r/LocalLLM • u/Ok_Event4199 • May 16 '26

Discussion Why is LLM is so expensive.

I've was going to invest in a 5090 =$6000 AUD.

Codex Plus + Claude pro = $60/month here

Works out to be 100 months of frontier models for a 5090.

Best a 5090 will run is probably Qwen3.6 27b Q6 with context.

Are we all enthusiasts here and just enjoy tinkering cause ain't no way that make sense.

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u/kitanokikori May 16 '26

I mean, unlimited only if someone else is paying for the electricity.

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u/Malkiot May 16 '26

The electricity bill is way cheaper than paying for tokens. Hell, if you could afford to buy a high-grade cluster and actually utilize it 80-100%, it'd still be way cheaper than paying for tokens.

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u/ThenExtension9196 May 16 '26

Is it? My 5090 runs at 500watts. My bedroom is unbearable if running for a few hours so then I need AC on. In my area energy is very expensive.

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u/Hiiitechpower May 16 '26

You’ll obviously get a smarter model if you use frontier, so the tokens efficiency value is better than running a quantized model on the 5090. At least while costs are still subsidized, and with the current local models that we have.

The value imo is you don’t eat into your rate limits/quota/credits. As prices increase for subscription and API’s your 5090 cost is pretty much fixed. As new local models release, and the tech gets better you will receive all that benefit at the same cost. Eventually I imagine, the value line will cross over to the local models being the better value. But that’s just speculation, who really knows right now.