audio model · whisper · macOS
Can I run Whisper small on Apple M4 Max (128GB)?
Yes. Whisper small runs on Apple M4 Max (128GB) at fp16 (whisper.cpp) (~0.85 GB of ~96 GB usable).
Runs at fp16 (whisper.cpp) using ~0.85 GB of ~96 GB usable.
- Peak memory
- ~0.85 GB
- Usable on device
- ~96 GB
- Device memory
- 128 GB
- Quant
- fp16 (whisper.cpp)
How to run it
Use whisper.cpp or faster-whisper at fp16 (whisper.cpp). It is light enough to run on CPU; a GPU just makes it faster.
- Type
- Speech to text
- Parameters
- 244M
- Peak memory
- ~0.85 GB at fp16 (whisper.cpp)
- License
- MIT
- Memory
- 128 GB unified
- Usable for weights
- ~96 GB
- Best runtime
- MLX direct / Ollama (MLX backend)
You could also run
Run Whisper small on other hardware
FAQ
Can Apple M4 Max (128GB) run Whisper small?
Yes. Whisper small runs on Apple M4 Max (128GB) at fp16 (whisper.cpp) (~0.85 GB of ~96 GB usable).
How much memory does Whisper small need?
Apple M4 Max (128GB) has room to spare. At fp16 (whisper.cpp) the realistic peak is ~0.85 GB of memory.
What do I use to run Whisper small locally?
Whisper small runs in whisper.cpp or faster-whisper (among others). It runs on CPU, so no GPU is required.
Sources
VRAM figures are sourced peak-usage anchors at the noted quant, validated 2026-06-15. See methodology.