Can Gemma 4 26B A4B run on RTX 3060 12GB?

Q: What should I upgrade first if Gemma 4 26B A4B feels slow on RTX 3060 12GB?

Add more VRAM headroom. The first useful upgrade is more dedicated VRAM so you can fit the model without shrinking context or dropping to a much lower quant.

NO — Won't Fit

F0Won't run

Estimated from fit model

Gemma 4 26B A4B needs ~21.4 GB but RTX 3060 12GB only has 12.0 GB. Try a smaller quantization or lighter model.

Runtime: OllamaCapacity: No fitBandwidth: LowStack: BasicBottleneck: Memory capacity

Operating mode

Choose the run profile you care about

Interactive favors responsiveness, while light API and scale-out lean harder on serving readiness. The fit stays the same, but the recommendation lens changes.

Current mode

Balanced

Balanced for general local use. Keeps the ranking neutral across personal and serving workflows.

Capabilities:

Select quantization to explore

Q4_K_M (Medium quality) — 21.4 GB, exceeds 12.0 GB available

21.4 GB required12.0 GB available

178% VRAM needed

9.4 GB over capacity — needs offload or smaller quantization

Fit status

Too heavy

Decode

8.5 tok/s

TTFT

22685 ms

Safe context

Memory

21.4 GB / 12.0 GB

Offload

40%

Memory breakdown

Weights15.4 GB

KV Cache3.7 GB

Runtime1.2 GB

Headroom1.2 GB

See how fast it feels

With memory offload — actual speed may be lower

See how fast it feelsGemma 4 26B A4B on RTX 3060 12GB
1st promptCold start — includes initialization
>Write a Python function to sort a list
Here's a Python function that sorts a list using quicksort:

def quicksort(arr):
    if len(arr) <= 1:
        return arr
    pivot = arr[len(arr) // 2]
    left   = [x for x in arr if x < pivot]
    middle = [x for x in arr if x == pivot]
    right  = [x for x in arr if x > pivot]
    return quicksort(left) + middle + quicksort(right)

# Example usage
numbers = [3, 6, 8, 10, 1, 2, 1]
print(quicksort(numbers))  # [1, 1, 2, 3, 6, 8, 10]

The algorithm picks a pivot, partitions the list into smaller, equal, and larger elements, then recursively sorts each partition and concatenates the results.
2nd promptWarm — model ready, no init overhead
>Now add type hints and a docstring
def quicksort(arr: list[int]) -> list[int]:
    """Sort a list using the quicksort algorithm.

    Args:
        arr: List of integers to sort.

    Returns:
        A new sorted list.
    """
    if len(arr) <= 1:
        return arr
    pivot = arr[len(arr) // 2]
    left   = [x for x in arr if x < pivot]
    middle = [x for x in arr if x == pivot]
    right  = [x for x in arr if x > pivot]
    return quicksort(left) + middle + quicksort(right)

Added type hints for the input and return type, plus a Google-style docstring.
Estimated: 8.5 tok/s decode · 22.7s TTFT (warm) · 21 tok/s prefill

What limits this setup

Usable VRAM is the main blocker for this model.

Not enough usable memory

The model needs 21.4 GB, but this setup only exposes 12.0 GB of usable VRAM.

Best improvement path

Add more VRAM headroom

The first useful upgrade is more dedicated VRAM so you can fit the model without shrinking context or dropping to a much lower quant.

Performance by workload

Workload	Grade	Fit	Decode	TTFT	Context
Chat	F	Too heavy	10.3 tok/s	10253 ms	4K
Coding	F	Too heavy	8.1 tok/s	23820 ms	4K
Agentic Coding	F	Too heavy	6.1 tok/s	45991 ms	4K
Reasoning	F	Too heavy	8.5 tok/s	26810 ms	4K
RAG	F	Too heavy	6.1 tok/s	57488 ms	4K

Quantization options

How Gemma 4 26B A4B (25.200000762939453B params) fits at each quantization level on RTX 3060 12GB (12.0 GB usable).

Quant	Bits	VRAM	Quality	Fit
Q2_K	2	9.8 GB	Low	F0
Q3_K_S	3	12.3 GB	Low	F0
NVFP4	4

Upgrade options

Hardware that runs Gemma 4 26B A4B well

RTX 4000 Ada 20GBBest value

20 GB VRAM (+8)

Makes the model fit on the accelerator instead of staying completely out of reach.27.4 tok/s decode

Makes the model fit on the accelerator instead of staying completely out of reach.

Raises estimated decode speed by about 222%.

~$1,250 MSRP

RTX 3090 24GBBudget pick

24 GB VRAM (+12)936 GB/s (+576)

Makes the model fit on the accelerator instead of staying completely out of reach.106.4 tok/s decode

Makes the model fit on the accelerator instead of staying completely out of reach.

Removes host-memory offload, which is usually the single biggest latency and throughput win.

~$1,499 MSRP

RTX 4090 24GBNVIDIA upgrade

24 GB VRAM (+12)1008 GB/s (+648)

Makes the model fit on the accelerator instead of staying completely out of reach.124.4 tok/s decode

Makes the model fit on the accelerator instead of staying completely out of reach.

Removes host-memory offload, which is usually the single biggest latency and throughput win.

~$1,599 MSRP

Frequently asked questions

Can RTX 3060 12GB run Gemma 4 26B A4B?

No, Gemma 4 26B A4B requires more memory than RTX 3060 12GB provides.

How much VRAM does Gemma 4 26B A4B need?

Gemma 4 26B A4B (25.200000762939453B parameters) requires approximately 21.4 GB of memory with Q4_K_M quantization.

What is the best quantization for Gemma 4 26B A4B?

The recommended quantization for Gemma 4 26B A4B is Q4_K_M, which balances quality and memory efficiency.

What speed will Gemma 4 26B A4B run at on RTX 3060 12GB?

On RTX 3060 12GB, Gemma 4 26B A4B achieves approximately 8.1 tokens per second decode speed with a time-to-first-token of 23820ms using Q4_K_M quantization.

Can RTX 3060 12GB run Gemma 4 26B A4B for coding?

For coding workloads, Gemma 4 26B A4B on RTX 3060 12GB receives a F grade with 8.1 tok/s and 4K context.

What context window can Gemma 4 26B A4B use on RTX 3060 12GB?

On RTX 3060 12GB, Gemma 4 26B A4B can safely use up to 4K tokens of context. The model's official context limit is 256K, but available memory constrains the safe maximum.

What should I upgrade first if Gemma 4 26B A4B feels slow on RTX 3060 12GB?

See all results for RTX 3060 12GB See all hardware for Gemma 4 26B A4B

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