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Compatibility Report

Llama 3.1 8B Instruct on Apple M1 (8GB Unified)

M1 (8GB Unified) runs Llama 3.1 8B Instruct at Q4_K_M — 7 tok/s. Usable on 8 GB VRAM — see full quantization options below.

Model Size

8.03B

Device VRAM

8 GB

Bandwidth

68.25 GB/s

Quantization

Q4_K_M

Benchmarks

Performance by Quantization

OwnRig currently has one published compatibility entry for Llama 3.1 8B Instruct on Apple M1 (8GB Unified) at Q4_K_M. This is the best supported pairing we can stand behind today.

QuantizationSpeedTTFTFits in VRAMRatingConfidence
Q4_K_M7 tok/s✓ YesAcceptableestimated

Notes

Q4_K_M

Conservative estimate. Uses Q4_K_M (4.9GB), the highest-quality format that fits within ~5.5GB usable memory.

About Llama 3.1 8B Instruct

Llama 3.1 8B Instruct (8.03B) is a chat, coding, ai coding, reasoning, multi-purpose model. Best-in-class 8B model. General capabilities with capable coding support. The go-to small model for local inference: fast, accurate, and well-supported across all inference engines.

View all Llama 3.1 8B Instruct hardware options →

About Apple M1 (8GB Unified)

Apple M1 (8GB Unified) has 8 GB at 68.25 GB/s. Available in MacBook Air 13" (2020), MacBook Pro 13" (2020).

See all models Apple M1 (8GB Unified) can run →

Estimate method: Conservative estimate anchored to m4-16gb with bandwidth scaling, quantization-size adjustment, and generation damping. Reference hardware source: github.com (2026-04-18)

Performance varies by driver version, inference engine, quantization method, context length, and system configuration. Figures shown are estimates based on community benchmarks and may not reflect your exact setup. Product names are trademarks of their respective owners. OwnRig is independent and not affiliated with any hardware or AI model provider.