Can GPT-OSS 20B run on NVIDIA DGX Spark 128GB?
YES — Runs Great
GPT-OSS 20B needs ~29.5 GB VRAM. NVIDIA DGX Spark 128GB has 108.8 GB. With Q4_K_M quantization, expect ~31 tok/s.
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.
Select quantization to explore
Fit status
Runs well
Decode
31.4 tok/s
TTFT
6157 ms
Safe context
128K
Memory
29.5 GB / 108.8 GB
Memory breakdown
See how fast it feels
What limits this setup
This setup is broadly balanced for this model.
Shared-memory contention still exists
The OS, browser, and inference runtime all compete for the same physical memory pool, so real-world headroom is less forgiving than raw capacity suggests.
Best improvement path
Performance by workload
| Workload | Grade | Fit | Decode | TTFT | Context |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chat | A | Runs well | 31.4 tok/s | 3358 ms | 128K |
| Coding | A | Runs well | 31.4 tok/s | 6157 ms | 128K |
| Agentic Coding | A | Runs well | 31.4 tok/s | 8955 ms | 128K |
| Reasoning | A | Runs well | 31.4 tok/s | 7276 ms | 128K |
| RAG | A | Runs well | 31.4 tok/s | 11194 ms | 128K |
Inference speed
GPT-OSS 20B inference speed — tokens per second by GPU & Mac
Estimated decode speed (tokens/sec) for GPT-OSS 20B at Q4_K_M across popular GPUs and Apple Silicon, using the fastest local runtime per device. Fastest is RTX 5090 32GB at ~231 tok/s. Speed is memory-bandwidth bound, so cards that fit the whole model in VRAM run far faster than ones that offload to system RAM.
| GPU / Mac | Memory | Quant | Speed (tok/s) | Fits? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 32 GB | Q4_K_M | 230.5 | Fits | |
| 24 GB | Q4_K_M | 147.1 | Fits | |
RX 7900 XTX 24GB | 24 GB | Q4_K_M | 132.7 | Fits |
| 24 GB | Q4_K_M | 125.8 | Fits | |
Mac Studio M3 Ultra 256GB | 256 GB | Q4_K_M | 106.9 | Fits |
Mac Studio M2 Ultra 128GB | 128 GB | Q4_K_M | 89.1 | Fits |
Mac Studio M1 Ultra 128GB | 128 GB | Q4_K_M | 84.5 | Fits |
| 16 GB | Q4_K_M | 68.2 | Heavy offload | |
MacBook Pro M4 Max 128GB | 128 GB | Q4_K_M | 66.0 | Fits |
MacBook Pro M4 Max 64GB | 64 GB | Q4_K_M | 66.0 | Fits |
MacBook Pro M3 Max 64GB | 64 GB | Q4_K_M | 46.1 | Fits |
MacBook Pro M1 Max 64GB | 64 GB | Q4_K_M | 42.2 | Fits |
MacBook Pro M4 Pro 48GB | 48 GB | Q4_K_M | 40.4 | Fits |
| 12 GB | Q4_K_M | 24.2 | Too big | |
| 12 GB | Q4_K_M | 15.2 | Too big | |
| 8 GB | Q4_K_M | 5.7 | Too big |
Estimates for single-stream decoding at Q4_K_M; real tokens/sec varies with prompt length, context, batch size, and runtime build. Prompt processing (prefill) is faster than the decode figures shown here.
Quantization options
How GPT-OSS 20B (21B params) fits at each quantization level on NVIDIA DGX Spark 128GB (92.2 GB usable).
| Quant | Bits | VRAM | Quality | Fit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Q2_K | 2 | 8.2 GB | Low | A78 |
Q3_K_S | 3 | 10.3 GB | Low | A78 |
NVFP4 | 4 | 11.8 GB | Medium | A78 |
Q4_K_M | 4 | 12.8 GB | Medium | A78 |
Q5_K_M | 5 | 15.1 GB | High | A79 |
Q6_K | 6 | 17.2 GB | High | A79 |
Q8_0 | 8 | 22.5 GB | Very High | A80 |
F16Best for your GPU | 16 | 43.1 GB | Maximum | A84 |
Get started
Copy-paste commands to run GPT-OSS 20B on your machine.
Run
ollama run gpt-ossYour hardware
More models your NVIDIA DGX Spark 128GB can run
| Model | Params | Grade | Decode | Capabilities |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 123B | S | 2.4 tok/s | ||
| 30.5B | S | 24.8 tok/s | ||
| 27B | A | 10.7 tok/s | ||
| 27B | A | 10.8 tok/s | ||
| 122B | S | 6.6 tok/s |
Frequently asked questions
Can NVIDIA DGX Spark 128GB run GPT-OSS 20B?
Yes, NVIDIA DGX Spark 128GB can run GPT-OSS 20B with a A grade (Runs well). Expected decode speed: 31.4 tok/s.
How much VRAM does GPT-OSS 20B need?
GPT-OSS 20B (21B parameters) requires approximately 29.5 GB of memory with Q4_K_M quantization.
What is the best quantization for GPT-OSS 20B?
The recommended quantization for GPT-OSS 20B is Q4_K_M, which balances quality and memory efficiency.
What speed will GPT-OSS 20B run at on NVIDIA DGX Spark 128GB?
On NVIDIA DGX Spark 128GB, GPT-OSS 20B achieves approximately 31.4 tokens per second decode speed with a time-to-first-token of 6157ms using Q4_K_M quantization.
Can NVIDIA DGX Spark 128GB run GPT-OSS 20B for coding?
For coding workloads, GPT-OSS 20B on NVIDIA DGX Spark 128GB receives a A grade with 31.4 tok/s and 128K context.
What context window can GPT-OSS 20B use on NVIDIA DGX Spark 128GB?
On NVIDIA DGX Spark 128GB, GPT-OSS 20B can safely use up to 128K tokens of context. The model's official context limit is 128K, but available memory constrains the safe maximum.
Is unified memory on NVIDIA DGX Spark 128GB as fast as VRAM for GPT-OSS 20B?
Not always. NVIDIA DGX Spark 128GB can often fit larger models thanks to unified memory, but a discrete GPU with dedicated high-bandwidth VRAM may still decode faster once the model fits. For this combination, the important distinction is capacity versus sustained throughput.
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