Buying guide · Apple
Best Mac for local LLMs: Mac mini vs Mac Studio
For local LLMs, the Mac Studio M5 Ultra 96GB ($5,499) is the Mac to buy if you want 70B–120B models; it runs GPT-OSS 120B at ~109 tok/s by our estimate. The Mac mini M5 Pro ($1,699) is the cheapest entry for 8B–20B models. Memory decides what fits; bandwidth decides speed.
Every Mac we track, by memory
| Machine | Price | Stock | Memory | Bandwidth | Largest model at 4-bit | $ per GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mac mini M5 Pro | $1,699 | Available | 24 GB~17 GB usable | 307 GB/s | GPT-OSS 20B~82 tok/s | $70.79 |
| Mac Studio M5 Max 36GB | $2,499 | Available | 36 GB~27 GB usable | 460 GB/s | Qwen3.6 35B-A3B~103 tok/s | $69.42 |
| Mac Studio M5 Max 48GB | $3,099 | Available | 48 GB~36 GB usable | 614 GB/s | Qwen3.6 35B-A3B~116 tok/s | $64.56 |
| Mac Studio M5 Ultra 96GB | $5,499 | Available | 96 GB~72 GB usable | 1,200 GB/s | GPT-OSS 120B~109 tok/s | $57.28 |
| Mac Studio M5 Ultra 256GB | not priced | Stock unknown | 256 GB~192 GB usable | 1,200 GB/s | Qwen3 235B-A22B~51 tok/s | — |
Estimated single-user decode at ~8K context; GPU-card figures assume the model is fully in VRAM. Prices checked 2026-10-25.
Which models fit on which Mac?
| Model | Mac mini M5 Pro | Mac Studio M5 Max 36GB | Mac Studio M5 Max 48GB | Mac Studio M5 Ultra 96GB | Mac Studio M5 Ultra 256GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Qwen3.5 9B~7 GB at Q4_K_M | Fits~48 tok/s | Fits~70 tok/s | Fits~90 tok/s | Fits~139 tok/s | Fits~139 tok/s |
| GPT-OSS 20B~13 GB at MXFP4 (native) | Fits~82 tok/s | Fits~101 tok/s | Fits~114 tok/s | Fits~119 tok/s | Fits~119 tok/s |
| Qwen3.6 35B-A3B~24 GB at Q4_K_M | Won't fit | Fits~103 tok/s | Fits~116 tok/s | Fits~120 tok/s | Fits~120 tok/s |
| Qwen3.8 27B~19 GB at Q4_K_M | Won't fit | Fits~25 tok/s | Fits~32 tok/s | Fits~55 tok/s | Fits~55 tok/s |
| Llama 3.3 70B~46 GB at Q4_K_M | Won't fit | Won't fit | Won't fit | Fits~23 tok/s | Fits~23 tok/s |
| GPT-OSS 120B~67 GB at MXFP4 (native) | Won't fit | Won't fit | Won't fit | Tight fit~109 tok/s | Fits~109 tok/s |
| Qwen3.5 122B-A10B~79 GB at Q4_K_M | Won't fit | Won't fit | Won't fit | Won't fit | Fits~80 tok/s |
| Qwen3 235B-A22B~151 GB at Q4_K_M | Won't fit | Won't fit | Won't fit | Won't fit | Fits~51 tok/s |
Estimated single-user decode at ~8K context; GPU-card figures assume the model is fully in VRAM. How we estimate
Mac mini or Mac Studio?
The Mac mini M5 Pro ($1,699) has 24 GB of unified memory, of which macOS lets the GPU use roughly 17 GB. That is enough for 8B–20B models and small MoE models such as GPT-OSS 20B at ~82 tok/s, but not for 27B-and-up dense models.
The Mac Studio M5 Max models add memory and bandwidth: the Mac Studio M5 Max 48GB ($3,099) runs Qwen3.6 35B-A3B at ~116 tok/s. For 70B–120B models you need the Mac Studio M5 Ultra 96GB ($5,499), which runs GPT-OSS 120B at ~109 tok/s.
We track the Mac Studio M5 Ultra 256GB too, but we couldn’t confirm a price for it, so it isn’t ranked here.
Apple runs models through MLX, llama.cpp/Ollama or LM Studio. A Mac also stays quiet and sips power compared with a GPU tower; the trade-off is that CUDA-only tools won’t run.
Mac Studio vs a 128GB Strix Halo or DGX Spark box
The Mac Studio M5 Ultra 96GB has ~4.7× the memory bandwidth of the 128GB PC boxes, so the models it holds run much faster, but it has less memory than they do.
| Machine | Price | Memory | Bandwidth | Llama 3.3 70B | GPT-OSS 120B |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mac Studio M5 Ultra 96GB | $5,499 | 96 GB | 1,200 GB/s | Fits~23 tok/s | Tight fit~109 tok/s |
| GMKtec EVO-X2 128GB | $3,500 | 128 GB | 256 GB/s | Fits~5 tok/s | Fits~55 tok/s |
| Lenovo ThinkStation PGX | $5,859 | 128 GB | 273 GB/s | Fits~5 tok/s | Fits~61 tok/s |
Estimated single-user decode at ~8K context; GPU-card figures assume the model is fully in VRAM. Full Mac Studio vs Strix Halo comparison · DGX Spark vs Mac Studio
Measured speeds on M5 Macs
Public single-user decode results we calibrate against. Runs differ in build and settings, so compare like with like.
| Hardware | Model / run | Measured tok/s | Our formula | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| M5 Max 40c614 GB/s | Llama-2 7B Q4_0llama.cpp tg128 | 119.9 | 123.4 | source |
| M5 Max 40c614 GB/s | Llama-2 7B Q8_0llama.cpp tg128 | 72.4 | 70.6 | source |
| M5 Pro307 GB/s | Llama-2 7B Q4_0llama.cpp tg128 | 67.6 | 66.6 | source |
| M5 Pro307 GB/s | Llama-2 7B Q8_0llama.cpp tg128 | 38.9 | 36.9 | source |
| M5 Max 40c614 GB/s | Qwen3.6-27B Q8_0llama.cpp decode@128 | 18.0 | 18.9 | source |
| M5 Max 40c614 GB/s | Qwen3.6-35B-A3B Q8_0llama.cpp decode@128 | 93.0 | 90.3 | source |
| M5 Max 40c614 GB/s | gpt-oss-120b MXFP4llama.cpp 4K ctx | 87.9 | 98.0 | source |
| M5 Ultra1,228 GB/s | Llama-2 7B Q4_0llama.cpp tg128 | 179.1 | 181.8 | source |
| M5 Ultra1,228 GB/s | Llama-2 7B Q8_0llama.cpp tg128 | 119.0 | 114.4 | source |
| M5 Ultra1,200 GB/s | gpt-oss-120b MXFP4MLX short prompt (concurrency caveat) | 99.0 | 108.8 | source |
| M5 Max 40c614 GB/s | gpt-oss-120b MXFP4MLX (oMLX) 1K ctx | 92.8 | 98.0 | source |
Compare the Macs
Mac Studio M5 Max
18-core CPU / 32-core GPU, 36GB
Mac Studio M5 Max
18-core CPU / 40-core GPU, 48GB
Mac Studio M5 Ultra
30-core CPU / 64-core GPU, 96GB
Frequently asked questions
What is the best Mac for running LLMs locally?
The Mac Studio M5 Ultra 96GB ($5,499): ~72 GB of usable memory and 1,200 GB/s of bandwidth, enough for Llama 3.3 70B and GPT-OSS 120B. If you only need 8B–20B models, the Mac mini M5 Pro at $1,699 is far cheaper.
Is a Mac mini good for local LLMs?
For small models, yes. The Mac mini M5 Pro runs GPT-OSS 20B at ~82 tok/s by our estimate, but its ~17 GB of GPU-usable memory rules out 27B+ dense and 70B models.
How much unified memory do I need on a Mac for LLMs?
macOS gives the GPU roughly 75% of unified memory. A 4-bit Qwen3.6 35B-A3B needs ~24 GB, so 36–48 GB is comfortable; Llama 3.3 70B needs ~46 GB and GPT-OSS 120B ~67 GB, so plan on 96 GB or more.
Mac Studio or DGX Spark for local AI?
The Mac Studio M5 Ultra 96GB has more bandwidth (1,200 GB/s vs 273 GB/s), so it decodes faster; GB10 boxes such as the Lenovo ThinkStation PGX ($5,859) have 128 GB and run the CUDA stack.
Which Mac has the best price per GB of memory?
Among priced Macs we track, the Mac Studio M5 Ultra 96GB at $57.28 per GB.