Mac Studio M5 Max 36 GB vs Mac Studio M5 Max 64 GB
M5 Max 36 GB has 36 GB memory, 614 GB/s bandwidth, 160 W nominal power; M5 Max 64 GB has 64 GB memory, 614 GB/s bandwidth, 175 W nominal power. Compare model compatibility, like-for-like tokens/sec and ownership cost below.
Verdict
- throughputAcross 5 like-for-like model configurations, decode throughput is within 10% — close enough that the difference is smaller than the uncertainty in the underlying evidence.
- 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 36 GB has approximately 23% lower total monthly cost ($28 against $37), for a C corporation in United States (federal).
- evidenceAll 5 like-for-like throughput rows are estimates. Treat the ranking as indicative and the margins as uncertain.
- recommendationThroughput is close enough to be a wash, so this comes down to cost and capacity: the Mac Studio M5 Max 36 GB is cheaper to own, and capacity differences above decide which models you can run at all.
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
| Mac Studio M5 Max 36 GB | Mac Studio M5 Max 64 GB | |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase price estimate | $2,702 * | $3,512 * |
| Memory | 36 GB | 64 GB |
| Memory bandwidth | 614 GB/s | 614 GB/s |
| Usable bandwidth indicator | 538 GB/s (88%) | 538 GB/s (88%) |
| Nominal power | 160 W | 175 W |
| Measured load power | 105 W | 118 W |
| Idle power | 7 W | 8 W |
| Architecture | unified memory | unified memory |
Like-for-like performance5 comparable models
Ternary Bonsai 2 27BMixtral 8x7BPhi-3.5 MoE 42B-A6.6BNemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B-A3BQwen3-Coder 30B-A3BQwen3 30B-A3BGemma 4 26B-A4Bgpt-oss-20b
| Model | Mac Studio M5 Max 36 GB | Mac Studio M5 Max 64 GB | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ternary Bonsai 2 27B 27.36B | — no matched configuration | — no matched configuration | Not comparable |
| Mixtral 8x7B 46.703B (13B active) | — no matched configuration | — no matched configuration | Not comparable |
| Phi-3.5 MoE 42B-A6.6B 41.873B (6.6B active) | — no matched configuration | — no matched configuration | Not comparable |
| Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B-A3B 31.578B (3B active) | ~145–208 t/s Q5_K_M | ~145–208 t/s Q5_K_M | Tie (0%) estimated · estimator_v1 · 8K context |
| Qwen3-Coder 30B-A3B 30.532B (3.3B active) | ~134–192 t/s Q5_K_M | ~134–192 t/s Q5_K_M | Tie (0%) estimated · estimator_v1 · 8K context |
| Qwen3 30B-A3B 30.532B (3.3B active) | ~134–192 t/s Q5_K_M | ~134–192 t/s Q5_K_M | Tie (0%) estimated · estimator_v1 · 8K context |
| Gemma 4 26B-A4B 25.806B (3.8B active) | ~119–171 t/s Q5_K_M | ~119–171 t/s Q5_K_M | Tie (0%) estimated · estimator_v1 · 8K context |
| gpt-oss-20b 20.915B (3.6B active) | ~158–228 t/s MXFP4 | ~158–228 t/s MXFP4 | Tie (0%) estimated · estimator_v1 · 8K context |
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 | Mac Studio M5 Max 36 GB | Mac Studio M5 Max 64 GB | Practical result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ternary Bonsai 2 27B | — PTQ1_0 · estimated | — PTQ1_0 · estimated | Both fit; configurations may differ |
| Mixtral 8x7B | — MLX 4-bit · estimated | — Q5_K_M · estimated | Both fit; configurations may differ |
| Phi-3.5 MoE 42B-A6.6B | — Q4_K_M · estimated | — Q5_K_M · estimated | Both fit; configurations may differ |
| Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B-A3B | ~145–208 t/s Q5_K_M · estimated | ~103–148 t/s Q8_0 · estimated | Both fit; configurations may differ |
| Qwen3-Coder 30B-A3B | ~134–192 t/s Q5_K_M · estimated | ~94.6–136 t/s Q8_0 · estimated | Both fit; configurations may differ |
| Qwen3 30B-A3B | ~134–192 t/s Q5_K_M · estimated | ~94.6–136 t/s Q8_0 · estimated | Both fit; configurations may differ |
| Gemma 4 26B-A4B | ~119–171 t/s Q5_K_M · estimated | ~83.4–120 t/s Q8_0 · estimated | Both fit; configurations may differ |
| gpt-oss-20b | ~158–228 t/s MXFP4 · estimated | ~158–228 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
| Mac Studio M5 Max 36 GB | Mac Studio M5 Max 64 GB | |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase price estimate | $2,702 | $3,512 |
| Reclaimable VAT | $0 | $0 |
| Net cash at purchase | $2,702 | $3,512 |
| Monthly depreciation | $31.52 | $40.98 |
| Monthly electricity | $0.66 (5 kWh) | $0.74 (5 kWh) |
| Tax programme | §179 100.0% | §179 100.0% |
| Tax-programme benefit | $567 | $738 |
| Monthly economic cost | $28.43 | $36.88 |
| Total over 5 years | $1,706 | $2,213 |
Purchase prices are localized inputs in USD: tax/VAT excluded for Mac Studio M5 Max 36 GB and tax/VAT excluded for Mac Studio M5 Max 64 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.