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text model · Granite · macOS

Can I run Granite 4.2 30B on Apple M5 (32GB)?

Compatibility verdict VRAM threshold engine
Yes, it runs GPU accelerated ~7 tok/s est.

Yes. Granite 4.2 30B runs on Apple M5 (32GB) at Q4_K_M (~18.6 GB of ~21 GB usable).

Needs ~18.6 GB Device usable ~21 GB

Runs at Q4_K_M using ~18.6 GB of ~21 GB usable.

That figure is at a 4k context and moves about ±15% as context length changes. Apple M5 (32GB) leaves ~2.4 GB of headroom.

Q4_K_M needed
~18.6 GB
Usable on device
~21 GB
Device memory
32 GB
Best quant
Q4_K_M
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Which quant fits

Quant ladder vs ~21 GB usable
Q2_K
~14.7 GB
Q3_K_M
~16.8 GB
Q4_K_M
~18.6 GB
Q5_K_M
~23.5 GB
Q6_K
~26.7 GB
Q8_0
~31.1 GB
FP16
~62.1 GB
The line marks Apple M5 (32GB)'s ~21 GB budget; rungs past it are too large.

Run it

Install commands macOS

Pick your tool. All 3 load the same Q4_K_M weights.

Ollama
$ ollama run granite4.2:30b
llama.cpp
$ llama-cli -hf ibm-granite/granite-4.2-30b-GGUF:Q4_K_M
LM Studio
$ lms get ibm-granite/granite-4.2-30b-GGUF
Model Granite
Parameters
30B
Q4_K_M size
16.5 GB
Q8_0 size
28.98 GB
Context
128k
Ollama tag
granite4.2:30b
Full Granite 4.2 30B requirements →
Device macOS
Memory
32 GB unified
Usable for weights
~21 GB
Best runtime
MLX direct / Ollama (MLX backend)
Best models for Apple M5 (32GB) →

You could also run

Run Granite 4.2 30B on other hardware

Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 (24GB)Nvidia GeForce RTX 3090 (24GB)AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX (24GB)Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 (32GB)32GB RAM Laptop (CPU/iGPU only)Apple M4 Pro (48GB)

FAQ

Can Apple M5 (32GB) run Granite 4.2 30B?

Yes. Granite 4.2 30B runs on Apple M5 (32GB) at Q4_K_M (~18.6 GB of ~21 GB usable).

How much memory does Granite 4.2 30B need?

Apple M5 (32GB) has room to spare. At Q4_K_M the weights are ~16.5 GB; with KV cache and runtime overhead, budget ~18.6 GB at a 4k context.

What is the best tool to run Granite 4.2 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 4.2 30B on Apple M5 (32GB) 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.