Aḥmad al-ʿIjlī said: When Maʿmar entered Sanʿāʾ, the people there were reluctant to let him leave their midst. One of them said, “Hold on to him—chain him!” So they married him off.

Al-Faḍl ibn Ziyād reported: I heard Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal say, “Whenever you set Maʿmar beside anyone else, you will always find him superior to that person.”

ʿUthmān ibn Saʿīd said: I asked Ibn Maʿīn, “Is Ibn ʿUyaynah dearer to you, or Maʿmar?” He replied, “Maʿmar.” I asked, “Maʿmar or Ṣāliḥ ibn Kaysān?” He answered, “Maʿmar is dearer to me, while Ṣāliḥ is trustworthy.” I asked, “Maʿmar or Yūnus?” He said, “Maʿmar.” I asked, “Maʿmar or Mālik?” He replied, “Mālik.”

I then said to him, “Some people claim that Ibn ʿUyaynah is the most accurate of all narrators from al-Zuhri.” He responded, “Only someone who actually heard from him would say that. And what was Sufyān at that time? He was nothing but a youngster (1)—that is, when he sat before al-Zuhri.”

Al-Mufaḍḍal al-Ghalābī said: I heard Yaḥyā rank Mālik ahead of all al-Zuhri’s companions, then Maʿmar, then Yūnus.

Yet al-Qaṭṭān used to give precedence to Ibn ʿUyaynah over Maʿmar.

ʿUthmān ibn Abī Shaybah said: I asked Yaḥyā al-Qaṭṭān, “Who is the most reliable in narrating from al-Zuhri?” He replied, “Mālik, then Ibn ʿUyaynah, then Maʿmar.”

Al-Dhuhlī said: I asked Ibn al-Madīnī, “Do you prefer the chain of Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr—from Abū Salamah—from Abū Hurayrah, or that of Maʿmar—from Hammām—from Abū Hurayrah?” He answered, “Muḥammad’s isnād is more famous, but this one is stronger.”

Ibn Abī Khaythamah said: I heard Ibn Maʿīn say, “If Maʿmar narrates to you from the Iraqis, be on your guard (2)—except when he reports from Ibn Ṭāwūs and al-Zuhri, for his transmissions from those two are sound.”