Llama 3.1 8B Instruct on Apple M4 Pro (48GB)

Yes — M4 Pro (48GB) handles Llama 3.1 8B Instruct well at Q8_0 — 32 tok/s. Solid daily-driver performance on 48 GB VRAM.

Model Size

8.03B

Device VRAM

48 GB

Bandwidth

273 GB/s

Quantization

Q8_0

Benchmarks

Performance by Quantization

OwnRig currently has one published compatibility entry for Llama 3.1 8B Instruct on Apple M4 Pro (48GB) at Q8_0. This is the best supported pairing we can stand behind today.

Quantization	Speed	TTFT	Fits in VRAM	Rating	Confidence
Q8_0	32 tok/s	250ms	✓ Yes	Good	estimated

Notes

Q8_0

M4 Pro 48GB same bandwidth as 24GB. Extra VRAM enables larger concurrent models.

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 M4 Pro (48GB)

Apple M4 Pro (48GB) has 48 GB at 273 GB/s. Available in MacBook Pro 16-inch, Mac Mini.

See all models Apple M4 Pro (48GB) can run →

Estimate method: MLX performance estimates. Reference hardware source: github.com (2026-03-01)

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.