Is unified memory on MacBook Pro M4 Max 36GB as fast as VRAM for DeepSeek R1 Distill 7B?

Not always. MacBook Pro M4 Max 36GB can often fit larger models thanks to unified memory, but a discrete GPU with dedicated high-bandwidth VRAM may still decode faster once the model fits. For this combination, the important distinction is capacity versus sustained throughput.

Can DeepSeek R1 Distill 7B run on MacBook Pro M4 Max 36GB?

YES — Runs Great

B66Good

Estimated from fit model

DeepSeek R1 Distill 7B needs ~9.9 GB VRAM. MacBook Pro M4 Max 36GB has 25.9 GB. With Q4_K_M quantization, expect ~61 tok/s.

Runtime: llama.cppCapacity: RoomyBandwidth: LowStack: StandardBottleneck: Balanced

Operating mode

Choose the run profile you care about

Interactive favors responsiveness, while light API and scale-out lean harder on serving readiness. The fit stays the same, but the recommendation lens changes.

Current mode

Balanced

Balanced for general local use. Keeps the ranking neutral across personal and serving workflows.

Capabilities:

Select quantization to explore

Q4_K_M (Medium quality) — 9.9 GB, 71.6 tok/s, Runs well

9.9 GB required25.9 GB available

38% VRAM used

Fit status

Runs well

Decode

71.6 tok/s

TTFT

2704 ms

Safe context

33K

Memory

9.9 GB / 25.9 GB

Memory breakdown

Weights4.3 GB

KV Cache0.9 GB

Runtime0.9 GB

Headroom3.9 GB

See how fast it feels

See how fast it feelsDeepSeek R1 Distill 7B on MacBook Pro M4 Max 36GB
1st promptCold start — includes initialization
>Write a Python function to sort a list
Here's a Python function that sorts a list using quicksort:

def quicksort(arr):
    if len(arr) <= 1:
        return arr
    pivot = arr[len(arr) // 2]
    left   = [x for x in arr if x < pivot]
    middle = [x for x in arr if x == pivot]
    right  = [x for x in arr if x > pivot]
    return quicksort(left) + middle + quicksort(right)

# Example usage
numbers = [3, 6, 8, 10, 1, 2, 1]
print(quicksort(numbers))  # [1, 1, 2, 3, 6, 8, 10]

The algorithm picks a pivot, partitions the list into smaller, equal, and larger elements, then recursively sorts each partition and concatenates the results.
2nd promptWarm — model ready, no init overhead
>Now add type hints and a docstring
def quicksort(arr: list[int]) -> list[int]:
    """Sort a list using the quicksort algorithm.

    Args:
        arr: List of integers to sort.

    Returns:
        A new sorted list.
    """
    if len(arr) <= 1:
        return arr
    pivot = arr[len(arr) // 2]
    left   = [x for x in arr if x < pivot]
    middle = [x for x in arr if x == pivot]
    right  = [x for x in arr if x > pivot]
    return quicksort(left) + middle + quicksort(right)

Added type hints for the input and return type, plus a Google-style docstring.
Estimated: 71.6 tok/s decode · 2.7s TTFT (warm) · 179 tok/s prefill

What limits this setup

This setup is broadly balanced for this model.

Shared-memory contention still exists

The OS, browser, and inference runtime all compete for the same physical memory pool, so real-world headroom is less forgiving than raw capacity suggests.

Best improvement path

Performance by workload

Workload	Grade	Fit	Decode	TTFT	Context
Chat	B	Runs well	71.6 tok/s	1475 ms	33K
Coding	B	Runs well	60.5 tok/s	3200 ms	33K
Agentic Coding	B	Runs well	71.6 tok/s	3934 ms	33K
Reasoning	B	Runs well	71.6 tok/s	3196 ms	33K
RAG	B	Runs well	71.6 tok/s	4917 ms	33K

Quantization options

How DeepSeek R1 Distill 7B (7B params) fits at each quantization level on MacBook Pro M4 Max 36GB (25.9 GB usable).

Quant	Bits	VRAM	Quality	Fit
Q2_K	2	2.7 GB	Low	B61
Q3_K_S	3	3.4 GB	Low	B61
NVFP4	4

Get started

Copy-paste commands to run DeepSeek R1 Distill 7B on your machine.

Run

ollama run deepseek-r1:7b

Frequently asked questions

Can MacBook Pro M4 Max 36GB run DeepSeek R1 Distill 7B?

Yes, MacBook Pro M4 Max 36GB can run DeepSeek R1 Distill 7B with a B grade (Runs well). Expected decode speed: 60.5 tok/s.

How much VRAM does DeepSeek R1 Distill 7B need?

DeepSeek R1 Distill 7B (7B parameters) requires approximately 9.9 GB of memory with Q4_K_M quantization.

What is the best quantization for DeepSeek R1 Distill 7B?

The recommended quantization for DeepSeek R1 Distill 7B is Q4_K_M, which balances quality and memory efficiency.

What speed will DeepSeek R1 Distill 7B run at on MacBook Pro M4 Max 36GB?

On MacBook Pro M4 Max 36GB, DeepSeek R1 Distill 7B achieves approximately 60.5 tokens per second decode speed with a time-to-first-token of 3200ms using Q4_K_M quantization.

Can MacBook Pro M4 Max 36GB run DeepSeek R1 Distill 7B for coding?

For coding workloads, DeepSeek R1 Distill 7B on MacBook Pro M4 Max 36GB receives a B grade with 60.5 tok/s and 33K context.

What context window can DeepSeek R1 Distill 7B use on MacBook Pro M4 Max 36GB?

On MacBook Pro M4 Max 36GB, DeepSeek R1 Distill 7B can safely use up to 33K tokens of context. The model's official context limit is 33K, but available memory constrains the safe maximum.

See all results for MacBook Pro M4 Max 36GB See all hardware for DeepSeek R1 Distill 7B

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