Farqiga ugu weyn ee u dhexeeya ARM iyo X86 waa processor-ka, habka ARM wuxuu raacaa qaab-dhismeedka RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Computer) halka processor-rada X86 ay yihiin CISC (Complex Instruction set Architecture). Taas macnaheedu waa in ARM ISA ay tahay mid fudud oo inta badan tilmaamaha waxay ku shaqeeyaan hal wareeg saacad ah, halka tilmaamaha CISC ay yihiin kuwo badan oo adag, oo qaadanaya wareegyo badan oo CPU ah si ay u fuliyaan tilmaam kasta.