NVIDIA DGX Spark 128 GB vs Mac Studio M5 Max 128 GB
DGX Spark has 128 GB memory, 273 GB/s bandwidth, 240 W nominal power; M5 Max has 128 GB memory, 614 GB/s bandwidth, 175 W nominal power. Compare model compatibility, like-for-like tokens/sec and ownership cost below.
Verdict
- throughputThe Mac Studio M5 Max 128 GB delivers approximately 184% higher aggregate decode throughput across 3 like-for-like model configurations (same quantization, runtime, context and inference settings).
- capacityBoth machines run all 8 compared models in their best practical configurations. Compare their quantizations and evidence labels before treating any throughput difference as a hardware result.
- costAt 8 hours a day, the Mac Studio M5 Max 128 GB has approximately 12% lower total monthly cost ($45 against $52), for a C corporation in United States (federal).
- evidenceAll 3 like-for-like throughput rows are estimates. Treat the ranking as indicative and the margins as uncertain.
- recommendationThe Mac Studio M5 Max 128 GB is both faster and cheaper to own here, so it is the straightforward choice unless you need something specific to the NVIDIA DGX Spark 128 GB.
Every statement above is generated from the calculations on this page by fixed rules — no prose is written for individual comparisons. If the numbers change, the verdict changes with them.
Hardware
| NVIDIA DGX Spark 128 GB | Mac Studio M5 Max 128 GB | |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase price estimate | $3,873 * | $4,323 * |
| Memory | 128 GB | 128 GB |
| Memory bandwidth | 273 GB/s | 614 GB/s |
| Usable bandwidth indicator | 183 GB/s (67%) | 538 GB/s (88%) |
| Nominal power | 240 W | 175 W |
| Measured load power | 170 W | 122 W |
| Idle power | 25 W | 8 W |
| Architecture | igpu unified | unified memory |
Like-for-like performance3 comparable models
Ternary Bonsai 2 27BDeepSeek-V4.1 FlashDeepSeek-V4 FlashMixtral 8x22BQwen3.5 122B-A10BNemotron 3 Super 120B-A12BMistral Small 4 119B-A6.5Bgpt-oss-120b
| Model | NVIDIA DGX Spark 128 GB | Mac Studio M5 Max 128 GB | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ternary Bonsai 2 27B 27.36B | — no matched configuration | — no matched configuration | Not comparable |
| DeepSeek-V4.1 Flash 763.205B (16B active) | — no matched configuration | — no matched configuration | Not comparable |
| DeepSeek-V4 Flash 304.18B (13B active) | — no matched configuration | — no matched configuration | Not comparable |
| Mixtral 8x22B 140.63B (39B active) | — no matched configuration | — no matched configuration | Not comparable |
| Qwen3.5 122B-A10B 125.086B (10B active) | ~17.4–25 t/s Q5_K_M | ~49.5–71.3 t/s Q5_K_M | Mac Studio M5 Max 128 GB +185% estimated · estimator_v1 · 8K context |
| Nemotron 3 Super 120B-A12B 123.611B (12B active) | ~14.5–20.9 t/s Q5_K_M | ~41.7–60 t/s Q5_K_M | Mac Studio M5 Max 128 GB +187% estimated · estimator_v1 · 8K context |
| Mistral Small 4 119B-A6.5B 119.401B (6.5B active) | ~26.3–37.8 t/s Q5_K_M | ~73.8–106 t/s Q5_K_M | Mac Studio M5 Max 128 GB +181% estimated · estimator_v1 · 8K context |
| gpt-oss-120b 116.829B (5.1B active) | — no matched configuration | — no matched configuration | Not comparable |
Hardware deltas are calculated only when quantization, runtime, exact context, execution/decode mode and relevant inference settings match. Measured and estimated results are never compared to each other. A difference under 10% is reported as a tie.
Best practical configuration
| Model | NVIDIA DGX Spark 128 GB | Mac Studio M5 Max 128 GB | Practical result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ternary Bonsai 2 27B | — PTQ1_0 · estimated | — PTQ1_0 · estimated | Both fit; configurations may differ |
| DeepSeek-V4.1 Flash | 9.4 t/s DS4 V4.1 Q2 (SSD) · measured | — DS4 V4.1 Q2 (SSD) · estimated | Both fit; configurations may differ |
| DeepSeek-V4 Flash | 18.1 t/s DS4 Q2 (mixed) · measured | — DS4 Q2 (mixed) · estimated | Both fit; configurations may differ |
| Mixtral 8x22B | — Q4_K_M · estimated | — Q4_K_M · estimated | Both fit; configurations may differ |
| Qwen3.5 122B-A10B | ~20.3–29.1 t/s Q4_K_M · estimated | ~57.5–82.8 t/s Q4_K_M · estimated | Both fit; configurations may differ |
| Nemotron 3 Super 120B-A12B | ~17–24.4 t/s Q4_K_M · estimated | ~48.5–69.8 t/s Q4_K_M · estimated | Both fit; configurations may differ |
| Mistral Small 4 119B-A6.5B | ~30.5–44 t/s Q4_K_M · estimated | ~73.8–106 t/s Q5_K_M · estimated | Both fit; configurations may differ |
| gpt-oss-120b | 56.4 t/s MXFP4 · measured | ~118–170 t/s MXFP4 · estimated | Both fit; configurations may differ |
This is a deployment comparison: each machine uses its own recommended configuration. Different quantizations can change speed and quality, so these figures are not raw hardware benchmarks.
Economics — United States (federal), C corporation, 8h/day
| NVIDIA DGX Spark 128 GB | Mac Studio M5 Max 128 GB | |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase price estimate | $3,873 | $4,323 |
| Reclaimable VAT | $0 | $0 |
| Net cash at purchase | $3,873 | $4,323 |
| Monthly depreciation | $56.80 | $50.44 |
| Monthly electricity | $1.33 (10 kWh) | $0.76 (5 kWh) |
| Tax programme | §179 100.0% | §179 100.0% |
| Tax-programme benefit | $813 | $908 |
| Monthly economic cost | $51.52 | $45.27 |
| Total over 5 years | $3,091 | $2,716 |
Purchase prices are localized inputs in USD: tax/VAT excluded for NVIDIA DGX Spark 128 GB and tax/VAT excluded for Mac Studio M5 Max 128 GB. Net cash and monthly economic cost then apply the selected United States (federal) / C corporation tax treatment. Tax assumptions last verified 2026-09-07. Federal planning estimate only, not tax advice. State and local income tax, sales/use tax and incentives are excluded. It assumes 100% business use, a Section 179 election, enough business income to use it, and that the full annual limit remains available.