GPU comparison
Mac Studio M5 Ultra (256GB) vs NVIDIA RTX 3060 (12GB) for local LLMs
How the two stack up for running open-source LLMs locally — memory, bandwidth, price, and how many of the 64 tracked models each one can run.
| Mac Studio M5 Ultra (256GB) | NVIDIA RTX 3060 (12GB) | |
|---|---|---|
| Memory | 256.0 GB | 12.0 GB |
| Bandwidth | 1228 GB/s | 360 GB/s |
| Price (approx) | $9,499 | $329 |
| LLMs it runs | 60 of 64 | 27 of 64 |
| Best model it runs | GLM-5.3 Flash (MoE) · 61–91 tok/s | Devstral Small 2 24B · 26–39 tok/s |
The Mac Studio M5 Ultra (256GB) runs 33 more of the tracked models (60 vs 27), thanks to its 256.0 GB of memory. The Mac Studio M5 Ultra (256GB) has more memory bandwidth (1228 GB/s), so it generates tokens faster at the same model and quant.