Free LLM VRAM calculator
Can your GPU or Mac run that AI model locally?
Pick a model and your hardware. See if it fits, which quantization to download, and how fast it will run.
- 29open models
- 24GPUs and Macs
- 696checked pairs
- FP16
- Q8_0
- Q6_K
- Q5_K_M
- Q4_K_M
- Q3_K_M
- Q2_K
Run it in the cloud
Rent a cloud GPU when your card is too small
No GPU, or not enough VRAM? Rent one by the hour and run any model today. No upfront cost, stop any time.
What each memory size runs
The largest model we track that runs well at Q4_K_M or better, 8K context.
| Memory | Largest model | Example GPU |
|---|---|---|
| 8 GB | RTX 3070 | |
| 12 GB | RTX 5070 | |
| 16 GB | RTX 5080 | |
| 24 GB | RTX 4090 | |
| 32 GB | RTX 5090 | |
| 48 GB | Rent: RTX A6000, L40S | |
| 80 GB | Rent: A100, H100 |
Popular GPU and model checks
The questions people ask most, answered at 8K context.
Find your GPU or your model
Every page lists what runs, at which quantization, and how fast.
NVIDIA 15
Qwen 10
DeepSeek 1
gpt-oss 2
How GPU Fit estimates memory and speed
Token generation is limited by memory size and memory bandwidth, so both can be estimated from the spec sheet.
- WeightsParameters × bits per weight of the quantization.
- KV cache2 × layers × KV heads × head size × context × 2 bytes.
- Speed60% of peak bandwidth ÷ bytes of active weights per token.
Ask from your AI agent
The same estimates over MCP: check_fit, models_for_gpu, gpus_for_model.
{
"mcpServers": {
"gpufit": { "type": "http", "url": "https://gpufit.dev/mcp" }
}
}Questions about running LLMs locally
Short answers. The calculator above does the exact numbers for your hardware.
How much VRAM do I need to run an LLM locally?
At the popular Q4_K_M quantization, plan on roughly 0.6 GB per billion parameters plus 1 to 2 GB for context and overhead: about 6 GB for an 8B model, 10 GB for 14B, 21 GB for 32B and 44 GB for 70B at 8K context. Longer context needs more.
Which quantization should I use?
Use the highest quality quantization that fits fully in GPU memory. Q4_K_M is the usual sweet spot; Q5_K_M, Q6_K and Q8_0 are better if you have room; Q3 and Q2 noticeably hurt quality.
Can a Mac run local LLMs?
Yes. Apple Silicon Macs share memory between CPU and GPU, and macOS lets the GPU use about two thirds to three quarters of it by default, so a 64 GB or 128 GB Mac can run models that would need several consumer GPUs.
How are tokens per second estimated?
Generating text is limited by memory bandwidth: each token reads all active weights once. We estimate speed as 60% of the GPU's peak bandwidth divided by the size of the active weights.
What if my GPU is too small?
Use a smaller model or a lower quantization, offload some layers to system RAM (slow), or rent a cloud GPU by the hour.