GTX 1070 Ti vs RTX 3050 for local AI
Both fit the same models we track, up to Qwen3 8B. The GTX 1070 Ti generates about 14% faster on any model both can run, because it has 256 GB/s of memory bandwidth to the RTX 3050's 224 GB/s.
Memory and bandwidth
Memory decides which models fit. Bandwidth decides how fast they generate, because every token reads the model's active weights once.
| GTX 1070 Ti | RTX 3050 | |
|---|---|---|
| Memory | 8 GB VRAM | 6 or 8 GB VRAM |
| Bandwidth | 256 GB/s | 224 GB/s |
| Biggest model that fits | Qwen3 8B | Qwen3 8B |
| Best everyday pick | Qwen3 8B, ~27 tok/s | Qwen3 8B, ~24 tok/s |
Every model, side by side
Estimated generation speed at the largest memory size each was sold in (8 GB and 8 GB).
| Model | GTX 1070 Ti | RTX 3050 |
|---|---|---|
| Qwen3 4B About 4 GB | ~56 tok/s Runs great | ~49 tok/s Runs great |
| Qwen3 8B About 7 GB | ~27 tok/s Usable | ~24 tok/s Usable |
| Gemma 3 12B About 10 GB | Needs 10 GB | Needs 10 GB |
| Qwen3 14B About 11 GB | Needs 11 GB | Needs 11 GB |
| gpt-oss 20B About 16 GB | Needs 16 GB | Needs 16 GB |
| Gemma 3 27B About 19 GB | Needs 19 GB | Needs 19 GB |
| Qwen3 30B-A3B About 21 GB | Needs 21 GB | Needs 21 GB |
| Qwen3 32B About 22 GB | Needs 22 GB | Needs 22 GB |
| Llama 3.3 70B About 45 GB | Needs 45 GB | Needs 45 GB |
| gpt-oss 120B About 67 GB | Needs 67 GB | Needs 67 GB |
| Qwen3 235B-A22B About 144 GB | Needs 144 GB | Needs 144 GB |
| DeepSeek R1 671B About 406 GB | Needs 406 GB | Needs 406 GB |
The GTX 1070 Ti, for speed. They fit the same models. Price matters as much as either number: check used prices on the builds page, where every parts list has a measured or estimated speed.
Both columns use the same formula: memory bandwidth divided by the weights read per token, calibrated on our own rack, with Ollama's default 4-bit sizes. Real results are usually within about a third. Measured either one? Send us the number.