fps In 4k 
 

No
No

120 fps In 4k 
 

No
Yes, with a Crop

60 fps In 4k 
 

Yes, with a Crop
Yes

30 fps In 4k 
 

Yes
Yes

24 fps In 4k 
 

Yes
Yes

4k Crop At Max Available fps 
 

1.5 x
1.5 x
Show text

4k Video Internal Recording 
 

10
10

Bitrate Maximum In 4k 
 

567 Mbps
1,822 Mbps

Bitrate Minimum In 4k 
 

60 Mbps
147 Mbps

Chroma Sampling In 4k 
 

4:2:2
4:2:2

Bit Depth In 4k 
 

10 Bit
10 Bit

Record Time Limit In 4k 
 

N/A
125 min

Overheat Recording Interruptions in 4k 
 

0
0
Show text

4k Video Autofocus Performance 
 

9.7
9.2

4k Object Tracking Video  

Object Tracking In 4k 
 

9.7
9.5

4k Face Tracking Video  

Face Tracking In 4k 
 

9.5
8.5

Face Detection In 4k 
 

Yes
Yes

Eye Detection In 4k 
 

Yes
Yes
Show text

4k Video Quality 
 

8.8
8.8

4k Sample Low Light Video  

Low Light Capability In 4k  

8.5
8.5

4k Test Scene Extract  

Sony α7 IV 4k Test Scene Extract
Nikon Z 6III 4k Test Scene Extract

Test Scene Extract In 4k  

9.0
9.0
Show text

4k Video Rolling Shutter Effect 
 

5.5
7.5

Rolling Shutter Video in 4k  

4k Rolling Shutter 
 

7.3°
3.0°
Show text
Full HD Video

FHD Video Frame Rate 
 

9.5
10

240 fps In FHD 
 

No
Yes, with a Crop

120 fps In FHD 
 

Yes
Yes

60 fps In FHD 
 

Yes
Yes

30 fps In FHD 
 

Yes
Yes

24 fps In FHD 
 

Yes
Yes

FHD Crop At Max Available fps 
 

1 x
1.05 x
Show text

FHD Video Internal Recording 
 

10
10

Bitrate Maximum In FHD 
 

207 Mbps
900 Mbps

Bitrate Minimum In FHD 
 

14 Mbps
22 Mbps

Chroma Sampling In FHD 
 

4:2:2
4:2:2

Bit Depth In FHD 
 

10 Bit
10 Bit

Record Time Limit in FHD 
 

N/A
125 min
Show text

FHD Video Autofocus Performance 
 

9.5
9.2

Object Tracking Video  

Object Tracking In FHD 
 

9.0
9.5

FHD Face Tracking Video  

Face Tracking In FHD 
 

9.8
8.5

Face Detection In FHD 
 

Yes
Yes

Eye Detection In FHD 
 

Yes
Yes
Show text

FHD Video Quality 
 

8.5
8.0

FHD Sample Low Light Video  

Low Light Capability In FHD  

8.5
7.5

FHD Test Scene Extract In FHD  

Sony α7 IV FHD Test Scene Extract In FHD
Nikon Z 6III FHD Test Scene Extract In FHD

Test Scene Extract In FHD  

8.5
8.5
Show text

FHD Video Rolling Shutter Effect 
 

8.2
8.8

Rolling Shutter Video in FHD  

FHD Rolling Shutter 
 

2.0°
1.3°
Show text
Video Image Quality

Video Dynamic Range 
 

8.9
8.5

Video Dynamic Range Waveform  

Sony α7 IV Video Dynamic Range Waveform
Nikon Z 6III Video Dynamic Range Waveform

Video Dynamic Range Slideshow  

Strict SNR Max Dynamic Range 
 

10.50 stops
9.33 stops

Lenient SNR Max Dynamic Range 
 

11.51 stops
11.01 stops

Background Floor Max Dynamic Range 
 

13.92 stops
13.05 stops
Show text

Luminosity Patch Detection 
 

8.3
7.7

Luminosity Patch Detection Chart  

Sony α7 IV Luminosity Patch Detection Chart
Nikon Z 6III Luminosity Patch Detection Chart

Above Middle Gray 
 

5.17 stops
5.17 stops

Below Middle Gray 
 

9.98 stops
8.87 stops
Show text
Storage And Connectivity

Storage  

Card Slot Picture  

Sony α7 IV Card Slot Picture
Nikon Z 6III Card Slot Picture

Card 1 Slot 
 

CFexpress Type A and UHS-II
CFexpress

Card 2 Slot 
 

SD Card UHS-II
SD Card UHS-II
Show text

Inputs / Outputs 
 

10
10

Input Picture  

Sony α7 IV Input Picture
Nikon Z 6III Input Picture

USB 
 

USB-C
USB-C

HDMI 
 

Full Size (Type A)
Full Size (Type A)

Headphones 
 

Yes
Yes

Microphone 
 

Stereo
Stereo

Wi-Fi 
 

Yes
Yes

Bluetooth 
 

Yes
Yes
Show text

Check Price

Black (Body Only)
α7 IV
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black (Body Only)
Z 6III
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black W/ 24-105mm lens
α7 IV
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black W/ 24-70mm lens
Z 6III
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com

Sony α7 IV

Nikon Z 6III

Comments

  1. Comparison

Sony α7 IV vs Nikon Z 6III: Main Discussion

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