Apple M4 Max for local LLMs
Written by Jakub Rusinowski · Last updated
With 128 GB at 546 GB/s, the M4 Max runs 142 catalogued models at Q4_K_M with 8K context. The largest that fits is Mistral Medium 3.5 128B (~80.9 GB), and the top pick is Qwen 3.5 122B-A10B at 20–41 tok/s.
Up to 128 GB unified memory, about 96 GB usable by a model: 70B-class models at Q4_K_M fit with room for context. 35W TDP is extraordinary. Silent and power-efficient. Best all-around for Mac users.
Models that run on the M4 Max
Q4_K_M, 8K context, 96 GB usable. Ranked by quality and speed.
| Model | Memory · marker = 96 GB | VRAM | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Qwen 3.5 122B-A10B Qwen 3.5 | 74.5 GB | 20–41 tok/s | |
| Nemotron 3 Super 120B-A12B Nemotron 3 Super | 73.3 GB | 18–37 tok/s | |
| Nemotron 3.5 Super VL 120B-A12B Nemotron 3.5 | 73.3 GB | 18–37 tok/s | |
| Mistral Small 4 119B-A6.5B Mistral Small 4 | 72.6 GB | 25–53 tok/s | |
| GPT-OSS 120B GPT-OSS | 71.6 GB | 45–94 tok/s | |
| Llama 4.5 Scout Llama 4.5 | 66.6 GB | 14–29 tok/s | |
| Llama 4 Scout 17B Llama 4 | 68.2 GB | 15–32 tok/s | |
| Qwen3-Coder-Next (80B-A3B MoE) Qwen3-Coder | 49.4 GB | 65–135 tok/s | |
| Kolibri 1 Kolibri | 48.5 GB | 60–124 tok/s | |
| Nemotron 3.5 Bolt 74B Nemotron 3.5 | 45.6 GB | 30–63 tok/s | |
| K2 Horizon MoVA 36B-A4B K2 Horizon | 25 GB | 40–82 tok/s | |
| Qwen 3.6 35B-A3B Qwen 3.6 | 22.2 GB | 66–137 tok/s |
Buy it or rent the same memory
Buy the card, or rent a GPU with the same memory by the hour to try models first.
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Speed vs other GPUs
Llama 3.1 8B, Q4_K_M. Estimated ranges. How this is calculated
Specifications
Specs last updated 2026-09-29.
- Memory
- 128 GB
- Memory bandwidth
- 546 GB/s
- Architecture
- ARM, 3nm TSMC
- Series
- Apple Silicon
- Board power
- 35 W
- Release year
- 2024
- Usable for models
- 96 GB (~75% of unified)
Similar GPUs
Frequently asked questions
Can the Apple M4 Max run local LLMs?
Yes. With 128 GB (96 GB usable by a model) it runs 142 of the catalogued models at Q4_K_M with 8K context; the largest is Mistral Medium 3.5 128B, needing about 80.9 GB.
How fast is the Apple M4 Max for AI inference?
It is estimated to run Llama 3.1 8B at 31–64 tok/s at Q4_K_M. Llama 3.3 70B is estimated at 4.4–9.1 tok/s. These are modelled estimates from memory bandwidth, not measurements; the methodology page shows the formula.
What LLMs can I run on 128 GB?
Among the best that fit: Qwen 3.5 122B-A10B, Nemotron 3 Super 120B-A12B, Nemotron 3.5 Super VL 120B-A12B, Mistral Small 4 119B-A6.5B, GPT-OSS 120B. The quickest start is Ollama: ollama run llama4:scout.
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Can I run it on the M4 Max?
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