Can the RTX 3060 run Gemma 3 12B?
Yes, with 12 GB or more. Gemma 3 12B needs about 10 GB and the RTX 3060 has 12 GB of VRAM. Expect about 24 tok/s, about reading speed. The 8 GB version doesn't have room.
ollama run gemma3:12bFirst time? Install Ollama, then paste that into a terminal.
Gemma 3 12B needsAbout 10 GB
RTX 3060 has8 or 12 GB VRAM
Bandwidth360 GB/s
Estimated speed~24 tok/s
By memory size
Each RTX 3060 version
- 8 GBToo big
- 12 GBUsable ~24 tok/s
Want it faster?
Speed comes from memory bandwidth: the card reads all 8.1 GB of active weights for every token. On the RTX 3060, Qwen3 8B runs at about 38 tok/s if you can trade some quality for speed. Cards that run Gemma 3 12B faster:
How we estimate
Speed is roughly memory bandwidth divided by the weights read per token, calibrated on our own rack. Sizes are Ollama's default 4-bit downloads plus about 1.2 GB for context. Real results are usually within about a third. Measured it yourself? Send us the number.
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