Can Qwen 3 8B run on MacBook Pro M4 Max 96GB?

Q: Is unified memory on MacBook Pro M4 Max 96GB as fast as VRAM for Qwen 3 8B?

Not always. MacBook Pro M4 Max 96GB 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.

YES — Runs Great

S87Excellent

Estimated from fit model

Qwen 3 8B needs ~18.3 GB VRAM. MacBook Pro M4 Max 96GB has 69.1 GB. With Q4_K_M quantization, expect ~83 tok/s.

Runtime: llama.cppCapacity: RoomyBandwidth: MediumStack: 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) — 18.3 GB, 82.6 tok/s, Runs well

18.3 GB required69.1 GB available

26% VRAM used

Fit status

Runs well

Decode

82.6 tok/s

TTFT

2344 ms

Safe context

131K

Memory

18.3 GB / 69.1 GB

Memory breakdown

Weights4.9 GB

KV Cache2.2 GB

Runtime0.9 GB

Headroom10.4 GB

See how fast it feels

See how fast it feelsQwen 3 8B on MacBook Pro M4 Max 96GB
1st promptCold start — includes initialization
>Solve: If a train travels at 60 mph for 2.5 hours, how far does it go?
Let me work through this step by step.

Given information:
  - Speed = 60 mph (miles per hour)
  - Time  = 2.5 hours

Formula: Distance = Speed x Time

Calculation:
  Distance = 60 mph x 2.5 h
           = 150 miles

The train travels 150 miles.

Double-check: at 60 mph the train covers 60 miles each hour. In half an hour it covers 30 miles. So in 2.5 hours: 60 + 60 + 30 = 150 miles. Confirmed.
2nd promptWarm — model ready, no init overhead
>What if the train stops for 20 minutes halfway?
The stop doesn't change the total distance covered while moving, but it affects total trip time.

Breakdown:
  - First half: 1.25 hours at 60 mph = 75 miles
  - Stop: 20 minutes (no distance)
  - Second half: 1.25 hours at 60 mph = 75 miles

Total distance: 150 miles (same)
Total time: 2.5 h + 0.33 h = 2.83 hours
Average speed: 150 / 2.83 = 53 mph

The distance stays the same but average speed drops to 53 mph because of the stop.
Estimated: 82.6 tok/s decode · 2.3s TTFT (warm) · 207 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	S	Runs well	82.6 tok/s	1279 ms	131K
Coding	S	Runs well	82.6 tok/s	2344 ms	131K
Agentic Coding	S	Runs well	82.6 tok/s	3409 ms	131K
Reasoning	S	Runs well	82.6 tok/s	2770 ms	131K
RAG	S	Runs well	82.6 tok/s	4262 ms	131K

Inference speed

Qwen 3 8B inference speed — tokens per second by GPU & Mac

Estimated decode speed (tokens/sec) for Qwen 3 8B at Q4_K_M across popular GPUs and Apple Silicon, using the fastest local runtime per device. Fastest is RTX 5090 32GB at ~112 tok/s. Speed is memory-bandwidth bound, so cards that fit the whole model in VRAM run far faster than ones that offload to system RAM.

GPU / Mac	Memory	Quant	Speed (tok/s)	Fits?
RTX 5090 32GB	32 GB	Q4_K_M	112.0	Fits
RTX 4090 24GB	24 GB	Q4_K_M	112.0	Fits
RTX 4080 Super 16GB	16 GB	Q4_K_M	112.0

Quantization options

How Qwen 3 8B (8B params) fits at each quantization level on MacBook Pro M4 Max 96GB (69.1 GB usable).

Quant	Bits	VRAM	Quality	Fit
Q2_K	2	3.1 GB	Low	A80
Q3_K_S	3	3.9 GB	Low	A80
NVFP4	4

Get started

Copy-paste commands to run Qwen 3 8B on your machine.

Run

ollama run qwen3:8b

Your hardware

More models your MacBook Pro M4 Max 96GB can run

Model	Params	Grade	Decode	Capabilities
Qwen3-Coder 30B A3B Instruct	30.5B	S	52 tok/s
Qwen 3.5 27B	27B	S	36.1 tok/s

Frequently asked questions

Can MacBook Pro M4 Max 96GB run Qwen 3 8B?

Yes, MacBook Pro M4 Max 96GB can run Qwen 3 8B with a S grade (Runs well). Expected decode speed: 82.6 tok/s.

How much VRAM does Qwen 3 8B need?

Qwen 3 8B (8B parameters) requires approximately 18.3 GB of memory with Q4_K_M quantization.

What is the best quantization for Qwen 3 8B?

The recommended quantization for Qwen 3 8B is Q4_K_M, which balances quality and memory efficiency.

What speed will Qwen 3 8B run at on MacBook Pro M4 Max 96GB?

On MacBook Pro M4 Max 96GB, Qwen 3 8B achieves approximately 82.6 tokens per second decode speed with a time-to-first-token of 2344ms using Q4_K_M quantization.

Can MacBook Pro M4 Max 96GB run Qwen 3 8B for coding?

For coding workloads, Qwen 3 8B on MacBook Pro M4 Max 96GB receives a S grade with 82.6 tok/s and 131K context.

What context window can Qwen 3 8B use on MacBook Pro M4 Max 96GB?

On MacBook Pro M4 Max 96GB, Qwen 3 8B can safely use up to 131K tokens of context. The model's official context limit is 131K, but available memory constrains the safe maximum.

Is unified memory on MacBook Pro M4 Max 96GB as fast as VRAM for Qwen 3 8B?

See all results for MacBook Pro M4 Max 96GB See all hardware for Qwen 3 8B

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