Can Yi 1.5 34B run on Mac mini M4 64GB?

YES — Runs Great

B62Good

Estimated — low-sample bucket· few comparable runs

Yi 1.5 34B needs ~32.2 GB VRAM. Mac mini M4 64GB has 46.1 GB. With Q4_K_M quantization, expect ~8 tok/s.

Runtime: llama.cppCapacity: RoomyBandwidth: Very lowStack: StandardBottleneck: Memory bandwidth

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) — 32.2 GB, 8.1 tok/s, Runs well

32.2 GB required46.1 GB available

70% VRAM used

Fit status

Runs well

Decode

8.1 tok/s

TTFT

23780 ms

Safe context

Memory

32.2 GB / 46.1 GB

Memory breakdown

Weights20.7 GB

KV Cache3.7 GB

Runtime0.9 GB

Headroom6.9 GB

See how fast it feels

See how fast it feelsYi 1.5 34B on Mac mini M4 64GB
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: 8.1 tok/s decode · 23.8s TTFT (warm) · 20 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	8.1 tok/s	12971 ms	4K
Coding	B	Runs well	8.1 tok/s	23780 ms	4K
Agentic Coding	B	Runs well	8.1 tok/s	34589 ms	4K
Reasoning	B	Runs well	8.1 tok/s	28104 ms	4K
RAG	B	Runs well	8.1 tok/s	43236 ms	4K

Quantization options

How Yi 1.5 34B (34B params) fits at each quantization level on Mac mini M4 64GB (46.1 GB usable).

Quant	Bits	VRAM	Quality	Fit
Q2_K	2	13.3 GB	Low	B57
Q3_K_S	3	16.7 GB	Low	B58
NVFP4	4

Get started

Copy-paste commands to run Yi 1.5 34B on your machine.

Run

lms load Yi-1.5-34B-Chat && lms server start

Upgrade options

Hardware that runs Yi 1.5 34B well

MacBook Pro M4 Max 96GBBudget pick

96 GB Unified (+32)546 GB/s (+426)

Raises estimated decode speed by about 288%.31.4 tok/s decode

Raises estimated decode speed by about 288%.

Adds memory headroom for longer context windows and future model growth.

~$2,499 MSRP

Mac Studio M3 Ultra 96GBBest value

96 GB Unified (+32)819 GB/s (+699)

Raises estimated decode speed by about 260%.29.2 tok/s decode

Raises estimated decode speed by about 260%.

Adds memory headroom for longer context windows and future model growth.

~$3,999 MSRP

Frequently asked questions

Can Mac mini M4 64GB run Yi 1.5 34B?

Yes, Mac mini M4 64GB can run Yi 1.5 34B with a B grade (Runs well). Expected decode speed: 8.1 tok/s.

How much VRAM does Yi 1.5 34B need?

Yi 1.5 34B (34B parameters) requires approximately 32.2 GB of memory with Q4_K_M quantization.

What is the best quantization for Yi 1.5 34B?

The recommended quantization for Yi 1.5 34B is Q4_K_M, which balances quality and memory efficiency.

What speed will Yi 1.5 34B run at on Mac mini M4 64GB?

On Mac mini M4 64GB, Yi 1.5 34B achieves approximately 8.1 tokens per second decode speed with a time-to-first-token of 23780ms using Q4_K_M quantization.

Can Mac mini M4 64GB run Yi 1.5 34B for coding?

For coding workloads, Yi 1.5 34B on Mac mini M4 64GB receives a B grade with 8.1 tok/s and 4K context.

What context window can Yi 1.5 34B use on Mac mini M4 64GB?

On Mac mini M4 64GB, Yi 1.5 34B can safely use up to 4K tokens of context. The model's official context limit is 4K, but available memory constrains the safe maximum.

Is unified memory on Mac mini M4 64GB as fast as VRAM for Yi 1.5 34B?

Not always. Mac mini M4 64GB 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.

See all results for Mac mini M4 64GB See all hardware for Yi 1.5 34B

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