Can I run Gemma 3 27B on an RTX 4090?
Yes. Gemma 3 27B runs on an RTX 4090, about 33 words per second.
Fast~33 words/sAnswers appear faster than you can read them.Updated · Gemma 3 27B on every card
How much memory it needs
It uses about 79% of the memory that is free on this card.
What an RTX 4090 costs
GeForce RTX 4090 24GB$2,446€2,185used (median of sold listings)
EU shops · In the US? Switch the currency to USD.US shops · In Europe? Switch the currency to EUR.
Price details
$2,446€2,185
How we priced this
Used price, the typical price of second-hand cards that actually sold.
Source: pcprice.watch, checked 16 Oct 2026.
New (lowest listed in the EU, stock not confirmed): $3,507€3,790 at GPU PRIX, 21 Oct 2026. The page's current low: a ZOTAC Gaming RTX 4090 Trinity OC at amazon.nl and amazon.es (page updated 21 Oct 2026). Boards clearly marked in stock started at €3,990.
Used median €2,185 (typical €2,074–€2,290) from 111 cards sold second-hand, recorded 16 Oct 2026. Not an EU shop price.
Prices excl. shipping. Euro prices incl. VAT. Dollar prices are converted from our euro prices without EU VAT, before US sales tax.
The cheapest graphics card on our list that also runs it (it still needs the rest of a PC): GeForce RTX 3090 24GB, $1,370€1,224, used (median of sold listings). Fast~31 words/s
The cheapest complete machine that runs it: Mac mini M6 32GB, $1,416€1,530. price unverified Slow~3.5 words/s
Gemma 3 27B on other graphics cards
Runs well6
The whole model fits in the graphics memory.
Doesn't fit3
Not enough graphics memory: it needs about 18.5 GB.
- RTX 3060 12GBhas 12 GB
- RTX 4060 Ti 16GBhas 16 GB
- RTX 5080has 16 GB
More about the model itself, what it is good at and its licence: Gemma 3 27B.
The numbers behind this answer
A model comes in several sizes. Q4 is the standard one most people use; the bigger ones answer a little better but need more memory. Each row adds up the model file, the memory a conversation takes, and some working space, and compares the total with what is free on this card.
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
| Quality | Conversation | Result | Speed | Model file | Conversation memory | Working space | Total needed | Free memory |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q4 · standard (smallest that keeps quality) | ~12 pages8,192 tokens | Runs | Fast~33 words/s | 16.6 GBmeasured file | 1.1 GB | 0.8 GB | 18.5 GB | 23.4 GB |
| Q5 · a bit sharper, a bit bigger | ~12 pages8,192 tokens | Runs | Fast~28 words/s | 19.5 GB | 1.1 GB | 0.8 GB | 21.4 GB | 23.4 GB |
| Q8 · near full quality, almost twice Q4 | ~12 pages8,192 tokens | Doesn't fit | — | 29.4 GB | 1.1 GB | 0.8 GB | 31.3 GB | 23.4 GB |
| FP16 · full quality, over three times Q4 | ~12 pages8,192 tokens | Doesn't fit | — | 54.9 GB | 1.1 GB | 0.8 GB | 56.8 GB | 23.4 GB |
| Q4 · standard, longer conversation | ~49 pages32,768 tokens | Runs | Fast~30 words/s | 16.6 GBmeasured file | 3.1 GB | 0.8 GB | 20.5 GB | 23.4 GB |
Questions
- Can I run Gemma 3 27B on an RTX 4090?
- Yes. Gemma 3 27B runs on an RTX 4090, about 33 words per second.
- How much memory does Gemma 3 27B need?
- About 18.5 GB at the standard quality (Q4) for a conversation of up to about 12 pages of text (8,192 tokens), by our estimate: 16.6 GB for the model file (measured), 1.1 GB to hold the conversation and 0.8 GB of working space.
- How fast is Gemma 3 27B on an RTX 4090?
- Fast: about 33 words per second (about 44 tokens per second). Answers appear faster than you can read them. This is our estimate, not a measured test.
Speeds and memory are our estimate from the hardware specs, not a measured test. Prices are dated and may change. How we calculate