image model · flux · macOS
FX Can I run FLUX.1 dev on Apple M5 (32GB)?
Yes. FLUX.1 dev runs on Apple M5 (32GB) at Q4 GGUF (~6.5 GB of ~21 GB usable).
Runs at Q4 GGUF using ~6.5 GB of ~21 GB usable.
- Peak VRAM
- ~6.5 GB
- Usable on device
- ~21 GB
- Device memory
- 32 GB
- Quant
- Q4 GGUF
How to run it
Use ComfyUI or Draw Things at Q4 GGUF. The big text encoder is loaded to encode your prompt, then offloaded before generation, which is why peak VRAM stays near the backbone size rather than the sum of every file.
- Type
- image (DIT)
- Parameters
- 12B
- Peak VRAM
- ~6.5 GB at Q4 GGUF
- Resolution
- 1024×1024
- License
- FLUX.1-dev Non-Commercial License
- Memory
- 32 GB unified
- Usable for weights
- ~21 GB
- Best runtime
- MLX direct / Ollama (MLX backend)
You could also run
Run FLUX.1 dev on other hardware
FAQ
Can Apple M5 (32GB) run FLUX.1 dev?
Yes. FLUX.1 dev runs on Apple M5 (32GB) at Q4 GGUF (~6.5 GB of ~21 GB usable).
How much VRAM does FLUX.1 dev need?
Apple M5 (32GB) has room to spare. At Q4 GGUF the realistic peak is ~6.5 GB of VRAM, versus ~33 GB with every component kept resident (no offload). With aggressive CPU offload it drops to ~3 GB, much slower.
What do I use to run FLUX.1 dev locally?
FLUX.1 dev runs in ComfyUI or Draw Things (among others). It loads as a diffusion checkpoint plus its text encoder and VAE, not a single chat command.
Sources
VRAM figures are sourced peak-usage anchors at the noted quant, validated 2026-06-15. See methodology.