Llama 3.1 70B vs Qwen 2.5 72B
Comparing VRAM requirements, performance, and capabilities for running these models locally with Ollama.
Parameters
70B
Context
128K
VRAM Range
43.5–72 GB
Recommended
Q4_K_M (43.5 GB)
ByMeta·LicenseLlama 3.1 Community License
Parameters
72B
Context
128K
VRAM Range
44.7–74 GB
Recommended
Q4_K_M (44.7 GB)
ByAlibaba·LicenseQwen License
VRAM Requirements by Quantization
Side-by-side memory needs at each quality level.
| Quantization | Llama 3.1 70B | Qwen 2.5 72B | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q4_K_M | 43.5 GB | 44.7 GB | -1.2 GB |
| Q8_0 | 72 GB | 74 GB | -2.0 GB |
Capabilities
Feature support comparison.
| Capability | Llama 3.1 70B | Qwen 2.5 72B |
|---|---|---|
| text generation | Yes | Yes |
| code generation | Yes | Yes |
| reasoning | Yes | Yes |
| multilingual | Yes | Yes |
| tool use | Yes | Yes |
| math | Yes | Yes |
| creative writing | Yes | Yes |
| summarization | Yes | Yes |
Benchmark Scores
Higher is better. Scores from published evaluations.
| Benchmark | Llama 3.1 70B | Qwen 2.5 72B |
|---|---|---|
| mmlu | 83.6 | 85.3 |
Hardware Compatibility
Can each model run at recommended quantization on common VRAM tiers?
| VRAM | Llama 3.1 70B | Qwen 2.5 72B |
|---|---|---|
| 8 GB | No | No |
| 12 GB | No | No |
| 16 GB | No | No |
| 24 GB | No | No |
| 32 GB | Offload | Offload |
| 48 GB | Tight | Tight |
| 64 GB | Runs | Runs |
| 96 GB | Runs | Runs |
Run Llama 3.1 70B
ollama run llama3.1:70b-instruct-q4_K_MRun Qwen 2.5 72B
ollama run qwen2.5:72b-instruct-q4_K_MCheck your exact hardware
Use the compatibility checker to see how each model performs on your specific GPU or Mac.