Can I Run StarCoder 2 on MacBook Pro 16" (M5 Max, 128 GB)?

Written by Jakub Rusinowski · Last updated February 28, 2024

Yes — comfortably

Yes, comfortably — StarCoder 2 15B at Q8_0 needs about 17.9 GB of the 96 GB usable on MacBook Pro 16" (M5 Max, 128 GB), leaving ~78.1 GB spare and running at ~18.9 tok/s (estimated), with room for about 16,384 tokens of context.

Confidence: high · Recommended quantization: Q8_0 · Estimated speed: ~18.9 tok/s

MacBook Pro 16" (M5 Max, 128 GB) — what it gives a model

Usable memory for models96 GB
Memory bandwidth614 GB/s
Form factorLaptop
Operating systemmacOS
Memory upgradeableNo — soldered

StarCoder 2 on MacBook Pro 16" (M5 Max, 128 GB): memory by quantization

QuantMemory neededFits 96 GB?Max contextEst. speedDownload
F1632.5 GB✓ Yes16K~10.4 tok/s31 GB
Q8_017.9 GB✓ Yes16K~18.9 tok/s16.5 GB
Q6_K14.2 GB✓ Yes16K~23.9 tok/s12.7 GB
Q5_K_M12.5 GB✓ Yes16K~27.3 tok/s11 GB
Q4_K_M10.8 GB✓ Yes16K~31.4 tok/s9.4 GB
Q3_K_M8.1 GB✓ Yes16K~42.3 tok/s6.6 GB
Q2_K6.6 GB✓ Yes16K~52.3 tok/s5.1 GB

Which StarCoder 2 sizes fit

VariantNeeds at Q4_K_MFits?Est. speed
StarCoder 2 15B10.8 GB✓ Fits~31.4 tok/s
StarCoder 2 7B5.7 GB✓ Fits~59.8 tok/s
StarCoder 2 3B2.9 GB✓ Fits~114.2 tok/s

What to watch out for

MacBook Pro M5 Max 128 GB limitations

Recommended setup

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

How these numbers are calculated

FAQ

Can I run StarCoder 2 on MacBook Pro 16" (M5 Max, 128 GB)?

Yes, comfortably — StarCoder 2 15B at Q8_0 needs about 17.9 GB of the 96 GB usable on MacBook Pro 16" (M5 Max, 128 GB), leaving ~78.1 GB spare and running at ~18.9 tok/s (estimated), with room for about 16,384 tokens of context.

Which quantization of StarCoder 2 should I use on MacBook Pro 16" (M5 Max, 128 GB)?

Q8_0 — it needs about 17.9 GB of the 96 GB available, downloads as roughly 16.5 GB, and runs at an estimated 18.9 tokens/sec with up to 16K of context.

What limits StarCoder 2 on MacBook Pro 16" (M5 Max, 128 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

Other Models on MacBook Pro 16" (M5 Max, 128 GB)

StarCoder 2 on GPUs

What This Model Is Good At

Model & Tools

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