Skip to content
localmodel.run

Text model · Granite

Granite 4.2 30B: RAM and VRAM requirements

Granite 4.2 30B needs about 18.6 GB to run at Q4_K_M (the Q4_K_M GGUF file is ~16.5 GB to download; KV cache and overhead add the rest), or about 31.1 GB at Q8_0. The lightest hardware that runs it is Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 (24GB).

Granite family · 30B params · released 2026-08-25.

Shopping for hardware? See what runs Granite 4.2 30B →

License Apache-2.0 · Commercial OK ↓ 37K/mo ♥ 127 on HuggingFace
Q4_K_M GGUF
16.5 GB
Q8_0 GGUF
28.98 GB
Memory @ Q4 (4k)
~18.6 GB
Context
128 k

Q4_K_M and Q8_0 are GGUF download (file) sizes. Memory @ Q4 includes the KV cache and overhead, so it runs larger than the file on disk.

Will it run on your device?

Granite 4.2 30B runs on 13 of 43 tracked devices at Q4_K_M.

13 run well 0 tight fit 30 too small
Fit check Q4_K_M
No, not enough memory
needs 18.6 GB usable 10.5 GB
See the full breakdown

Memory breakdown

Weights (Q4_K_M)16.5 GB
+
KV cache (4k)1.3 GB
+
Overhead0.8 GB
=
Total18.6 GB

How context length changes it

4k context ~18.6 GB 32k context ~27.8 GB 128k context ~59.4 GB

Longer context grows the KV cache quickly: Granite 4.2 30B needs ~18.6 GB at 4k but ~59.4 GB at 128k, which can push it past a device that fits it at a short context.

Speed drops too: every token re-reads the KV cache, so at 128k context Granite 4.2 30B generates at roughly ~28% of its short-context speed. How this is estimated.

Quantization sizes

GGUF quantson disk
Quantization Size on disk
Q2_K 12.6 GB est
Q3_K_M 14.7 GB est
Q4_K_M (default) 16.5 GB
Q5_K_M 21.4 GB est
Q6_K 24.6 GB est
Q8_0 28.98 GB
FP16 60 GB est

Lower quant = smaller and faster, slightly lower quality. Q4_K_M is the common default.

Run it

Ollama
$ ollama run granite4.2:30b
llama.cpp
$ llama-cli -hf ibm-granite/granite-4.2-30b-GGUF:Q4_K_M
LM Studio
$ lms get ibm-granite/granite-4.2-30b-GGUF

Which devices can run Granite 4.2 30B?

NVIDIA GPUs

Apple Silicon Macs

RAM-only laptops

iPhone & iPad

Android

AMD GPUs

Same job, different size

Pick by what fits your memory: step down to free up VRAM, or step up if you have headroom.

Next size down Granite 4.1 30B 28.9B Next size up Qwen3 30B-A3B 30.5B

Similar models

Head-to-head

FAQ

How much VRAM or RAM does Granite 4.2 30B need?

At Q4_K_M, Granite 4.2 30B needs about 18.6 GB (weights ~16.5 GB + KV cache + overhead) at a 4k context. At Q8_0 budget ~31.1 GB.

What is the Q4_K_M GGUF file size of Granite 4.2 30B?

The Q4_K_M GGUF file is about 16.5 GB to download, and the Q8_0 GGUF is about 28.98 GB. That is the weights file on disk; to run it you also need room for the KV cache and overhead, so budget ~18.6 GB of memory at Q4_K_M.

Can Granite 4.2 30B run on a laptop?

Granite 4.2 30B is large; you need a 24 GB+ GPU or a 32-48 GB Mac at Q4_K_M.

Can I use Granite 4.2 30B commercially?

Yes. Granite 4.2 30B is licensed Apache-2.0, which permits commercial use.

Understand the numbers

Short guides to the ideas behind Granite 4.2 30B's memory and quant figures.

IBM's flagship dense reasoning model: 30B parameters, 128K native context with a documented 512K extension, and Apache-2.0. Q4_K_M and Q8_0 are exact files from IBM's GGUF repository; the default Ollama tag has the Q4_K_M model-layer size.

Sources

Catalog updated 2026-10-05. Memory figures are estimates. See methodology.