Can I Run Bonsai 27B on MacBook Pro 16" (M4 Max, 48 GB)?

Written by Jakub Rusinowski · Last updated July 15, 2026

Yes

Yes — 1-bit Bonsai 27B at Q8_0 needs about 31.2 GB of the 36 GB usable on MacBook Pro 16" (M4 Max, 48 GB) (~4.8 GB spare), at ~9.8 tok/s (estimated), with room for about 16,384 tokens of context.

Confidence: medium · Recommended quantization: Q8_0 · Estimated speed: ~9.8 tok/s

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MacBook Pro 16" (M4 Max, 48 GB) — what it gives a model

Usable memory for models	36 GB
Memory bandwidth	546 GB/s
Form factor	Laptop
Operating system	macOS
Memory upgradeable	No — soldered
Price	$3,999 (lib/data/laptops.ts (street price), checked 2026-07-06)

Bonsai 27B on MacBook Pro 16" (M4 Max, 48 GB): memory by quantization

Quant	Memory needed	Fits 36 GB?	Max context	Est. speed	Download
F16	56.5 GB	✗ No	—	—	54 GB
Q8_0	31.2 GB	✓ Yes	16K	~9.8 tok/s	28.7 GB
Q6_K	24.7 GB	✓ Yes	32K	~12.5 tok/s	22.1 GB
Q5_K_M	21.7 GB	✓ Yes	64K	~14.3 tok/s	19.1 GB
Q4_K_M	18.8 GB	✓ Yes	64K	~16.6 tok/s	16.3 GB
Q3_K_M	14.1 GB	✓ Yes	64K	~22.5 tok/s	11.5 GB
Q2_K	11.4 GB	✓ Yes	64K	~28.1 tok/s	8.9 GB

Which Bonsai 27B sizes fit

Variant	Needs at Q4_K_M	Fits?	Est. speed
1-bit Bonsai 27B	18.8 GB	✓ Fits	~16.6 tok/s
Ternary Bonsai 27B	18.8 GB	✓ Fits	~16.6 tok/s

What to watch out for

This model does not publish its full attention configuration, so the KV-cache share of these figures is inferred from its parameter count rather than computed exactly.
Memory on this machine is not upgradeable, so the configuration you buy is the ceiling for every model you will ever run on it.

MacBook Pro M4 Max 48 GB limitations

Unified memory is soldered and cannot be upgraded after purchase.
macOS reserves a share of unified memory for the system, so not all 48 GB is available to a model.

Recommended setup

Ollama or LM Studio (Metal) — MLX for the fastest Apple-native throughput

How these numbers are calculated

Memory need = quantized weights + KV cache at 8,192 tokens (f16) + 0.8 GB runtime overhead.
48 GB unified memory at 546 GB/s, shared between CPU and GPU.
macOS reserves a share of unified memory for the system, so not all of it is available to a model.
Throughput is a memory-bandwidth roofline estimate, not a measurement. It is labelled "estimated" everywhere it appears.
KV cache is inferred from the parameter count because this model does not publish its full attention configuration.

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