Can I Run GPT-OSS on MacBook Pro 14" (M4 Pro, 24 GB)?
Written by Jakub Rusinowski · Last updated August 15, 2026
Yes
Yes — GPT-OSS 20B at Q5_K_M needs about 16 GB of the 18 GB usable on MacBook Pro 14" (M4 Pro, 24 GB) (~2 GB spare), at ~46.7 tok/s (estimated), with room for about 32,768 tokens of context.
Confidence: high · Recommended quantization: Q5_K_M · Estimated speed: ~46.7 tok/s
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MacBook Pro 14" (M4 Pro, 24 GB) — what it gives a model
| Usable memory for models | 18 GB |
| Memory bandwidth | 273 GB/s |
| Form factor | Laptop |
| Operating system | macOS |
| Memory upgradeable | No — soldered |
| Price | $1,999 (lib/data/laptops.ts (street price), checked 2026-07-06) |
GPT-OSS on MacBook Pro 14" (M4 Pro, 24 GB): memory by quantization
| Quant | Memory needed | Fits 18 GB? | Max context | Est. speed | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F16 | 43 GB | ✗ No | — | — | 41.8 GB |
| Q8_0 | 23.4 GB | ✗ No | — | — | 22.2 GB |
| Q6_K | 18.3 GB | ✗ No | — | — | 17.1 GB |
| Q5_K_M | 16 GB | ✓ Yes | 32K | ~46.7 tok/s | 14.8 GB |
| Q4_K_M | 13.8 GB | ✓ Yes | 64K | ~53 tok/s | 12.6 GB |
| Q3_K_M | 10.1 GB | ✓ Yes | 128K | ~68.5 tok/s | 8.9 GB |
| Q2_K | 8.1 GB | ✓ Yes | 128K | ~81.6 tok/s | 6.9 GB |
Which GPT-OSS sizes fit
| Variant | Needs at Q4_K_M | Fits? | Est. speed |
|---|---|---|---|
| GPT-OSS 120B | 71.9 GB | ✗ Too large | — |
| GPT-OSS 20B | 13.8 GB | ✓ Fits | ~53 tok/s |
What to watch out for
- 1 larger variant of GPT-OSS does not fit and would need CPU offload or different hardware.
- 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 Pro 24 GB limitations
- Unified memory is soldered and cannot be upgraded after purchase.
- 24 GB is the practical ceiling for a single mid-size model plus a long context.
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.
- 24 GB unified memory at 273 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 computed from this model's published attention configuration.
FAQ
Can I run GPT-OSS on MacBook Pro 14" (M4 Pro, 24 GB)?
Yes — GPT-OSS 20B at Q5_K_M needs about 16 GB of the 18 GB usable on MacBook Pro 14" (M4 Pro, 24 GB) (~2 GB spare), at ~46.7 tok/s (estimated), with room for about 32,768 tokens of context.
Which quantization of GPT-OSS should I use on MacBook Pro 14" (M4 Pro, 24 GB)?
Q5_K_M — it needs about 16 GB of the 18 GB available, downloads as roughly 14.8 GB, and runs at an estimated 46.7 tokens/sec with up to 32K of context.
What limits GPT-OSS on MacBook Pro 14" (M4 Pro, 24 GB)?
Nothing binding — the model fits with headroom and generates at a usable speed on this hardware.
Which runtime should I use?
Ollama or LM Studio (Metal) — MLX for the fastest Apple-native throughput
Other Computers
- GPT-OSS on MacBook Pro M4 Max 128 GB
- GPT-OSS on MacBook Pro M4 Max 48 GB
- GPT-OSS on MacBook Air M4 16 GB
Other Models on MacBook Pro 14" (M4 Pro, 24 GB)
- Granite 3.0 on MacBook Pro 14" (M4 Pro, 24 GB)
- IBM Granite 4.0 on MacBook Pro 14" (M4 Pro, 24 GB)
- IBM Granite 4.1 on MacBook Pro 14" (M4 Pro, 24 GB)
- IBM Granite 4.2 on MacBook Pro 14" (M4 Pro, 24 GB)
- InternLM 3 on MacBook Pro 14" (M4 Pro, 24 GB)
GPT-OSS on GPUs
- GPT-OSS on NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080
- GPT-OSS on NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti
- GPT-OSS on NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070
- GPT-OSS on NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 16GB