NVIDIA L4 vs NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation), AI & Machine Learning Comparison
NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation) wins 5 of 10 benchmarks, averaging 28.4% faster.
Both cards were measured first-party on our bench, same suite, same test rig.
What the numbers say
The gap is widest in Qwen2.5-Coder 14B, where NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation) leads by 32% (27.46 vs 36.34 tok/s); the closest fight is Wan 2.2 5B (720p) (20% apart); VRAM decides part of this one: NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation) runs 138 of our 12 AI workloads while the other card runs 6, models that don't fit score zero.
Benchmark results head-to-head
| Benchmark | NVIDIA L4 | NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation) | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Qwen3-4B tok/s | 84 | 110.18 | -24% |
| Llama 3.1 8B tok/s | 50.45 | 66.59 | -24% |
| Qwen2.5-Coder 14B tok/s | 27.46 | 36.34 | -24% |
| Qwen3-32B tok/s | 12.42 | 0 | n/a |
| Llama 3.3 70B tok/s | 0 | 0 | n/a |
| Stable Diffusion XL images/min | 5.18 | 6.56 | -21% |
| FLUX.1 dev images/min | 0 | 0 | n/a |
| FLUX.1 Kontext dev images/min | 0 | 0 | n/a |
| Qwen-Image-Edit images/min | 0 | 0 | n/a |
| Wan 2.2 5B (720p) frames/s | 0.15 | 0.18 | -17% |
Whole-job comparison
How long each card takes to finish a complete pipeline, not just one model. NVIDIA L4 is faster on 0 of 1; NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation) on 1.
| Workflow | NVIDIA L4 | NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation) | Difference | Cost per run |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full codebase review | 36.4 min | 27.5 min | NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation) 1.32x faster | $0.267 vs $0.092 |
Renting by the hour, NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation) finishes 1 of 1 cheaper. The quicker card is not automatically the cheaper way to get the work done.
Cost to rent
| Card | Per hour |
|---|---|
| NVIDIA L4 | $0.440 |
| NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation) | $0.200 |
NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation) is 2.20x cheaper per hour. Cheapest on-demand rate we see across RunPod and Vast.
Specifications compared
| NVIDIA L4 | NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation) | |
|---|---|---|
| VRAM | 24GB | 20GB |
| Architecture | Ada Lovelace | Ada Lovelace |
| Memory bandwidth | 300 GB/s | 360 GB/s |
| Boost clock | 2,040 MHz | 2,175 MHz |
| TDP | 72 W | 130 W |
| Launch MSRP | $2,500 | $1,250 |
| Release | 2023-03-21 | 2023-08-09 |
FAQ
- Which is better for ai & machine learning: NVIDIA L4 or NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation)?
- NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation) performs better for ai & machine learning, winning 5 of 10 benchmarks in our suite with an average 28.4% advantage.
- What are the main hardware differences between NVIDIA L4 and NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation)?
- NVIDIA L4 has 24GB VRAM and a 72W TDP, while NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation) has 20GB VRAM and a 130W TDP.
- Does VRAM matter more than speed between NVIDIA L4 and NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation)?
- For AI, yes, NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation) fits 19 more of our 12 workloads than NVIDIA L4. A model that exceeds VRAM doesn't run slower, it doesn't run at all, so the card that fits the model wins that workload outright.
- Where is the biggest performance difference between NVIDIA L4 and NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation)?
- Qwen2.5-Coder 14B: NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation) leads by roughly 32% (27.46 vs 36.34 tok/s) in our testing.
NVIDIA L4 full review · NVIDIA RTX 4000 (Ada Generation) full review · All AI & Machine Learning rankings