Machine answer

Best local LLMs for Mac Studio M3 Ultra 256GB in 2026

Name: Mac Studio M3 Ultra 256GB
Brand: Apple
Price: 7499 USD
Availability: InStock

Use this page when your real query is the exact machine, not a generic “best Mac” article. The ranking below is machine-specific, and the supporting links show where the evidence is benchmark-backed, sparse, or still fit-limited.

Current coding-biased answer for Mac Studio M3 Ultra 256GB: Qwen3.6-27B. Use Fit and Bench to verify how much headroom remains once you move past the default answer.

13 benchmarks on this exact machine across 10 models. Last benchmark: March 4, 2026. Catalog current through April 22, 2026.

Audit fit Audit evidence Check local vs API cost Compare rented GPUs

Best local LLMs for this Mac

26 current modelsCatalog current through April 22, 2026Benchmark evidence through April 27, 2026

Mac Studio M3 Ultra 256GB ranked for coding with a most capable bias, using the best available runtime evidence. focused on the current market set.

Mac

Capability

Bias

Runtime

Use the strongest current runtime evidence for each row.Largest fit: Qwen3.5-397B-A17B at Q4_K_M (17B active / 397B total)Fastest read: Qwen3.5-4B at 148.0 tok/s on MLXRanking evidence: Gemma 4 31B, Qwen3.6-27B, Qwen3.6-35B-A3B +1 are current candidates; sparse rows stay labeled until first-party evidence lands.Next featured Mac: Mac Studio M4 Ultra 256GB planned for June 2026; current default changes after arrival validation and clean first-party evidence.26 historical baseline rows hiddenBaselines

Current ranking evidence

Fresh releases stay visible, but sparse evidence remains explicit.

Gemma 4 31B

released 2026-04-02 · 5 official specs captured · 4 benchmark rows · 6 Apple Silicon field sources · first-party measurement queued · Mac Studio M4 Ultra 256GB batch planned

Best field report is 28.0 tok/s; keep ranking movement provisional until Bench evidence hardens.

Bench: Mac Studio M4 Ultra 256GB batch planned

Qwen3.6-27B

released 2026-04-22 · 5 official specs captured · 1 benchmark row · 9 Apple Silicon field sources · first-party measurement queued · Mac Studio M4 Ultra 256GB batch planned

Best field report is 85.5 tok/s; keep ranking movement provisional until Bench evidence hardens.

Bench: Mac Studio M4 Ultra 256GB batch planned

Qwen3.6-35B-A3B

released 2026-04-15 · 5 official specs captured · 4 benchmark rows · 15 Apple Silicon field sources · first-party measurement queued · Mac Studio M4 Ultra 256GB batch planned

Best field report is 203.1 tok/s; keep ranking movement provisional until Bench evidence hardens.

Bench: Mac Studio M4 Ultra 256GB batch planned

Mistral Small 4 119B

released 2026-03-16 · 6 official specs captured · 3 benchmark rows · 1 Apple Silicon field source · first-party measurement queued · Mac Studio M4 Ultra 256GB batch planned

Best field report is 44.0 tok/s; keep ranking movement provisional until Bench evidence hardens.

Bench: Mac Studio M4 Ultra 256GB batch planned

Rank	Model	Score	Quant	Tok/s	Runtime	Evidence	Headroom	Context	Why it ranks here
1	Gemma 4 31B30.7B parameters	290	8bit	22.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 22.0 tok/s · MLX · Estimated	MLX	EstimatedFirst-party M5 batch queued	219.4 GB	206k	Recent frontier candidate in the current catalog. 8bit is the highest practical quality here. 22.0 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage, with MLX backend as the best runtime hint. 219.4 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
2	Qwen3.5-27B27B parameters	283	8bit	38.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 38.0 tok/s · MLX · Estimated	MLX	EstimatedFirst-party M5 batch queued	228.4 GB	262k	Recent frontier candidate in the current catalog. 8bit is the highest practical quality here. 38.0 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage, with MLX backend as the best runtime hint. 228.4 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
3	Qwen3.6-27B27B parameters	280	8bit	16.6 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 16.6 tok/s · Ollama · Estimated	Ollama	EstimatedFirst-party M5 batch queued	228.4 GB	262k	Recent frontier candidate in the current catalog. 8bit is the highest practical quality here. 16.6 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage, with Ollama wrapper on llama.cpp as the best runtime hint. 228.4 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
4	Devstral Small 2 24B24B parameters	274	8bit	47.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 47.0 tok/s · MLX · Estimated	MLX	EstimatedFirst-party M5 batch queued	231.9 GB	262k	Recent frontier candidate in the current catalog. 8bit is the highest practical quality here. 47.0 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage, with MLX backend as the best runtime hint. 231.9 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
5	Qwen3.6-35B-A3B3B active / 35B total	252	8bit	48.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 48.0 tok/s · MLX · Estimated	MLX	EstimatedFirst-party M5 batch queued	222.3 GB	262k	Recent frontier candidate in the current catalog. 8bit is the highest practical quality here. 48.0 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage, with MLX backend as the best runtime hint. 222.3 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
6	Mistral Small 4 119B6.5B active / 119B total	199	8bit	42.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 42.0 tok/s · MLX · Estimated	MLX	EstimatedFirst-party M5 batch queued	140.2 GB	193k	Recent frontier candidate in the current catalog. 8bit is the highest practical quality here. 42.0 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage, with MLX backend as the best runtime hint. 140.2 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
7	Qwen3.5-397B-A17B17B active / 397B total	144	Q4_K_M	40.2 tok/s Fastest evidence path: Q4_K_M · 40.2 tok/s · Best available · Estimated	Best available	EstimatedBitter Mill import queued	42.9 GB	47k	Recent frontier candidate in the current catalog. Q4_K_M is the highest practical quality here. 40.2 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage. 42.9 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
8	MiniMax M2.7229B parameters	426	6bit Source-backed MLX MiniMax-M2.7-6bit - 200 GB min	Measure it	Best available	Fit-firstFirst-party M5 batch queued	56.0 GB	205k	Recent model release in the current catalog. 6bit is the highest practical quality here. MiniMax-M2.7-6bit source profile lists 200 GB minimum memory on MLX; throughput still needs direct benchmark coverage. 56.0 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
9	Gemma 4 26B-A4B3.8B active / 25.2B total	252	8bit	40.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 40.0 tok/s · MLX · Estimated	MLX	EstimatedFirst-party M5 batch queued	230.2 GB	262k	Recent model release in the current catalog. 8bit is the highest practical quality here. 40.0 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage, with MLX backend as the best runtime hint. 230.2 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
10	Nemotron Cascade 2 30B-A3B3B active / 30B total	250	8bit	28.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 28.0 tok/s · Ollama · Estimated	Ollama	EstimatedFirst-party M5 batch queued	227.2 GB	1000k	Recent model release in the current catalog. 8bit is the highest practical quality here. 28.0 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage, with Ollama wrapper on llama.cpp as the best runtime hint. 227.2 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
11	Qwen3.5-35B-A3B3B active / 35B total	249	8bit	80.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 3bit · 95.0 tok/s · MLX · Estimated	MLX	Community rowFirst-party M5 batch queued	222.3 GB	262k	Recent model release in the current catalog. 8bit is the highest practical quality here. 80.0 tok/s benchmark-backed on MLX backend. 222.3 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
12	GLM-4.7-Flash3B active / 30B total	247	8bit	58.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 58.0 tok/s · MLX · Community row	MLX	Community rowFirst-party M5 batch queued	220.2 GB	203k	Recent model release in the current catalog. 8bit is the highest practical quality here. 58.0 tok/s benchmark-backed on MLX backend. 220.2 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
13	Nemotron-3-Nano-30B-A3B3.5B active / 30B total	246	8bit	43.7 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 43.7 tok/s · llama.cpp · Estimated	llama.cpp	EstimatedFirst-party M5 batch queued	227.2 GB	1000k	Recent model release in the current catalog. 8bit is the highest practical quality here. 43.7 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage, with llama.cpp backend as the best runtime hint. 227.2 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
14	Magistral Small24B parameters	242	8bit	Measure it	Best available	Fit-firstFirst-party M5 batch queued	231.9 GB	41k	8bit is the highest practical quality here. Speed still needs direct speed coverage. 231.9 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
15	Ministral 3 14B14B parameters	232	8bit	40.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 40.0 tok/s · Ollama · Estimated	Ollama	EstimatedFirst-party M5 batch queued	241.2 GB	262k	Recent model release in the current catalog. 8bit is the highest practical quality here. 40.0 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage, with Ollama wrapper on llama.cpp as the best runtime hint. 241.2 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
16	Gemma 4 E4B8B parameters	230	8bit	78.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 78.0 tok/s · Ollama · Estimated	Ollama	EstimatedFirst-party M5 batch queued	247.4 GB	131k	Recent model release in the current catalog. 8bit is the highest practical quality here. 78.0 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage, with Ollama wrapper on llama.cpp as the best runtime hint. 247.4 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
17	Qwen3.5-9B9B parameters	230	8bit	106.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 106.0 tok/s · MLX · Estimated	MLX	EstimatedFirst-party M5 batch queued	246.1 GB	262k	Recent model release in the current catalog. 8bit is the highest practical quality here. 106.0 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage, with MLX backend as the best runtime hint. 246.1 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
18	Ministral 3 8B8B parameters	223	8bit	72.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 72.0 tok/s · Ollama · Estimated	Ollama	EstimatedFirst-party M5 batch queued	247.0 GB	262k	Recent model release in the current catalog. 8bit is the highest practical quality here. 72.0 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage, with Ollama wrapper on llama.cpp as the best runtime hint. 247.0 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
19	gpt-oss 20B3.6B active / 21B total	217	8bit	Measure it	MLX	Fit-firstFirst-party M5 batch queued	235.6 GB	131k	8bit is the highest practical quality here. Speed still needs direct speed coverage. 235.6 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
20	Qwen3.5-122B-A10B10B active / 122B total	203	8bit	43.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 3bit · 57.0 tok/s · MLX · Estimated	MLX	Community rowBitter Mill import queued	141.1 GB	262k	Recent model release in the current catalog. 8bit is the highest practical quality here. 43.0 tok/s benchmark-backed on MLX backend. 141.1 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
21	Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E17B active / 109B total	196	8bit	26.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 26.0 tok/s · MLX · Estimated	MLX	EstimatedFirst-party M5 batch queued	152.5 GB	631k	8bit is the highest practical quality here. 26.0 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage, with MLX backend as the best runtime hint. 152.5 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
22	GLM-4.5-Air12B active / 106B total	194	8bit	54.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 54.0 tok/s · MLX · Estimated	MLX	EstimatedFirst-party M5 batch queued	155.3 GB	131k	8bit is the highest practical quality here. 54.0 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage, with MLX backend as the best runtime hint. 155.3 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
23	Qwen3-Coder-Next3B active / 80B total	192	8bit	74.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 74.0 tok/s · MLX · Estimated	MLX	EstimatedFirst-party M5 batch queued	180.2 GB	262k	Recent model release in the current catalog. 8bit is the highest practical quality here. 74.0 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage, with MLX backend as the best runtime hint. 180.2 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
24	gpt-oss 120B5.1B active / 117B total	173	8bit	10.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 10.0 tok/s · Ollama · Estimated	Ollama	EstimatedFirst-party M5 batch queued	146.0 GB	131k	8bit is the highest practical quality here. 10.0 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage, with Ollama wrapper on llama.cpp as the best runtime hint. 146.0 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
25	Gemma 4 E2B5.1B parameters	170	8bit	95.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 95.0 tok/s · Ollama · Estimated	Ollama	EstimatedFirst-party M5 batch queued	250.5 GB	131k	Recent model release in the current catalog. 8bit is the highest practical quality here. 95.0 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage, with Ollama wrapper on llama.cpp as the best runtime hint. 250.5 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.
26	Qwen3.5-4B4B parameters	167	8bit	148.0 tok/s Fastest evidence path: 8bit · 148.0 tok/s · MLX · Estimated	MLX	EstimatedFirst-party M5 batch queued	250.8 GB	262k	Recent model release in the current catalog. 8bit is the highest practical quality here. 148.0 tok/s estimated from nearby benchmark coverage, with MLX backend as the best runtime hint. 250.8 GB headroom leaves workable context margin.

Machine

256GBUnified memory

$7,499MSRP

mac_studioForm factor

M3 UltraChip

Other Macs with the M3 Ultra

Mac Studio M3 Ultra 96GB