Build Planner

Build your local AI rig

Select your use case and budget. The planner outputs a recommended parts list, an Amazon cart link for the whole build (the 24-hour cookie means all items earn commission), and eBay used-gear alternatives for the high-cost components.

Prices are estimates based on mid-2026 market data. GPU used prices fluctuate — always verify current eBay sold listings before purchasing. Recommendations are based on inference performance data, not commission rates.

Your requirements

Primary use case

Budget

Prefer used / eBay market where available Used gear (especially 3090/A6000) is often the best VRAM/$ ratio.

Prefer AMD / ROCm over NVIDIA / CUDA ROCm support varies by runtime. Check compatibility before committing.

Select a use case and click Generate build plan to see a parts list.

How the planner works

Why are some recommendations used gear?: The homelab and local-AI community defaults to used enterprise and consumer GPUs (RTX 3090, NVIDIA A6000) because the VRAM-per-dollar ratio on used cards far exceeds new equivalents. A used RTX 3090 24GB at ~$650 costs roughly the same as a new RTX 4060 Ti 16GB — with 50% more VRAM and nearly identical bandwidth. We surface used options explicitly because it's what the community actually recommends.
Why Amazon cart links?: Amazon's 24-hour cart cookie means if you add a full build to cart and buy it over multiple sessions, LocalRig earns commission on the whole basket — not just one item. A $2,600 build at ~3% blended is ~$78 per conversion. The cart link is how we fund the operation. You pay no more; the manufacturer pays Amazon; Amazon pays us. Disclosure.
Why are eBay links included separately?: Many key parts (used RTX 3090, NVIDIA A6000, enterprise servers) are not sold new on Amazon. eBay is where the community actually buys used hardware, and eBay Partner Network lets us earn a small commission on those links too. Used links go to eBay's condition-filtered search, not specific listings, so you can compare current sold prices.
What is NOT recommended, and why?: Each build plan includes a "Who this is NOT for" section. We explicitly note: when used gear is riskier than new; when Apple Silicon beats the GPU option for a given use case; when cloud is cheaper than hardware at low token volumes. We don't hide these tradeoffs — they're the reason the site exists.
Where do these part recommendations come from?: From the LocalRig hardware catalog (verticals/hardware/) — GPU and Apple Silicon specs verified against manufacturer data sheets, community benchmarks, and eBay sold-listing price ranges as of mid-2026. Parts are selected for inference performance per dollar, not commission rate. The GPU bandwidth and VRAM data are sourced from NVIDIA and AMD spec sheets.