llmrun

Apple · M5 Max · Laptop

Best AI Models for MacBook Pro 14" M5 Max (128 GB)

Runs 27–31B and 120B MoE models well; dense 70B fits but is slow at 9 tok/s.

128 GB unified124.5 GB for models614 GB/s68 TFLOPS FP162026
Memory
36 GB48 GB64 GB128 GB
Same chip in
MacBook Pro 14"MacBook Pro 16"about $5,399Mac Studio

What LLMs can the MacBook Pro 14" M5 Max run?

#ModelSpeed ↓llmrun ScoreQuant · Memory
1
GPT OSS 20BOpenAIHow to run →
Q4_K_M · 13.1 GB
92.4 tok/sQ4_K_M · 13.1 GB
2
Gemma 4 26B A4B ITGoogle
Q4_K_M · 16.5 GB
80.7 tok/sQ4_K_M · 16.5 GB
3
NVIDIA Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B BF16NVIDIA
Q4_K_M · 19.3 GB
72.7 tok/sQ4_K_M · 19.3 GB
4
Qwen3 30B A3B Thinking 2507Alibaba
Q4_K_M · 19.4 GB
69.5 tok/sQ4_K_M · 19.4 GB
5
Qwen3 30B A3B Instruct 2507Alibaba
Q4_K_M · 19.4 GB
69.5 tok/sQ4_K_M · 19.4 GB
See all 367 models on the MacBook Pro 14" M5 Max →Bars = traction for models without a Score yet
Task rankings use that task's benchmarks, topped up from Overall when short; bars mark well-known models with no Score yet.

About the MacBook Pro 14" M5 Max (128 GB)

The MacBook Pro 14" M5 Max is one of the fastest 128 GB machines: it runs 27–31B and 120B MoE models well. Among 128 GB machines, only the M1 Ultra and M2 Ultra write faster. macOS keeps about 3.5 GB, leaving 124.5 GB for models. With 68 TFLOPS it reads long prompts faster than most 128 GB machines: a 4K-token prompt takes 17 s. M5 Max generation, released 2026.

Speed in 128 GB#3614 GB/s
Prompt reading#368 TFLOPS
For models124.5 GBmacOS keeps 3.5 GB
ChipM5 Maxreleased 2026

MacBook Pro 14" M5 Max strengths and weaknesses

Strengths

  • Runs 120B MoE models: GPT OSS 120B at 65.5 tok/s in 70.8 GB
  • Room for long context: Qwen3.8 27B at Q4 uses 17.9 GB, leaving 106.6 GB free

Weaknesses

  • Slow on large dense models: Llama 3.3 70B Instruct at 9.2 tok/s
  • Slow prompt reading: A 32K-token prompt on Qwen3.8 27B waits 2.2 min for the first token
  • No CUDA: vLLM, AWQ, GPTQ and FP8 builds don't run; use GGUF or MLX

Memory for models

124.5 GB of 128 GB
35B MoE22 GB70B51.3 GB123B74.7 GB
35B MoE22 GB123B74.7 GB
For models 124.5 GBmacOS keeps 3.5 GBModel size at Q4

Everything on the size ladder fits. Two 27B-class models together use 35.7 GB and leave 88.8 GB free.

Similar devices and alternatives

Other memory sizes of the same machine first, then machines and GPUs people weigh against it, each with the one reason it is worth a look. Speeds on Qwen3.6 35B A3B.

Same chip, 64 GB less memoryMacBook Pro 14" M5 Max (64 GB)Apple · 60.5 GB for models · M5 Max
same speed▼ 64 GBno price
Same familySame chip, 80 GB less memoryMacBook Pro 14" M5 Max (48 GB)Apple · 44.5 GB for models · M5 Max
same speed▼ 80 GBno price
Same familyReads prompts 4× faster, 120 GB for modelsDGX SparkNVIDIA · 120 GB for models · GB10
▲ 4× prompts▼ 20% speed▼ 4.5 GBabout $3,999
12% faster, 64 GB more memoryMac Studio M2 Ultra (192 GB)Apple · 188.5 GB for models · M2 Ultra
▲ 12% speed▲ 64 GBabout $5,599
2.2× faster if your models fit in 24 GBRTX 4090NVIDIA · 24 GB VRAM · GPU
▲ 123% speed▼ 100.5 GBabout $1,599rent $0.34/hr
3.1× faster if your models fit in 32 GBRTX 5090NVIDIA · 32 GB VRAM · GPU
▲ 215% speed▼ 92.5 GBabout $5,376rent $0.64/hr

MacBook Pro 14" M5 Max tokens per second by model size

Output speed depends on memory bandwidth (614 GB/s). Grey rows need more than the 124.5 GB available.

  1. 9BQwen3.5 9B · Q4_K_M · 6.6 GB
    67.6tok/s
  2. 14BQwen3 14B · Q4_K_M · 11.9 GB
    45.2tok/s
  3. 27–31BQwen3.8 27B · Q4_K_M · 17.9 GB
    24.7tok/s
  4. 35B MoEQwen3.6 35B A3B · Q4_K_M · 22.0 GB
    67.8tok/s
  5. 70BLlama 3.3 70B Instruct · Q4_K_M · 51.3 GB slow
    9.2tok/s
  6. 120B MoEGPT OSS 120B · Q4_K_M · 70.8 GB
    65.5tok/s

Estimated speeds: Q4_K_M, 4K context, one user. How we estimate

Max generations: writing vs compute

M1 Max → M5 Max
Writing speed (tok/s)Compute (TFLOPS FP16)
1×2×3×4×M1 Max2021M2 Max2023M3 Max2023M4 Max2024M5 Max2026M1 Max · 20.8 TFLOPS FP16M1 Max · 54.5 tok/s · 400 GB/sM2 Max · 27.2 TFLOPS FP16M2 Max · 54.5 tok/s · 400 GB/sM3 Max · 28.7 TFLOPS FP16M3 Max · 55.2 tok/s · 409.6 GB/sM4 Max · 34.4 TFLOPS FP16M4 Max · 64.2 tok/s · 546 GB/sM5 Max · 68 TFLOPS FP16M5 Max · 67.8 tok/s · 614 GB/sCompute 3.3×Writing +24%
1×2×3×4×M12021M22023M32023M42024M52026M1 Max · 20.8 TFLOPS FP16M1 Max · 54.5 tok/s · 400 GB/sM2 Max · 27.2 TFLOPS FP16M2 Max · 54.5 tok/s · 400 GB/sM3 Max · 28.7 TFLOPS FP16M3 Max · 55.2 tok/s · 409.6 GB/sM4 Max · 34.4 TFLOPS FP16M4 Max · 64.2 tok/s · 546 GB/sM5 Max · 68 TFLOPS FP16M5 Max · 67.8 tok/s · 614 GB/sCompute 3.3×Writing +24%

Writing speed follows memory bandwidth and barely moved: 54.5 to 67.8 tok/s since the M1 Max. Compute, which sets how fast prompts are read, grew 3.3×. Indexed to the M1 Max; speeds on Qwen3.6 35B A3B, same 64 GB.

All 367 models on the MacBook Pro 14" M5 Max

Featured only

Best quant that fits in 124.5 GB, ordered by llmrun Score. Fit grades how well it runs here, S best. How ranking works

LLM models compatible with MacBook Pro 14" M5 Max (128 GB) — ranked by Score, recency and Fit
ModelVRAMScoreFit
Qwen3.8 27B
27.8B·Q4_K_M·24.7 t/s·262K ctx
17.9 GBA65, Runs well
Qwen3.6 35B A3B
36.0B·Q4_K_M·67.8 t/s·262K ctx
22.0 GBS85, Runs great
Gemma 4 26B A4B IT
25.8B·Q4_K_M·80.7 t/s·262K ctx
16.5 GBS88, Runs great
Muse Glimmer 30B
29.8B·Q4_K_M·23.4 t/s·131K ctx
19.6 GBB64, Decent
NVIDIA Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B BF16
31.6B·Q4_K_M·72.7 t/s·262K ctx
19.3 GBS86, Runs great
Gemma 4 31B IT
31.3B·Q4_K_M·21.1 t/s·262K ctx
21.7 GBB61, Decent
GLM 4.7 Flash
31.2B·Q4_K_M·61.7 t/s·203K ctx
19.9 GBA84, Runs well
Inkling Small
266.0B·IQ3_S·99.0 t/s
116.2 GBB62, Decent
GPT OSS 120B
116.8B·Q4_K_M·65.5 t/s·131K ctx
70.8 GBS85, Runs great
JEV 27B VL
27.8B·Q4_K_M·24.7 t/s·262K ctx
17.9 GBA65, Runs well
NVIDIA Nemotron 3 Super 120B A12B BF16
123.6B·Q4_K_M·27.9 t/s·262K ctx
74.7 GBA69, Runs well
Ling 3.0 Flash
127.5B·Q4_K_M·61.2 t/s·262K ctx
77.6 GBA84, Runs well
Qwen3.5 9B
9.7B·Q4_K_M·67.6 t/s·262K ctx
6.6 GBS85, Runs great
MiniCPM5 2B
2.5B·Q4_K_M·226.2 t/s·131K ctx
2.5 GBS100, Runs great
Qwen3.8 Flash Next
180.0B·Q4_K_M·10.4 t/s·262K ctx
109.0 GBC38, Usable

MacBook Pro 14" M5 Max specs

Specs

Chip
M5 Max
CPU cores
18
GPU cores
40
Unified memory
128 GB
For models
124.5 GB (macOS keeps 3.5 GB)
Memory bandwidth
614 GB/s
FP16 (dense)
68 TFLOPS
Neural Engine
38 TOPS
Released
2026-03-11

MacBook Pro 14" M5 Max FAQ

How much memory is available for AI on the MacBook Pro 14" M5 Max (128 GB)?

About 124.5 GB of the 128 GB. macOS keeps roughly 3.5 GB for itself and other apps.

What is the largest model the MacBook Pro 14" M5 Max (128 GB) can run?

NVIDIA Nemotron 3 Super 120B A12B BF16 (123.6B) at Q4_K_M uses 74.7 GB, 60% of the available memory, and runs at about 27.9 tok/s.

Can the MacBook Pro 14" M5 Max (128 GB) run Qwen3.8 27B?

Yes. Qwen3.8 27B fits at Q4_K_M, using 17.9 GB of the 124.5 GB available, and it is the best model that runs well on this machine.

Can the MacBook Pro 14" M5 Max (128 GB) run 70B models?

Yes, but slowly: Llama 3.3 70B Instruct at Q4_K_M uses 51.3 GB and writes about 9.2 tok/s.

How long does the MacBook Pro 14" M5 Max (128 GB) take to read a long prompt?

On Qwen3.8 27B, about 17 s for a 4K-token prompt and 2.2 min for a 32K-token document before the first word appears.

Is renting a GPU cheaper than buying the MacBook Pro 14" M5 Max?

An A100 (80 GB) rents from $1.06/hr.

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