What you can actually run locally in 2026, by how much RAM you have
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What you can actually run locally in 2026, by how much RAM you have
Memory is the binding constraint on local AI, not raw compute. That one fact decides most of what follows, and ignoring it is how people end up with the wrong graphics card. Here is what fits, tier by tier.
Key Takeaways
- Memory is the binding constraint for local AI, not compute. 64GB is a strong target and 128GB unlocks the largest models.
- 8GB of VRAM handles 3B to 8B models, 12GB covers 13B comfortably, and 16GB reaches 70B parameters.
- Q4_K_M quantization cuts a model to roughly a quarter of its size with minimal quality loss, moving most models down a full hardware tier.
- For code, DeepSeek Coder and CodeLlama beat general purpose models of the same size.
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