Best Mac for local AI
Our pick for a Mac for local AI is the Mac Studio M5 Max 40-core GPU: $5,099 / €5,909, 79.1 tok/s on gpt-oss-120b, which works out to 15.5 tok/s per $1,000. Runner-up: Mac Studio M5 Ultra 80-core GPU at $10,799 / €12,529 and 130 tok/s.
| # | Machine | Price | tok/s | per $1k |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mac Studio M5 Max 40-core GPU Apple · 128GB · checked 2026-10-16 | $5,099 €5,909 | 79.1 | 15.5 |
| 2 | Mac Studio M5 Ultra 80-core GPU Apple · 256GB · checked 2026-10-16 | $10,799 €12,529 | 130 | 12.0 |
| 3 | MacBook Pro 16" M5 Max 40-core GPU Apple · 128GB · checked 2026-10-16 | $6,999 €7,999 | 79.1 | 11.3 |
tok/s = generation speed on gpt-oss-120b from public benchmarks. per $1k = tok/s per $1,000 of the US price. ≈ = converted at the ECB rate.
Not ranked: Mac Studio M5 Ultra 64-core GPU (no public result yet); Mac mini M5 Pro 16-core GPU (doesn't fit in memory); Mac mini M5 Pro 20-core GPU (doesn't fit in memory).
How we picked
Ranked by measured tokens per second per $1,000 of the current US price. Speeds are public benchmark results, one per chip, linked on each product page and on Benchmarks; engines and quants differ between sources. Prices checked 2026-10-16 19:02 UTC and refreshed every 6 hours.
FAQ
Which Mac is best for running LLMs?
On value, Mac Studio M5 Max 40-core GPU. The table shows every Mac with a public gpt-oss-120b result.
Can a Mac mini run gpt-oss-120b?
Not the configurations we track; they don't have enough memory.
Are Mac benchmarks comparable to the others?
Roughly. Apple results come from Ollama or LM Studio, others from llama-bench, so treat small gaps as noise.