NVIDIA RTX 4090 vs Apple M3 Max (128GB)
Side-by-side local AI comparison: VRAM, memory bandwidth, model compatibility, and estimated tokens per second across 110 open-weight models.
Quick verdict
Apple M3 Max (128GB) wins for local AI inference. It has 104 GB more VRAM and -60.3% more memory bandwidth, runs 81 models natively (vs 59), and exclusively fits 22 models the other cannot. Note: NVIDIA RTX 4090 uses CUDA while Apple M3 Max (128GB) uses METAL; software ecosystem matters for your framework.
Specs comparison
| Spec | NVIDIA RTX 4090 | Apple M3 Max (128GB) |
|---|---|---|
| VRAM | 24 GB | 128 GB unified |
| Memory type | GDDR6X | LPDDR5 |
| Bandwidth | 1008 GB/s(+152%) | 400 GB/s |
| CPU cores | N/A | 16 (12P + 4E) |
| Architecture | Ada Lovelace | Apple M3 Max |
| Backend | CUDA | METAL |
| Tier | Consumer | Laptop |
| Released | 2022 | 2023 |
| Models (native) | 59 | 81 |
Estimated tokens per second
Computed from memory bandwidth and model active-parameter weight. Assumes model fits natively in VRAM.
| Model | NVIDIA RTX 4090 | Apple M3 Max (128GB) | Delta |
|---|---|---|---|
| Llama 3.3 70B Instruct(70B) | N/A | 4.2 t/s(Q8_0) | N/A |
| Qwen 3.6 27B(27B) | 38.3 t/s(Q5_K_M) | 5.9 t/s(BF16) | +136%at Q5_K_M |
| Llama 3.1 8B Instruct(8B) | 47.2 t/s(BF16) | 18.7 t/s(BF16) | +152% |
| Qwen 2.5 7B Instruct(7.6B) | 51.7 t/s(BF16) | 20.4 t/s(BF16) | +153% |
Delta is NVIDIA RTX 4090 relative to Apple M3 Max (128GB), compared at the highest quantization that fits natively on both cards.
Only NVIDIA RTX 4090 can run(0)
No exclusive models: Apple M3 Max (128GB) can run everything NVIDIA RTX 4090 can.
Only Apple M3 Max (128GB) can run(22)
- DeepSeek V4 Flash 0731 284B284B
- Qwen3 235B-A22B (MoE)235B
- MiniMax M2.5 229B229B
- MiniMax M2.7 229B229B
- Step 3.7 Flash198B
- Step 3.5 Flash196.81B
- Qwen3.8-Flash-Next180B
- Mixtral 8x22B Instruct v0.1141B
- Mistral Medium 3.5 128B128B
- Ornith 1.5 122B (MoE)124.6B
- Qwen 3.5 122B-A10B (MoE)122B
- Nemotron 3 Super 120B120B
- +10 more
Both run natively(59)
These models fit in VRAM on both GPUs. Bandwidth determines which runs them faster.
- Mixtral 8x7B Instruct v0.1106.7 t/svs11 t/s
- Flint 40B (MoE)176.1 t/svs36.7 t/s
- Qwen 3.5 35B-A3B (MoE)196.2 t/svs35.6 t/s
- Qwen 3.6 35B-A3B (MoE)196.2 t/svs35.6 t/s
- Ornith 1.5 35B-A3B (MoE)196.2 t/svs35.6 t/s
- Yi 1.5 34B Chat40.8 t/svs4.5 t/s
- Nanbeige4.3 33B43.4 t/svs4.7 t/s
- Qwen3 32B43.2 t/svs4.8 t/s
- Qwen 2.5 32B Instruct41.9 t/svs4.8 t/s
- Qwen 2.5 Coder 32B Instruct41.9 t/svs4.8 t/s
- DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B41.9 t/svs4.8 t/s
- Nemotron 3 Nano 30B155.8 t/svs33 t/s
- Gemma 4 31B37.9 t/svs5.1 t/s
- Qwen3 30B-A3B (MoE)144.9 t/svs31.4 t/s
- Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B-A3B152.6 t/svs31.1 t/s
- Muse Glimmer 30B39 t/svs5.7 t/s
- +43 more on both
Which should you choose?
Choose NVIDIA RTX 4090 if:
- • Faster token generation is the priority
- • You rely on CUDA-based tools (PyTorch, vLLM, Ollama)
Choose Apple M3 Max (128GB) if:
- • You need to run larger models (>24 GB VRAM)
- • You're on macOS and want native Metal acceleration (MLX, llama.cpp)
- • Unified memory matters (CPU/GPU share the same pool, no data copy overhead)
- • You want the newer architecture and longer driver support lifecycle
Frequently asked questions
- Which is better for local AI, the NVIDIA RTX 4090 or Apple M3 Max (128GB)?
- For local AI inference, the Apple M3 Max (128GB) has the edge. It offers 128 GB VRAM (vs 24 GB) and 400 GB/s bandwidth (vs 1008 GB/s), letting it run 81 models natively in VRAM vs 59 for its rival.
- How much VRAM does the NVIDIA RTX 4090 have vs the Apple M3 Max (128GB)?
- The NVIDIA RTX 4090 has 24 GB of GDDR6X at 1008 GB/s. The Apple M3 Max (128GB) has 128 GB of LPDDR5 at 400 GB/s. The Apple M3 Max (128GB) has 104 GB more VRAM, allowing it to run 22 models the NVIDIA RTX 4090 cannot fit natively.
- Can the NVIDIA RTX 4090 run Llama 3.3 70B?
- The NVIDIA RTX 4090 can run Llama 3.3 70B with CPU offload at Q3_K_M, but at reduced speed.
- Can the Apple M3 Max (128GB) run Llama 3.3 70B?
- Yes. The Apple M3 Max (128GB) runs Llama 3.3 70B natively at Q8_0 quantization at approximately 4.2 tokens per second.
- What is the difference between the NVIDIA RTX 4090 and Apple M3 Max (128GB) for AI?
- The key difference for AI inference is VRAM and memory bandwidth. The NVIDIA RTX 4090 has 24 GB VRAM at 1008 GB/s (CUDA backend). The Apple M3 Max (128GB) has 128 GB VRAM at 400 GB/s (METAL backend). VRAM determines which models fit; bandwidth determines tokens per second. The NVIDIA RTX 4090 runs 59 models natively vs 81 for the Apple M3 Max (128GB).