NVIDIAAda Lovelace

Best AI Models for NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti (12.0GB)

VRAM:12.0 GB GDDR6X·Bandwidth:504.0 GB/s·CUDA Cores:7,680·TDP:285W·MSRP:$799

12 GB is the sweet spot for entry into local AI. It runs 7B–13B models at good quality quantizations, making it a practical and affordable starting point for running LLMs on your own hardware.

This memory tier, common on GPUs like the RTX 3060 12GB, is surprisingly capable for local AI. You can run Llama 3 8B, Mistral 7B, and similar 7B models at Q4_K_M quantization with decent token generation speed. Smaller models like Phi 3 Mini (3.8B) run at Q6 or Q8 with room to spare. Reaching up to 13B models is possible at Q2–Q3 quantization, though quality trade-offs become more noticeable.

Runs Well

  • 7B models at Q4_K_M quality
  • Small models (3B–4B) at Q5–Q8
  • Chat and coding assistants for everyday use

Challenging

  • 13B models only at Q2–Q3 (lower quality)
  • 14B+ models do not fit
  • Context windows limited for 7B+ models

What LLMs Can NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Run?

19 models · 1 excellent · 2 good

Showing compatibility for NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti

LLM models compatible with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti — ranked by performance
ModelVRAMGrade
Phi 414B
Q4_K_M·35.9 t/s tok/s·16K ctx·GREAT FIT
9.1 GBS89
Q4_K_M·41.4 t/s tok/s·33K ctx·GOOD FIT
7.9 GBA83
Qwen3 8B8.2B
Q4_K_M·59.3 t/s tok/s·41K ctx·FAIR FIT
5.5 GBB61
Q4_K_M·53.7 t/s tok/s·8K ctx·GOOD FIT
6.1 GBA66
Q4_K_M·62.0 t/s tok/s·131K ctx·FAIR FIT
5.3 GBB59
Q4_K_M·65.7 t/s tok/s·33K ctx·FAIR FIT
5.0 GBB57
Q4_K_M·61.0 t/s tok/s·131K ctx·FAIR FIT
5.4 GBB60
Hermes 3 Llama 3.1 8B8.0B
Q4_K_M·60.8 t/s tok/s·131K ctx·FAIR FIT
5.4 GBB60
Q4_K_M·66.6 t/s tok/s·33K ctx·FAIR FIT
4.9 GBB56
Q4_K_M·65.7 t/s tok/s·131K ctx·FAIR FIT
5.0 GBB57
Phi 3 Mini 4k Instruct3.8B
Q8_0·66.7 t/s tok/s·4K ctx·FAIR FIT
4.9 GBB56
Qwen3 4B4B
Q4_K_M·113.4 t/s tok/s·41K ctx·EASY RUN
2.9 GBC39
Phi 22.8B
Q4_K_M·124.1 t/s tok/s·2K ctx·EASY RUN
2.6 GBC37
Phi 4 Mini Instruct3.8B
Q4_K_M·114.9 t/s tok/s·131K ctx·EASY RUN
2.9 GBC39
Q4_K_M·165.5 t/s tok/s·131K ctx·EASY RUN
2.0 GBC34
Q4_K_M·324.4 t/s tok/s·2K ctx·EASY RUN
1.0 GBD29

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Specifications

Brand
NVIDIA
Architecture
Ada Lovelace
VRAM
12.0 GB GDDR6X
Memory Bandwidth
504.0 GB/s
CUDA Cores
7,680
Tensor Cores
240
FP16 Performance
80.20 TFLOPS
TDP
285W
Release Date
2023-01-05
MSRP
$799

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 NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti

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

Frequently Asked Questions

Can NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti run Phi 4?

Yes, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti with 12 GB can run Phi 4, Gemma 3 12B IT, Qwen3 8B, and 754 other models. 64 models run at excellent quality, and 116 at good quality. Check the compatibility table above for the full list with VRAM usage and estimated speed.

Is NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti good for AI?

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti has 12 GB of GDDR6X, making it solid for running local AI models. It supports 180 models at good quality or better. With 504.0 GB/s memory bandwidth, it delivers solid token generation speeds. It's a practical entry point — ideal for 7B models like Llama 3 8B and Mistral 7B.

How many parameters can NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti handle?

With 12 GB, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti supports models from 3B to 13B parameters depending on quantization level. At Q4_K_M (the recommended sweet spot), you can fit roughly 20B parameters. 7B models fit well at Q4–Q5, with room for context. Larger 13B models need Q3 or lower.

What quantization should I use on NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti?

For the best balance of quality and speed on the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti, start with Q4_K_M — it preserves ~85% of the original model quality while keeping VRAM usage reasonable. If a model barely fits, drop to Q3_K_M — quality loss is noticeable but still useful for chat. Avoid Q2_K unless you just want to test whether a model works at all.

How fast is NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti for AI inference?

With 504.0 GB/s memory bandwidth, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti achieves approximately 73 tokens/sec on a 7B model at Q4_K_M — that's very fast, well above conversational speed. A 14B model runs at ~36 tok/s. Token generation speed scales inversely with model size — smaller models are significantly faster.

tok/s = (504 GB/s ÷ model GB) × efficiency

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

Estimated speed on NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti

~36 tok/s
~59 tok/s
~54 tok/s

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 NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti?

The top-rated models for the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti are Phi 4, Gemma 3 12B IT, Qwen3 8B. 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.