Rig Finder index / 8B / Coding assistant / New Jersey
Best rig to run an 8B model for coding assistant in New Jersey
For an 8B model at this workload, the Mini-PC pays off fastest — break-even ~6 months, keeping $4,039 over 3 years versus Claude Sonnet 4.6.
Same workload, same cloud, same electricity — we swap only the hardware and rank by real break-even. Rigs that can't run an 8B model are shown, never recommended. Compared against Claude Sonnet 4.6 ($3/M in, $15/M out); change the cloud in the lab.
Every build, ranked
| Rig | Build | 8B tok/s | Local/mo | Break-even | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mini-PCbest payoff | $750 | 22estimated | $22.80 | ~6 mo | OWN |
| RTX 3090 (used) | $1,200 | 85estimated | $42.45 | ~10 mo | OWN |
| RTX 4090 | $2,300 | 120estimated | $74.01 | ~18 mo | HYBRID |
| 2× RTX 3090 | $2,250 | 90estimated | $77.89 | ~19 mo | HYBRID |
| Mac M-series | $3,000 | 65estimated | $85.16 | ~23 mo | HYBRID |
| RTX 5090 | $3,500 | 180estimated | $110 | ~29 mo | HYBRID |
Assumes coding assistant use: ~15M tokens/month, 3h/day active, 5h/day idle, at New Jersey electricity ($0.190/kWh). Speeds are our estimates; community-measured tok/s live on the interactive Rig Finder and the benchmarks board. Every formula is on the methodology page.
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