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text model · Granite · macOS

Can I run Granite 4.1 30B on Apple M5 Max (128GB)?

Compatibility verdict VRAM threshold engine
Yes, it runs GPU accelerated ~29 tok/s est.

Yes. Granite 4.1 30B runs on Apple M5 Max (128GB) at Q4_K_M (~19.1 GB of ~96 GB usable).

Needs ~19.1 GB Device usable ~96 GB

Runs at Q4_K_M using ~19.1 GB of ~96 GB usable. You have room for FP16 for higher quality.

That figure is at a 4k context and moves about ±15% as context length changes. Apple M5 Max (128GB) leaves ~76.9 GB of headroom, room to step up to FP16 for higher quality.

Q4_K_M needed
~19.1 GB
Usable on device
~96 GB
Device memory
128 GB
Best quant
Q4_K_M
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Which quant fits

Quant ladder vs ~96 GB usable
Q2_K
~14.2 GB
Q3_K_M
~16.2 GB
Q4_K_M
~19.1 GB
Q5_K_M
~22.7 GB
Q6_K
~25.8 GB
Q8_0
~33.1 GB
FP16
~60.1 GB
The line marks Apple M5 Max (128GB)'s ~96 GB budget; rungs past it are too large.

Run it

Install commands macOS

Loads the Q4_K_M weights.

Ollama
$ ollama run granite4.1:30b
Model Granite
Parameters
28.9B
Q4_K_M size
17 GB
Q8_0 size
31 GB
Context
128k
Ollama tag
granite4.1:30b
Full Granite 4.1 30B requirements →
Device macOS
Memory
128 GB unified
Usable for weights
~96 GB
Best runtime
MLX direct / Ollama (MLX backend)
Best models for Apple M5 Max (128GB) →

You could also run

Run Granite 4.1 30B on other hardware

FAQ

Can Apple M5 Max (128GB) run Granite 4.1 30B?

Yes. Granite 4.1 30B runs on Apple M5 Max (128GB) at Q4_K_M (~19.1 GB of ~96 GB usable).

How much memory does Granite 4.1 30B need?

Apple M5 Max (128GB) has room to spare. At Q4_K_M the weights are ~17 GB; with KV cache and runtime overhead, budget ~19.1 GB at a 4k context.

What is the best tool to run Granite 4.1 30B on macOS?

LM Studio for a simple setup; mlx-lm for the most speed. vLLM is NOT a Mac tool, it is a CUDA/Linux serving engine. Unified memory is not a fixed VRAM slice; ~70% is usable for weights.

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Granite 4.1 30B on Apple M5 Max (128GB) compatibility badge A live badge for your model card or README, updated as the data is.
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Sources

Weights are measured from GGUF files; KV cache and overhead are computed, so totals can vary ~15% with context and runtime. Any tok/s is a bandwidth estimate. See methodology.