Buying Used
The used market is where local AI value lives — if you know what to check.
Used datacenter and gaming cards deliver the most throughput per dollar for local inference, and every generation makes the previous flagship cheaper. These guides cover which cards are still worth buying, how to read a sold-listing price, and the failure modes to screen for before you pay.
Local LLM GPU Buying Guide (2026)
What to buy to run local LLMs in September 2026, chosen by VRAM tier with current US prices, used-market alternatives and honest tradeoffs.
- Sep 5, 2026 · 4 min readBuying Used GPUs for Local LLMsUsed GPU guide for local LLM inference: RTX 3090 and A6000 market prices, CMP 170HX mining cards, Tesla P100/V100 — what to check before you buy.
- Sep 4, 2026 · 2 min read$1,500 Sweet-Spot Build (Used RTX 3090)The best tokens-per-dollar in 2026: one used RTX 3090 24GB runs 32B models interactive and 70B at patient speeds. Prices as of 2026-09-28.
- Sep 4, 2026 · 2 min readRun 70B Models on Two Used RTX 3090sThe 48GB route: running 70B-class models at usable speeds on a pair of used RTX 3090s for around $2,600. Pricing as of 2026-09-28.
- Sep 28, 2026 · 6 min readSeptember 2026: What 164 Runs Changed164 new rows, 142 of them sourced, two new models measured, and a used-GPU market that moved up 24%: the month in board data.
- Sep 6, 2026 · 3 min readDual RTX 3090 70B Build (48GB, 2026)Two used 24GB cards give 48GB for 70B-class local inference. What it costs at the 2026-09-28 snapshot, and sourced tok/s.
- Sep 5, 2026 · 5 min readRTX 5090 vs RTX 3090 for Local LLMsRTX 5090 vs used RTX 3090 for running LLMs locally: community tok/s data, VRAM math, street prices and which card actually wins.
- Sep 5, 2026 · 3 min readThe 48GB VRAM Local LLM BuildHow to get 48GB of VRAM for 70B-class local LLMs: dual RTX 3090 vs used A6000 48GB — power, cooling, PCIe and real community tok/s.
- Sep 4, 2026 · 4 min readBudget Build Monthly — September 2026First monthly build review: three tiers vs. the 2026-09-04 price snapshot, plus value picks — Intel's 24GB at $599 and AMD's 32GB at $1,329.
- Sep 4, 2026 · 3 min readState of Local AI Hardware — Q3 2026The VRAM shortage has flipped the 2026 GPU market: 5090s at $9,000, the 3060 resurrection, 48GB as the new anchor, and what it means for local-LLM buyers.
- Sep 28, 2026 · 9 min readOne 180B MoE, Five Formats: 41 Sourced RunsQwen3.8-Flash-Next's split entities merged into one page: 41 sourced rows across three checkpoints, 20.3 to 474 tok/s, and what fits a 24GB card.
- Sep 10, 2026 · 4 min readWhat $1,000 buys for local LLMs (Sep 2026)What $500-$1,000 buys in VRAM for local LLMs, from the 2026-09-28 price snapshot: 12GB, 16GB, 24GB and now 32GB.
- Sep 10, 2026 · 3 min readGPU prices, Sep 10 2026: entry cards cooledNewegg-observed snapshot for Sep 10, 2026 — RTX 3060 $454.62, 5060 Ti 16GB $779.99, RTX 5090 $4,899.99, Arc Pro B60 $959, each row with its source.