AMDCDNA 2

Best AI Models for AMD Instinct MI250X (128.0GB)

VRAM:128.0 GB HBM2e·Bandwidth:3276.8 GB/s·Stream Processors:14,080·TDP:560W

With 128 GB of memory, this is a high-end configuration for local AI. You can comfortably run most open-source LLMs including large 70B parameter models at good quantization levels, making it one of the best setups for serious local AI work.

At this memory tier, nearly every popular open-source model is within reach. You can run Llama 3 70B at Q4_K_M or even Q5_K_M quantization with room to spare, handle coding assistants like DeepSeek Coder 33B at high quality, and easily run any 7B–30B model at full or near-full precision. Context windows remain generous even with larger models, so multi-turn conversations and long-document processing work smoothly.

Runs Well

  • 70B models (Llama 3 70B, Qwen 72B) at Q4–Q5
  • 30B models at Q6–Q8 quality
  • 7B–14B models at full FP16 precision
  • Vision models (LLaVA, CogVLM) without compromise

Challenging

  • Mixture-of-experts models like Mixtral 8x22B at higher quants
  • 120B+ models still require lower quantizations

What LLMs Can AMD Instinct MI250X Run?

33 models · 1 good

Showing compatibility for AMD Instinct MI250X

LLM models compatible with AMD Instinct MI250X — ranked by performance
ModelVRAMGrade
Qwen3 4B4B
Q4_K_M·623.6 t/s tok/s·41K ctx·EASY RUN
2.9 GBD26
QwQ 32B32B
Q4_K_M·89.9 t/s tok/s·41K ctx·EASY RUN
20.0 GBC33
Q4_K_M·119.2 t/s tok/s·33K ctx·EASY RUN
15.1 GBC31
Q4_K_M·910.2 t/s tok/s·131K ctx·EASY RUN
2.0 GBD26
Q4_K_M·2730.7 t/s tok/s·131K ctx·EASY RUN
0.7 GBD26
Q4_K_M·366.3 t/s tok/s·33K ctx·EASY RUN
4.9 GBD27
Q4_K_M·2730.7 t/s tok/s·33K ctx·EASY RUN
0.7 GBD26
Q4_K_M·84.1 t/s tok/s·4K ctx·EASY RUN
21.4 GBC34
Q4_K_M·1784.4 t/s tok/s·2K ctx·EASY RUN
1.0 GBD26
Phi 3 Mini 4k Instruct3.8B
Q8_0·367.1 t/s tok/s·4K ctx·EASY RUN
4.9 GBD27
Phi 22.8B
Q4_K_M·682.7 t/s tok/s·2K ctx·EASY RUN
2.6 GBD26
Q4_K_M·335.6 t/s tok/s·131K ctx·EASY RUN
5.4 GBD27
Q4_K_M·361.2 t/s tok/s·131K ctx·EASY RUN
5.0 GBD27
Hermes 3 Llama 3.1 8B8.0B
Q4_K_M·334.4 t/s tok/s·131K ctx·EASY RUN
5.4 GBD27
Q4_K_M·295.4 t/s tok/s·8K ctx·EASY RUN
6.1 GBD28
Q4_K_M·1365.3 t/s tok/s·8K ctx·EASY RUN
1.3 GBD26

AMD Instinct MI250X Specifications

Brand
AMD
Architecture
CDNA 2
VRAM
128.0 GB HBM2e
Memory Bandwidth
3276.8 GB/s
Stream Processors
14,080
FP16 Performance
383.00 TFLOPS
TDP
560W
Release Date
2021-11-08

Get Started

Ollama (Recommended)

$curl -fsSL https://ollama.com/install.sh | sh
$ollama run llama3:8b

LM Studio

LM Studio

Download LM Studio, search for a model, and run it with one click.

GPUs to Consider Over AMD Instinct MI250X

Similar GPUs and upgrades with more VRAM or higher bandwidth for AI

Frequently Asked Questions

Can AMD Instinct MI250X run GPT OSS 120B?

Yes, the AMD Instinct MI250X with 128 GB can run GPT OSS 120B, Llama 3.1 70B Instruct, Qwen2.5 72B Instruct, and 1299 other models. 1 models run at excellent quality, and 52 at good quality. Check the compatibility table above for the full list with VRAM usage and estimated speed.

Is AMD Instinct MI250X good for AI?

The AMD Instinct MI250X has 128 GB of HBM2e, making it excellent for running local AI models. It supports 53 models at good quality or better. With 3276.8 GB/s memory bandwidth, it delivers fast token generation speeds. This is an enthusiast-grade GPU that handles most popular open-source LLMs.

How many parameters can AMD Instinct MI250X handle?

With 128 GB, the AMD Instinct MI250X supports models from 3B to 70B+ parameters depending on quantization level. At Q4_K_M (the recommended sweet spot), you can fit roughly 213B parameters. This means 7B models at high quality (Q6/Q8) or 30B+ models at Q4.

What quantization should I use on AMD Instinct MI250X?

For the best balance of quality and speed on the AMD Instinct MI250X, start with Q4_K_M — it preserves ~85% of the original model quality while keeping VRAM usage reasonable. With 24+ GB, you have the headroom to run 7B models at Q5_K_M or even Q6_K for noticeably better output quality. For larger 30B models, Q4_K_M remains the sweet spot.

How fast is AMD Instinct MI250X for AI inference?

With 3276.8 GB/s memory bandwidth, the AMD Instinct MI250X achieves approximately 401 tokens/sec on a 7B model at Q4_K_M — that's very fast, well above conversational speed. A 14B model runs at ~200 tok/s. Token generation speed scales inversely with model size — smaller models are significantly faster.

tok/s = (3276.8 GB/s ÷ model GB) × efficiency

Smaller models = faster inference. Memory bandwidth is the main bottleneck for token generation speed.

Estimated speed on AMD Instinct MI250X

Real-world results typically within ±20%. Speed depends on quantization kernel, batch size, and software stack.

Learn more about tok/s estimation →

What's the best model for AMD Instinct MI250X?

The top-rated models for the AMD Instinct MI250X are GPT OSS 120B, Llama 3.1 70B Instruct, Qwen2.5 72B Instruct. The best choice depends on your use case: coding assistants benefit from code-tuned models, while general chat works well with instruction-tuned models like Llama or Qwen.