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URL: https://willitrunai.com/can-run/starcoder2-3b-on-a30-24gb


Can StarCoder2 3B run on NVIDIA A30 24GB?

YES — Runs Great

C43Usable
Estimated from fit model

StarCoder2 3B needs ~5.9 GB VRAM. NVIDIA A30 24GB has 24.0 GB. With Q4_K_M quantization, expect ~42 tok/s.

Runtime: OllamaCapacity: RoomyBandwidth: HighStack: BasicBottleneck: Balanced
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Operating mode

Choose the run profile you care about

Interactive favors responsiveness, while light API and scale-out lean harder on serving readiness. The fit stays the same, but the recommendation lens changes.

Current mode

Balanced

Balanced for general local use. Keeps the ranking neutral across personal and serving workflows.

Capabilities:

Select quantization to explore

Q4_K_M (Medium quality) — 5.9 GB, 42.0 tok/s, Runs well
5.9 GB required24.0 GB available
25% VRAM used

Fit status

Runs well

Decode

42.0 tok/s

TTFT

4610 ms

Safe context

16K

Memory

5.9 GB / 24.0 GB

Memory breakdown

Weights1.8 GB
KV Cache0.5 GB
Runtime1.2 GB
Headroom2.4 GB

See how fast it feels

See how fast it feelsStarCoder2 3B on NVIDIA A30 24GB
1st promptCold start — includes initialization
>Write a Python function to sort a list
Here's a Python function that sorts a list using quicksort: def quicksort(arr): if len(arr) <= 1: return arr pivot = arr[len(arr) // 2] left = [x for x in arr if x < pivot] middle = [x for x in arr if x == pivot] right = [x for x in arr if x > pivot] return quicksort(left) + middle + quicksort(right) # Example usage numbers = [3, 6, 8, 10, 1, 2, 1] print(quicksort(numbers)) # [1, 1, 2, 3, 6, 8, 10] The algorithm picks a pivot, partitions the list into smaller, equal, and larger elements, then recursively sorts each partition and concatenates the results.
2nd promptWarm — model ready, no init overhead
>Now add type hints and a docstring
def quicksort(arr: list[int]) -> list[int]: """Sort a list using the quicksort algorithm. Args: arr: List of integers to sort. Returns: A new sorted list. """ if len(arr) <= 1: return arr pivot = arr[len(arr) // 2] left = [x for x in arr if x < pivot] middle = [x for x in arr if x == pivot] right = [x for x in arr if x > pivot] return quicksort(left) + middle + quicksort(right) Added type hints for the input and return type, plus a Google-style docstring.
Estimated: 42.0 tok/s decode · 4.6s TTFT (warm) · 105 tok/s prefill

What limits this setup

This setup is broadly balanced for this model.

No major red flags

This recommendation has enough memory headroom and acceptable estimated speed for the selected workload.

Best improvement path

Performance by workload

WorkloadGradeFitDecodeTTFTContext
ChatCRuns well42.0 tok/s2514 ms16K
CodingCRuns well42.0 tok/s4610 ms16K
Agentic CodingCRuns well42.0 tok/s6705 ms16K
ReasoningCRuns well42.0 tok/s5448 ms16K
RAGCRuns well42.0 tok/s8381 ms16K

Quantization options

How StarCoder2 3B (3B params) fits at each quantization level on NVIDIA A30 24GB (24.0 GB usable).

QuantBitsVRAMQualityFit
Q2_K
2
1.2 GB
LowC42
Q3_K_S
3
1.5 GB
LowC42
NVFP4
4

Get started

Copy-paste commands to run StarCoder2 3B on your machine.

Run

ollama run starcoder2:3b

Upgrade options

Hardware that runs StarCoder2 3B well

MacBook Pro M3 Pro 36GBBudget pick
36 GB Unified (+12)
C
This setup is broadly balanced for this model.42 tok/s decode

~$1,999 MSRP

MacBook Pro M4 Max 36GBBest value
36 GB Unified (+12)
C
This setup is broadly balanced for this model.42 tok/s decode

~$2,499 MSRP

Frequently asked questions

See all results for NVIDIA A30 24GBSee all hardware for StarCoder2 3B
1.7 GB
Medium
C42
Q4_K_M
4
1.8 GB
MediumC42
Q5_K_M
5
2.2 GB
HighC43
Q6_K
6
2.5 GB
HighC43
Q8_0
8
3.2 GB
Very HighC43
F16Best for your GPU
16
6.1 GB
MaximumC45