AMD · RDNA 4 · 2025
AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT 16GB for local AI
An affordable new 16GB card for Vulkan and ROCm, limited by a 128-bit bus.
Updated · Speeds marked ~ are estimates; seemethodology
- VRAM
- 16GB
- Bandwidth
- 320 GB/s
- Power
- 160W
- Runs well
- 6 models
RX 9060 XT 16GB
Typically about $470
Can the RX 9060 XT 16GB run LLMs?
The RX 9060 XT 16GB has 16GB of GDDR6 and 320 GB/s of memory bandwidth, which decides how big a model fits and how fast it generates text. It comfortably runs models up to about 15B parameters: the largest in our catalog is Phi-4 at Q5_K_M (13GB with 8K context, ~19 tokens/sec). Our top all-round pick for it is Qwen3.8 27B (Q3_K_M, ~15 tokens/sec). Llama 3.3 70B Instruct only runs with partial CPU offload, at about 1.3 tokens/sec with CPU offload.
Recommendations
Best models for the RX 9060 XT 16GB
Best overall · also coding, reasoning, vision, largest that fits
Qwen3.8 27BQ3_K_M · 15GB · ~15 tokens/sec
Fits, tightRunner-up
Qwen3.5 9BQ8_0 · 12GB · ~19 tokens/sec
Runs wellFastest good model
Gemma 4 26B A4BQ3_K_M · 14GB · ~54 tokens/sec
Fits, tight
Compatibility
What runs on the RX 9060 XT 16GB
Every current model in our catalog, at the best quantization that fits in 16GB with 8K tokens of context. "Partial offload" means part of the model runs from system RAM (we assume 64GB), which is much slower.
| Model | Parameters | Best quant | Memory | Speed | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gemma 4 E4B | 8B | Q8_0 | 10 GB | ~21 tok/s | Runs well |
| Qwen3.5 9B | 9B | Q8_0 | 12 GB | ~19 tok/s | Runs well |
| Phi-4 | 14.7B | Q5_K_M | 13 GB | ~19 tok/s | Runs well |
| gpt-oss-20b | 20.9B (3.6B active) | MXFP4 | 15 GB | 105 tok/s | Fits, tight |
| Gemma 4 26B A4B | 26B (3.8B active) | Q3_K_M | 14 GB | ~54 tok/s | Fits, tight |
| Qwen3.8 27B | 27B | Q3_K_M | 15 GB | ~15 tok/s | Fits, tight |
| Gemma 4 31B | 31B | Q4_K_M | 22 GB | ~4.6 tok/s | Partial offload |
| Qwen3.6 35B-A3B | 35B (3B active) | Q4_K_M | 24 GB | ~34 tok/s | Partial offload |
| GLM-4.5-Air | 106B (12B active) | — | — | — | Won't fitWhat it needs |
| Llama 4 Scout | 109B (17B active) | — | — | — | Won't fitWhat it needs |
| gpt-oss-120b | 117B (5.1B active) | — | — | — | Won't fitWhat it needs |
| Qwen3.5 122B-A10B | 122B (10B active) | — | — | — | Won't fitWhat it needs |
| DeepSeek V4 Flash | 284B (13B active) | — | — | — | Won't fitWhat it needs |
| GLM-5.3-Flash | 320B (18B active) | — | — | — | Won't fitWhat it needs |
| GLM-5.3 | 744B (40B active) | — | — | — | Won't fitWhat it needs |
Performance
RX 9060 XT 16GB vs. alternatives on Qwen3.8 27B
Generation speed in tokens per second for a single user. Token generation is limited mostly by memory bandwidth, which is why bandwidth predicts these results so well.
RX 9070 XT
Q3_K_M · 16GB
~30tok/s
RTX 5060 Ti 16GB
Q3_K_M · 16GB
~26tok/s
RX 9060 XT 16GB
Q3_K_M · 16GB
~15tok/s
Measured
RX 9060 XT 16GB benchmark results
| Model | Quant | Runtime | Generation | Prompt | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| gpt-oss-20b | MXFP4 | llama.cpp (Vulkan) | 105 tok/s | 3465 tok/s | llama.cpp discussion #10879: Performance of llama.cpp with Vulkan · October 2026 |
| gpt-oss-20b | MXFP4 | llama.cpp (ROCm (HIP)) | 93 tok/s | 3370 tok/s | llama.cpp discussion #15021: Performance of llama.cpp on AMD ROCm (HIP) · October 2026 |
| Llama 2 7B Chat | Q4_0 | llama.cpp (Vulkan) | 71 tok/s | 2845 tok/s | llama.cpp discussion #10879: Performance of llama.cpp with Vulkan · October 2026 |
| Llama 2 7B Chat | Q4_0 | llama.cpp (ROCm (HIP)) | 68 tok/s | 1420 tok/s | llama.cpp discussion #15021: Performance of llama.cpp on AMD ROCm (HIP) · October 2026 |
| Llama 2 7B Chat | Q4_0 | llama.cpp (ROCm (HIP)) | 67 tok/s | 2640 tok/s | llama.cpp discussion #15021: Performance of llama.cpp on AMD ROCm (HIP) · October 2026 |
| Qwen3.8 27B | IQ4_XS | llama.cpp (Vulkan) | 20 tok/s | 710 tok/s | llama.cpp discussion #10879: Performance of llama.cpp with Vulkan · October 2026 |
| Qwen3.8 27B | IQ4_XS | llama.cpp (ROCm (HIP)) | 20 tok/s | 740 tok/s | llama.cpp discussion #15021: Performance of llama.cpp on AMD ROCm (HIP) · October 2026 |
Our take
Should you buy the RX 9060 XT 16GB for AI?
The Radeon RX 9060 XT 16GB pairs 16GB of GDDR6 with a 128-bit bus for 320 GB/s, a little more than the RTX 4060 Ti 16GB. It loads the same 14B to 24B models as other 16GB cards at modest speed while drawing about 160W. It sold for about $470 to $550 new in October 2026, often less than an RTX 5060 Ti 16GB, which has about 40 percent more memory bandwidth. Buy the 16GB version, because the 8GB model is not worth it for AI.
What we like
- 16GB at a low new price
- 160W board power
- Works with Vulkan and ROCm
Watch out for
- 320 GB/s bandwidth is slow
- Software support trails CUDA
Best for: Budget 16GB builds · AMD gaming PCs that run 8B to 14B models
Specifications
RX 9060 XT 16GB specs that matter for AI
- Memory
- 16GB GDDR6
- Memory bandwidth
- 320 GB/s
- Memory bus
- 128-bit
- Architecture
- RDNA 4
- Power
- 160W
- Interface
- PCIe 5.0 x16
- Released
- 2025
- Launch price
- $349
- Street price (new)
- ~$470 (2026-10)
- Software
- ROCm, Vulkan
Sources: Wikipedia, Radeon RX 9000 series
Cross-shop
Alternatives to the RX 9060 XT 16GB
Frequently asked questions
How much VRAM does the RX 9060 XT 16GB have?
The AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT 16GB has 16GB of GDDR6 with 320 GB/s of memory bandwidth on a 128-bit bus.
What is the largest LLM the RX 9060 XT 16GB can run?
Fully in GPU memory, the largest model in our catalog that runs comfortably is Phi-4 (14.7B) at Q5_K_M, using about 13GB with 8K context at ~19 tokens/sec.
Can the RX 9060 XT 16GB run Llama 3.3 70B?
Only with partial CPU offload. At Q4_K_M the model needs about 47GB with 8K context, so part of it spills into system RAM and speed drops to about 1.3 tokens/sec with CPU offload. For usable 70B speeds you want 48GB of VRAM or more (for example two 24GB cards).
What is the best LLM to run on the RX 9060 XT 16GB?
Our top pick is Qwen3.8 27B at Q3_K_M, which fits in 16GB with room for 8K of context and runs at ~15 tokens/sec. See our full list of the best models for the RX 9060 XT 16GB for coding, reasoning, and vision picks.
Is the RX 9060 XT 16GB good for local AI in 2026?
An affordable new 16GB card for Vulkan and ROCm, limited by a 128-bit bus.