Can I Run Mistral Large 3 on Apple M3 Ultra?
Written by Jakub Rusinowski · Last updated July 12, 2026
Only with offload — Mistral Large 3 675B-A41B at Q4_K_M needs 413.4 GB at 8K context (407.5 GB weights + 5.9 GB KV cache/overhead) against the Apple M3 Ultra's 384 GB usable memory, so part of it spills onto CPU/system RAM and speed drops sharply.
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Apple M3 Ultra Specs
| VRAM | 512 GB unified memory |
| Memory Bandwidth | 819 GB/s |
Mistral Large 3 675B-A41B on the Apple M3 Ultra: VRAM by quantization
| Quant | VRAM needed | Fits 512 GB? | Max context | Whole PC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| F16 | 1355.9 GB | ✗ No | — | — |
| Q8_0 | 723.1 GB | ✗ No | — | — |
| Q6_K | 559.4 GB | ✗ No | — | — |
| Q5_K_M | 484.3 GB | ✗ No | — | — |
| Q4_K_M | 413.4 GB | ✗ No | — | — |
| Q3_K_M | 293.6 GB | ✓ Yes | 128K | — |
| Q2_K | 227.8 GB | ✓ Yes | 128K | — |
Assumes an 8K-token context with an f16 KV cache, on an estimated architecture — this model publishes no config we can read. A longer window needs more; a quantized KV cache needs less. “Max context” is the largest window that still fits in 512 GB of unified memory. Figures are estimates from parameter count, quantization and memory bandwidth — the analyzer lets you tune KV-cache quant and context.
Context costs VRAM too. At Q4_K_M on the Apple M3 Ultra: 8K 413.4 GB ✗ · 32K 428.6 GB ✗ · 128K 489.4 GB ✗. Past 8K it no longer fits 512 GB — a q8_0 KV cache buys roughly half of that back, which the calculator will price for you.
Why It Does Not Fit
Every Mistral Large 3 variant requires more VRAM than the Apple M3 Ultra provides (512 GB).
Mistral Large 3 needs ~413 GB but this GPU has 512 GB. Rent a 8× H100 (640 GB)-class GPU by the hour instead of buying one:
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FAQ
Is the Apple M3 Ultra enough to run Mistral Large 3 locally?
Only with offload — Mistral Large 3 675B-A41B at Q4_K_M needs 413.4 GB at 8K context (407.5 GB weights + 5.9 GB KV cache/overhead) against the Apple M3 Ultra's 384 GB usable memory, so part of it spills onto CPU/system RAM and speed drops sharply.
Mistral Large 3 on Other GPUs
Popular Models on the Apple M3 Ultra
VRAM Tier
Troubleshooting
- Ollama: "model requires more system memory than is available"
- Out of memory at long context (the KV cache, not the weights)
Buying Guide
← Can I Run It? | Mistral Large 3 Model Page | Apple M3 Ultra GPU Page | VRAM calculator | Check Your Hardware