Gemma 3 4B IT vs Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
Gemma 3 4B IT leads llmrun Score 64.0 to 58.0 (ranges overlap); both fit 24 GB at Q4_K_M; Llama 3.2 1B Instruct is 3.5× faster on RTX 4090 (~799 vs ~231 tok/s).
Model B · Meta
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct1.2B · 128K context · llama3.2 · Sep 2024
Choose Gemma 3 4B IT if you want…
Higher llmrun Score
64.0 vs 58.0, ranges overlap
Also does vision
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct doesn't list it
Newer release
Feb 2025 vs Sep 2024
Choose Llama 3.2 1B Instruct if you want…
3.5× faster on RTX 4090
~799 vs ~231 tok/s
Lighter on memory
0.8 vs 2.8 GB at Q4_K_M
Also does chat, function-calling
Gemma 3 4B IT doesn't list it
On your hardware
Each model at its default quant (Q4_K_M), a smaller one when it must. Estimates, ±20%.
8 GB
RTX 4060 · 8 GB tier
Gemma 3 4B IT
Q4_K_M · ~62 tok/s
5 GB · up to 32K
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
Q4_K_M · ~216 tok/s
2.3 GB · up to 64Kfaster
12 GB
RTX 3060 12GB · 12 GB tier
Gemma 3 4B IT
Q4_K_M · ~82 tok/s
5 GB · up to 32K
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
Q4_K_M · ~285 tok/s
2.3 GB · up to 64Kfaster
16 GB
RTX 5060 Ti 16GB · 16 GB tier
Gemma 3 4B IT
Q4_K_M · ~103 tok/s
5 GB · up to 32K
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
Q4_K_M · ~355 tok/s
2.3 GB · up to 128Kfaster
24 GBreference
RTX 4090 · 24 GB tier
Gemma 3 4B IT
Q4_K_M · ~231 tok/s
5 GB · up to 32K
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
Q4_K_M · ~799 tok/s
2.3 GB · up to 128Kfaster
32 GB
RTX 5090 · 32 GB tier
Gemma 3 4B IT
Q4_K_M · ~410 tok/s
5 GB · up to 32K
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
Q4_K_M · ~1421 tok/s
2.3 GB · up to 128Kfaster
48 GB
RTX A6000 · 48 GB tier
Gemma 3 4B IT
Q4_K_M · ~176 tok/s
5 GB · up to 32K
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
Q4_K_M · ~609 tok/s
2.3 GB · up to 128Kfaster
Mac 32 GB
Mac Mini M4 · Macs
Gemma 3 4B IT
Q4_K_M · ~30 tok/s
5 GB · up to 32K
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
Q4_K_M · ~102 tok/s
2.3 GB · up to 128Kfaster
Mac 64 GB
Mac Studio M4 Max · Macs
Gemma 3 4B IT
Q4_K_M · ~135 tok/s
5 GB · up to 32K
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
Q4_K_M · ~466 tok/s
2.3 GB · up to 128Kfaster
Mac 128 GB
Mac Studio M4 Max · Macs
Gemma 3 4B IT
Q4_K_M · ~135 tok/s
5 GB · up to 32K
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
Q4_K_M · ~466 tok/s
2.3 GB · up to 128Kfaster
Reference GPU: RTX 4090. Tinted cell = the better pick on that machine (fits, more headroom, or at least 10% faster).
Overall
Gemma 3 4B IT
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
Reasoning
Gemma 3 4B IT
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
no data
Gemma 3 4B IT · #87 of 92 open models · #30 of 34 that fit 24 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct · #90 of 92 open models · #33 of 34 that fit 24 GB
Benchmarks
4 shared boards: Gemma 3 4B IT leads 2, Llama 3.2 1B Instruct leads 1 · Benchmarks imported Oct 2026
Gemma 3 4B IT
23.2%#92/97 open
IndependentEpoch AI · Mar 2025
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
23.9%#91/97 open
IndependentEpoch AI · Sep 2024
Gemma 3 4B IT
1303.3#104/186 open
ArenaLMArena · Oct 2026
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
1111.1#180/186 open
ArenaLMArena · Oct 2026
Gemma 3 4B IT
7.5%#63/85 open
IndependentEpoch AI · Mar 2025
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.6%#82/85 open
IndependentEpoch AI · Sep 2024
Gemma 3 4B IT
0.0%#51/67 open
IndependentEpoch AI · Mar 2025
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.0%#58/67 open
IndependentEpoch AI · Sep 2024
VRAM by quantization
Memory to load the model and 2K context; below it, the total at 32K and 128K context. Lighter side in bold.
Q2_K
Gemma 3 4B IT
2.0 GB1.7 GB file
32K 6.6 GB · 128K 21.4 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.6 GB0.6 GB file
32K 3.8 GB · 128K 14.3 GB
Q3_K_S
Gemma 3 4B IT
2.1 GB1.9 GB file
32K 6.7 GB · 128K 21.5 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.6 GB0.6 GB file
32K 3.9 GB · 128K 14.3 GB
Q3_K_M
Gemma 3 4B IT
2.3 GB2.1 GB file
32K 6.9 GB · 128K 21.7 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.7 GB0.7 GB file
32K 3.9 GB · 128K 14.4 GB
Q4_0
Gemma 3 4B IT
2.4 GB2.4 GB file
32K 7.0 GB · 128K 21.8 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.7 GB0.8 GB file
32K 3.9 GB · 128K 14.4 GB
Q4_K_M
Gemma 3 4B IT
2.8 GB2.5 GB file
32K 7.5 GB · 128K 22.3 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.8 GB0.8 GB file
32K 4.1 GB · 128K 14.5 GB
Q5_K_M
Gemma 3 4B IT
3.4 GB2.8 GB file
32K 8.0 GB · 128K 22.8 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
1.0 GB0.9 GB file
32K 4.2 GB · 128K 14.7 GB
Q6_K
Gemma 3 4B IT
3.9 GB3.2 GB file
32K 8.5 GB · 128K 23.3 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
1.1 GB1.0 GB file
32K 4.4 GB · 128K 14.8 GB
Q8_0
Gemma 3 4B IT
4.7 GB4.1 GB file
32K 9.4 GB · 128K 24.1 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
1.4 GB1.3 GB file
32K 4.6 GB · 128K 15.1 GB
20 more quants
IQ2_XXS
Gemma 3 4B IT
1.3 GB1.3 GB file
32K 5.9 GB · 128K 20.7 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.4 GB0.5 GB file
32K 3.6 GB · 128K 14.1 GB
IQ2_XS
Gemma 3 4B IT
1.4 GB1.4 GB file
32K 6.0 GB · 128K 20.8 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.4 GB0.5 GB file
32K 3.7 GB · 128K 14.1 GB
IQ2_S
Gemma 3 4B IT
1.5 GB1.4 GB file
32K 6.1 GB · 128K 20.9 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
not listed
IQ2_M
Gemma 3 4B IT
1.6 GB1.6 GB file
32K 6.2 GB · 128K 21.0 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.5 GB0.5 GB file
32K 3.7 GB · 128K 14.2 GB
IQ3_XXS
Gemma 3 4B IT
1.8 GB1.7 GB file
32K 6.5 GB · 128K 21.2 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.5 GB0.6 GB file
32K 3.8 GB · 128K 14.2 GB
Q2_K_S
Gemma 3 4B IT
1.9 GB1.6 GB file
32K 6.5 GB · 128K 21.3 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
not listed
IQ3_XS
Gemma 3 4B IT
2.0 GB1.9 GB file
32K 6.6 GB · 128K 21.4 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.6 GB0.6 GB file
32K 3.8 GB · 128K 14.3 GB
IQ3_S
Gemma 3 4B IT
2.0 GB1.9 GB file
32K 6.6 GB · 128K 21.4 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
not listed
IQ3_M
Gemma 3 4B IT
2.1 GB2.0 GB file
32K 6.8 GB · 128K 21.5 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.6 GB0.7 GB file
32K 3.9 GB · 128K 14.3 GB
Q3_K_L
Gemma 3 4B IT
2.4 GB2.2 GB file
32K 7.0 GB · 128K 21.8 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.7 GB0.7 GB file
32K 4.0 GB · 128K 14.4 GB
IQ4_XS
Gemma 3 4B IT
2.5 GB2.3 GB file
32K 7.2 GB · 128K 22.0 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.7 GB0.7 GB file
32K 4.0 GB · 128K 14.4 GB
IQ4_NL
Gemma 3 4B IT
2.7 GB2.4 GB file
32K 7.3 GB · 128K 22.1 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.8 GB0.8 GB file
32K 4.0 GB · 128K 14.5 GB
Q4_1
Gemma 3 4B IT
2.7 GB2.6 GB file
32K 7.3 GB · 128K 22.1 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.8 GB0.8 GB file
32K 4.0 GB · 128K 14.5 GB
Q4_K_S
Gemma 3 4B IT
2.7 GB2.4 GB file
32K 7.3 GB · 128K 22.1 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.8 GB0.8 GB file
32K 4.0 GB · 128K 14.5 GB
Q4_K_L
Gemma 3 4B IT
2.9 GB2.7 GB file
32K 7.5 GB · 128K 22.3 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.8 GB0.9 GB file
32K 4.1 GB · 128K 14.5 GB
Q5_0
Gemma 3 4B IT
3.0 GB2.8 GB file
32K 7.6 GB · 128K 22.4 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.9 GB0.9 GB file
32K 4.1 GB · 128K 14.5 GB
Q5_1
Gemma 3 4B IT
not listed
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.9 GB1.0 GB file
32K 4.2 GB · 128K 14.6 GB
Q5_K_S
Gemma 3 4B IT
3.3 GB2.8 GB file
32K 7.9 GB · 128K 22.7 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
0.9 GB0.9 GB file
32K 4.2 GB · 128K 14.6 GB
Q5_K_L
Gemma 3 4B IT
3.4 GB3.0 GB file
32K 8.1 GB · 128K 22.8 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
1.0 GB1.0 GB file
32K 4.3 GB · 128K 14.7 GB
BF16
Gemma 3 4B IT
9.5 GB7.8 GB file
32K 14.1 GB · 128K 28.9 GB
Llama 3.2 1B Instruct
2.7 GB2.5 GB file
32K 6.0 GB · 128K 16.4 GB
Gemma 3 4B IT
Ollama · Q4_K_M
ollama run hf.co/MaziyarPanahi/gemma-3-4b-it-GGUF:Q4_K_MLlama 3.2 1B Instruct
Ollama · Q4_K_M
ollama run hf.co/bartowski/Llama-3.2-1B-Instruct-GGUF:Q4_K_M| Spec | Gemma 3 4B IT | Llama 3.2 1B Instruct |
|---|---|---|
| Publisher | Meta | |
| Parameters | 4.3B | 1.2B |
| Context | — | 128K tokens |
| Modalities | Vision | Chat, Function-calling |
| License | Gemma Terms | llama3.2 |
| Released | Feb 2025 | Sep 2024 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is better, Gemma 3 4B IT or Llama 3.2 1B Instruct?
Gemma 3 4B IT leads llmrun Score 64.0 to 58.0 (ranges overlap); both fit 24 GB at Q4_K_M; Llama 3.2 1B Instruct is 3.5× faster on RTX 4090 (~799 vs ~231 tok/s). Choose Gemma 3 4B IT for higher llmrun Score and also does vision; choose Llama 3.2 1B Instruct for 3.5× faster on RTX 4090 and lighter on memory.
Which needs less VRAM, Gemma 3 4B IT or Llama 3.2 1B Instruct?
At Q4_K_M, Gemma 3 4B IT requires 2.8 GB while Llama 3.2 1B Instruct needs 0.8 GB, making Llama 3.2 1B Instruct the easier model to run on your local setup.
Which is faster on RTX 4090?
Estimated decode speed on RTX 4090 is about 231 tok/s for Gemma 3 4B IT (Q4_K_M) and 799 tok/s for Llama 3.2 1B Instruct (Q4_K_M), so Llama 3.2 1B Instruct is faster. Estimates, ±20%.
Can I run Gemma 3 4B IT or Llama 3.2 1B Instruct on a 16 GB GPU?
Gemma 3 4B IT fits at Q4_K_M; Llama 3.2 1B Instruct fits at Q4_K_M.