Yes — Qwen 2.5 72B (72B) runs at 10 tok/s on M5 Max with 128 GB RAM using Q4_K_M quantization via Ollama. First token latency is 3.2s. Alibaba's 72B Qwen 2.5 model — powerful but requires 64 GB+ Mac.
LLMCheck measured Qwen 2.5 72B on M5 Max using the standard methodology: Q4_K_M quantization, 256-token input, 512-token output, 3 runs averaged on a freshly-booted system.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Tokens per second | 10 tok/s |
| Time to first token | 3.2s |
| Quantization | Q4_K_M |
| Minimum RAM | 128 GB |
| Recommended engine | Ollama |
| Parameters | 72B |
| Benchmark date | 2026-03 |
Q4_K_M 72B Ollama M5 Max
The recommended engine for Qwen 2.5 72B on M5 Max is Ollama. Install Ollama, then pull the model:
Ollama handles quantization automatically — it will download the Q4_K_M variant (~128 GB) and start an interactive chat session.
| Chip | Speed | First Token | Min RAM | Engine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| M4 Ultra | 15 tok/s | 2.5s | 192 GB | Ollama |
To run Qwen 2.5 72B on M5 Max you need:
See how Qwen 2.5 72B stacks up against other models on your specific Mac hardware.
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