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M11 Monochromvs Leica Q3

GearFrame · Updated March 2026

Leica M11 Monochrom Leica M11 Monochrom (2023) Starting from £8300 new Best for Black & White Photography View M11 Monochrom
VS
Leica Leica Q3 Leica Leica Q3 (2023) Starting from £5999 new Best for Travel, street & premium compact shooters View Leica Q3

GearScore™ Verdict — Which should you buy?

Black & White Photography — M11 Monochrom (2023): The M11 Monochrom is the finest black-and-white camera in the world. A 60MP sensor with no colour filter array produces sharpness and tonal depth no colour camera can match — combined with extended high-ISO performance. Manual focus, no video, and an extraordinary price make it a specialist instrument, but for dedicated B&W photographers it is unmatched.

Travel, Street & Premium Compact Shooters — Leica Q3 (2023): 60MP, Summilux 28mm, IBIS, and weather sealing — the Q3 is the ultimate fixed-lens camera for those who can justify the cost.

↓ Full specifications below

M11 Monochrom (2023)

  • Dedicated black-and-white photographers who demand the finest possible monochrome files
  • Fine art and documentary photographers who work exclusively in B&W
  • Leica M system users who want maximum monochrome image quality
  • Astrophotographers — monochrome sensors excel at capturing fine star detail

Leica Q3 (2023)

  • Photographers who want a fixed-lens full-frame camera with no compromises
  • Q2 owners upgrading to articulating screen and improved autofocus
  • Travel photographers who want one premium compact that does everything
  • Street and documentary photographers who want Leica quality without changing lenses

Quick take: The m11 monochrom has the highest resolution at 60mp; the leica q3 is the most affordable; only the leica q3 is weather sealed. Scroll down for the full spec breakdown.

Full specifications

Specification M11 Monochrom (2023)Leica Q3 (2023)
Price £8,300 £5,999
Sensor 60.3MP Full-Frame Monochrome BSI CMOS (no colour filter array) 60MP full-frame BSI CMOS
Resolution 60.3MP 60.0MP
Video 8K/30p, 4K/60p, C4K/60p
Autofocus Manual focus rangefinder (no autofocus) Phase-detect AF with subject/face/eye detection
Stabilisation 5.5-stop IBIS
Burst Rate 5fps 15fps
Battery Life ~700 shots (CIPA) 380 shots (CIPA)
Weight 530g (body only) 743g
Dimensions 138.6 × 80.0 × 38.5mm 130.0 × 80.3 × 91.0mm
Weather Sealed No Yes
Viewfinder Optical rangefinder, 0.73× magnification 0.787" OLED EVF, 5.76M dots
Screen 2.3" touchscreen LCD, 2.33M dots 3.0" fixed touchscreen
Mount Leica M-mount Fixed Summilux 28mm f/1.7 ASPH
Memory Cards Single SD UHS-II slot + 64GB internal storage Single SD UHS-II
Connectivity USB-C, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth USB-C 3.1, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth
Genre M11 MonochromLeica Q3
Street
9.5
9.0
Portrait
9.5
7.0
Landscape
9.5
9.0
Astrophotography
9.0
Travel
8.5
9.0
Casual
7.5
Sports & Action
3.0
4.0
Vlogging & Video
1.0
7.0

GearScore™ suitability scores are based on aggregated purchaser reviews weighted by photography genre. See how scores are calculated →

⚡ Compare specs side by side M11 Monochrom prices → Leica Q3 prices →

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