Can Gemma 4 31B run on RTX 5080 Laptop 16GB?

NO — Won't Fit

F0Won't run

○Estimated from fit model

Gemma 4 31B needs ~36.2 GB but RTX 5080 Laptop 16GB only has 16.0 GB. Try a smaller quantization or lighter model.

Runtime: OllamaCapacity: No fitBandwidth: MediumStack: 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) — 36.2 GB, exceeds 16.0 GB available

36.2 GB required16.0 GB available

226% VRAM needed

20.2 GB over capacity — needs offload or smaller quantization

Fit status

Too heavy

Decode

5.4 tok/s

TTFT

35682 ms

Safe context

Memory

36.2 GB / 16.0 GB

Offload

60%

Memory breakdown

Weights18.7 GB

KV Cache14.6 GB

Runtime1.2 GB

Headroom1.6 GB

See how fast it feels

With memory offload — actual speed may be lower

See how fast it feelsGemma 4 31B on RTX 5080 Laptop 16GB
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: 5.4 tok/s decode · 35.7s TTFT (warm) · 14 tok/s prefill

What limits this setup

Usable VRAM is the main blocker for this model.

Not enough usable memory

The model needs 36.2 GB, but this setup only exposes 16.0 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	7.8 tok/s	13465 ms	4K
Coding	F	Too heavy	5.4 tok/s	35682 ms	4K
Agentic Coding	F	Too heavy	5.4 tok/s	51901 ms	4K
Reasoning	F	Too heavy	5.4 tok/s	42170 ms	4K
RAG	F	Too heavy	5.4 tok/s	64877 ms	4K

Quantization options

How Gemma 4 31B (30.700000762939453B params) fits at each quantization level on RTX 5080 Laptop 16GB (16.0 GB usable).

Quant	Bits	VRAM	Quality	Fit
Q2_K	2	12.0 GB	Low	F0
Q3_K_S	3	15.0 GB	Low	F0
NVFP4	4	17.2 GB	Medium	F0
Q4_K_M	4	18.7 GB	Medium	F0
Q5_K_M	5	22.1 GB	High	F0
Q6_K	6	25.2 GB	High	F0
Q8_0	8	32.8 GB	Very High	F0
F16	16	62.9 GB	Maximum	F0

Upgrade options

Hardware that runs Gemma 4 31B well

👁 NVIDIA
RTX 5090 32GBBest value

32 GB VRAM (+16)1792 GB/s (+1024)

Makes the model fit on the accelerator instead of staying completely out of reach.36.7 tok/s decode

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

Raises estimated decode speed by about 580%.

~$1,999 MSRP

👁 NVIDIA
RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell 32GBNVIDIA upgrade

32 GB VRAM (+16)896 GB/s (+128)

Makes the model fit on the accelerator instead of staying completely out of reach.23 tok/s decode

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

Raises estimated decode speed by about 326%.

~$2,499 MSRP

👁 NVIDIA
RTX A6000 48GBBudget pick

48 GB VRAM (+32)

Makes the model fit on the accelerator instead of staying completely out of reach.32.7 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.

~$4,650 MSRP

Frequently asked questions

See all results for RTX 5080 Laptop 16GB See all hardware for Gemma 4 31B

URL: https://willitrunai.com/can-run/gemma-4-31b-on-rtx-5080-laptop-16gb

⇱ Gemma 4 31B on RTX 5080 Laptop 16GB? No — Alternatives

Can Gemma 4 31B run on RTX 5080 Laptop 16GB?

NO — Won't Fit

Choose the run profile you care about

Memory breakdown

See how fast it feels

What limits this setup

Best improvement path

Performance by workload

Quantization options

Hardware that runs Gemma 4 31B well

Frequently asked questions