Llama 3.1 8B Instruct on NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 12GB
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 12GB handles Llama 3.1 8B Instruct well at 35 tok/s at Q5_K_M. A solid choice for this model.
Model Size
8.03B
Device VRAM
12 GB
Bandwidth
360 GB/s
Quantizations Tested
1
Performance by Quantization
Each row shows Llama 3.1 8B Instruct performance at a different quality level on NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 12GB.
| Quantization | Speed | TTFT | Fits in VRAM | Rating | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q5_K_M | 35 tok/s | 180ms | ✓ Yes | Good | estimated |
Notes
Q5_K_M
Comfortable fit with 6.2GB headroom. Good speed despite lower bandwidth.
About Llama 3.1 8B Instruct
Llama 3.1 8B Instruct (8.03B) is a chat, coding, ai coding, reasoning, multi-purpose model. Best-in-class 8B model. Strong general capabilities with excellent coding support. The go-to small model for local inference — fast, accurate, and well-supported across all inference engines.
View all Llama 3.1 8B Instruct hardware options →About NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 12GB
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 12GB has 12 GB at 360 GB/s. Street price: $269.
See all models NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 12GB can run →Builds with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 12GB
Source: Community benchmarks and llama.cpp performance reports (2026-01-15)
Data last updated: 2026-03-01