Best Local AI Models for NVIDIA RTX 3090 (24 GB VRAM)
The NVIDIA RTX 3090 has 24 GB of VRAM. Here are the popular AI models it can run locally (4,096-token context, ~32.0 GB system RAM assumed), ranked by popularity.
See also: Best GPU for running local LLMs.
The NVIDIA RTX 3090 is built on NVIDIA's Ampere architecture featuring GDDR6X 384-bit delivering 936 GB/s of raw memory bandwidth. The used-market value king: full 24 GB VRAM pool for large models and fine-tuning at an accessible price point.
Equipped with 24 GB of dedicated VRAM, the NVIDIA RTX 3090 can run 36 popular open-source models completely in GPU memory without offloading. This includes full-speed execution for weights like Qwen3-Coder-30B-A3B-Instruct-GGUF, LFM2.5-2.6B-GGUF, LFM2.5-8B-A1B-GGUF. For a comprehensive breakdown of compatible model weights, see our guide to the best LLMs for 24 GB VRAM.
With a memory bandwidth of 936 GB/s, this card can generate tokens at an estimated peak rate of ~156.0 tokens/second on an 8B parameter model (Q4_K_M). Its rated power draw is 350W TDP, so ensure your system's power supply and case ventilation are adequate for sustained local inferencing.
36 fit fully in VRAM · 1 run with offload
| Model | Size | Quant. | Quality | Memory | Speed~ | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| unsloth/Qwen3-Coder-30B-A3B-Instruct-GGUF | 30.53B | Q5_K_XL | Very good |
21.42 GB
|
19.8 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| LiquidAI/LFM2.5-2.6B-GGUF | 2.7B | BF16 | Excellent |
5.89 GB
|
79.5 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| LiquidAI/LFM2.5-8B-A1B-GGUF | 8.47B | BF16 | Excellent |
16.63 GB
|
25.3 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| LiquidAI/LFM2.5-230M-GGUF | 0.23B | BF16 | Excellent |
1.28 GB
|
929.9 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| unsloth/gpt-oss-20b-GGUF | 20.91B | F16 | Very good |
13.74 GB
|
31.1 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| Qwen/Qwen3-8B-GGUF | 8.19B | Q8_0 | Excellent |
9.47 GB
|
49.3 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| unsloth/Ornith-1.0-9B-GGUF | — | BF16 | Excellent |
17.61 GB
|
24.0 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| bartowski/DeepSeek-Coder-V2-Lite-Instruct-GGUF | 15.71B | Q8_0_L | Excellent |
17.39 GB
|
25.1 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| unsloth/Qwen3-4B-GGUF | 4.02B | BF16 | Excellent |
8.86 GB
|
53.3 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| unsloth/Qwen-AgentWorld-35B-A3B-GGUF | 34.66B | Q4_K_XL | Very good |
21.67 GB
|
19.2 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| bartowski/Kwaipilot_KAT-Coder-V2.5-Dev-GGUF | 34.66B | Q5_K_S | Very good |
23.38 GB
|
17.8 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| Qwen/Qwen3-0.6B-GGUF | 0.75B | Q8_0 | Excellent |
1.83 GB
|
671.7 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| bartowski/Meta-Llama-3.1-8B-Instruct-GGUF | 8.03B | Q8_0 | Excellent |
9.23 GB
|
50.3 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| LiquidAI/LFM2.5-1.2B-Instruct-GGUF | 1.17B | BF16 | Excellent |
3.03 GB
|
183.3 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| Qwen/Qwen2.5-Coder-7B-Instruct-GGUF | 7.62B | GGUF | Excellent |
15.21 GB
|
28.2 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| janhq/Jan-v3.5-4B-gguf | 4.41B | GGUF | Excellent |
9.59 GB
|
48.6 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| MaziyarPanahi/Qwen3-14B-GGUF | 14.77B | Q6_K | Excellent |
12.71 GB
|
35.4 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| MaziyarPanahi/Qwen3-1.7B-GGUF | 2.03B | GGUF | Excellent |
5.03 GB
|
105.5 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| MaziyarPanahi/Qwen3-30B-A3B-GGUF | 30.53B | Q5_K_M | Very good |
21.41 GB
|
19.8 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| MaziyarPanahi/Qwen3-32B-GGUF | 32.76B | Q5_K_M | Very good |
23.42 GB
|
18.5 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| ggml-org/NVIDIA-Nemotron-3.5-Lightning-30B-A3B-GGUF | 31.58B | Q4_0 | Good |
18.42 GB
|
22.7 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| Qwen/Qwen2.5-1.5B-Instruct-GGUF | 1.54B | GGUF | Excellent |
4.23 GB
|
120.6 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| MaziyarPanahi/Yi-Coder-9B-Chat-GGUF | 8.83B | GGUF | Excellent |
17.62 GB
|
24.3 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| bartowski/Qwen2.5-32B-Instruct-GGUF | 32.76B | Q5_K_L | Very good |
23.91 GB
|
18.1 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| MaziyarPanahi/Qwen3-4B-Instruct-2507-GGUF | 4.02B | GGUF | Excellent |
8.86 GB
|
53.3 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| Qwen/Qwen2.5-0.5B-Instruct-GGUF | 0.49B | GGUF | Excellent |
2.03 GB
|
339.1 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| Qwen/Qwen2.5-3B-Instruct-GGUF | 3.09B | GGUF | Excellent |
7.27 GB
|
63.2 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| bartowski/Qwen2.5-7B-Instruct-GGUF | 7.62B | F16 | Excellent |
15.21 GB
|
28.2 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| unsloth/Llama-3.2-3B-Instruct-GGUF | 3.21B | F16 | Excellent |
7.23 GB
|
66.8 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| MaziyarPanahi/Meta-Llama-3-8B-Instruct-GGUF | 8.03B | GGUF | Excellent |
16.24 GB
|
26.7 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| unsloth/Qwen3-Coder-Next-GGUF | 79.67B | IQ2_XXS | Very low |
22.89 GB
|
18.4 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| MaziyarPanahi/Yi-Coder-1.5B-Chat-GGUF | 1.48B | GGUF | Excellent |
4.3 GB
|
145.4 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| MaziyarPanahi/Phi-3.5-mini-instruct-GGUF | 3.82B | Q8_0 | Excellent |
6.08 GB
|
105.8 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| MaziyarPanahi/Mistral-7B-Instruct-v0.3-GGUF | 7.25B | GGUF | Excellent |
14.8 GB
|
29.6 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| MaziyarPanahi/gemma-3-4b-it-GGUF | 4.3B | GGUF | Excellent |
8.38 GB
|
55.3 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| MaziyarPanahi/Llama-3.2-1B-Instruct-GGUF | 1.24B | GGUF | Excellent |
3.3 GB
|
173.2 t/s | Fits in VRAM |
| MaziyarPanahi/Mixtral-8x22B-v0.1-GGUF | 140.62B | IQ3_XS | Fair |
55.9 GB
|
0.9 t/s | Offload |
"Fits in VRAM" = fast, fully on GPU. "Offload" = part on system RAM, slower. Speed is a rough estimate.
Frequently asked questions
What is the VRAM and memory bandwidth of the NVIDIA RTX 3090?
The NVIDIA RTX 3090 features 24 GB of VRAM and a memory bandwidth of 936 GB/s (GDDR6X 384-bit). In local language model inference, VRAM determines which model sizes fit on the card, while memory bandwidth dictates how many tokens per second the GPU generates.
What is the best local AI model to run on a NVIDIA RTX 3090?
The best overall model for the NVIDIA RTX 3090 is unsloth/Qwen3-Coder-30B-A3B-Instruct-GGUF using the recommended Q5_K_XL quantization (21.42 GB total memory). With 24 GB of VRAM, this GPU typically runs a 30–35B model at Q5, fully on the GPU at full GPU speed. Check our guide to the best LLMs for 24 GB VRAM for details.
Can the NVIDIA RTX 3090 run 70B parameter models like Llama 3.3 70B?
Yes. With 24 GB of VRAM, the NVIDIA RTX 3090 can run 70B parameter models quantized to 3-bit or 4-bit (such as IQ3_M or Q4_K_M) with moderate context windows (4k tokens). For larger context windows (16k+), pairing with a second GPU or slight CPU offloading may be required.
What power supply (PSU) do you need for the NVIDIA RTX 3090 when running local AI?
The NVIDIA RTX 3090 has a rated TDP of 350W. While local inference typically draws less power than full 3D rasterization or gaming, continuous token generation can sustain high loads. A quality power supply of at least 650W is strongly recommended.
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