Best local LLM for coding with 12GB VRAM
The models people report running for coding on setups with more than 8 GB and up to 12 GB of memory, such as RTX 3060 12GB, RTX 4070, Intel Arc Pro B70 or RTX 5070 Ti Laptop 12GB. Each row shows the fastest coding run reported for that model in this band.
Ranked from 14 coding reports on llamaperf.
Ranked by community reports
| # | Model | Fastest run | Median t/s | Fastest t/s | Reports |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Qwen3.6Alibaba | 35B · 3B active · IQ4_XS-4.19bpw on RTX 4070 Ti Super | 65 | 110 | 6 |
| 2 | Qwen3.8Alibaba | 27B · Q4_K_XL on RTX 3060 12GB | 23 | 40 | 4 |
| 3 | Agents-A1InternScience | 35B · 3B active · ternary | 22 | 22 | 1 |
| 4 | Qwen3.5Alibaba | 9B · Q4 on D700 12GB | 11 | 11 | 1 |
| 5 | DeepSeek V4 FlashDeepSeek | 284B · 13B active · IQ2_M on RTX 3060 12GB | 3.5 | 3.5 | 1 |
| 6 | KAT-Coder V2.5-DevKwaipilot | RTX 3060 12GB | 14 | 14 | 1 |
Frequently asked
What is the best local LLM for coding with 12GB of VRAM?
Ranked from community reports on setups with more than 8 GB and up to 12 GB of memory, Qwen3.6 has the strongest record, followed by Qwen3.8 and Agents-A1. The table shows the quant and GPU of each model's fastest coding run so you can copy a setup that is known to work.
What counts as a coding report?
A community performance report whose poster described using the model for coding: an editor assistant, an agent, or code generation. The memory band is the poster's reported VRAM, or the card's VRAM times the number of cards.
Which quant should I use for coding on 12GB?
Start from the quant in the fastest run column, which is one that is known to fit with room for a coding context. If you want a bigger model in the same memory, step down one quant rung; the VRAM calculator shows the exact memory at each rung for your card.
How we rank
Families are scored on report count, the fastest generation speed within this memory band, recency, and how complete the best report is. Reports come from r/LocalLLaMA and direct submissions. Nothing is sponsored.