DeepSeek V3.2 GPU requirements: 343 GB at 4-bit, 1.37 TB at BF16
DeepSeek V3.2 needs 1.37 TB of GPU memory for its weights at BF16, 690 GB at FP8 and 343 GB at 4-bit, plus 2.3 GB of KV cache for a 32K context. The cheapest node that runs it here is 8× A40 at 4-bit, for $0.48 an hour on spot.
Weights plus a 32K 16-bit KV cache, with 10% of the node's memory kept free. Billed per minute.
- Parameters
- 671B37B active per token
- Weights, 4-bit
- 343 GBBF16: 1.37 TB
- KV cache, 32K
- 2.3 GBOne sequence, 16-bit cache
- Context window
- 160KNative
How much VRAM DeepSeek V3.2 needs, format by format.
Weights are parameters × bytes per parameter, except the native FP8 row, which is the size of the published checkpoint. Each context column adds the KV cache of one sequence of that length.
| Format | Weights | + 8Kcontext | + 32Kcontext | + 128Kcontext | + 160Kcontext | Cheapest node, 32K |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BF16Published weights, fine-tuning | 1.37 TB | 1.37 TB | 1.37 TB | 1.38 TB | 1.38 TB | 8× MI300X · $7.92/h |
| FP8 (native)Hopper, Ada, Blackwell, MI300 | 690 GB | 690 GB | 692 GB | 699 GB | 701 GB | 4× MI325X · $4.36/h |
| 4-bitAWQ, GPTQ, GGUF Q4 | 343 GB | 343 GB | 345 GB | 352 GB | 354 GB | 8× A40 · $0.48/h |
The serving engine adds its own buffers, and an 8-bit KV cache halves the context columns. We keep 10% of a node's memory free when we say a model fits. Speed is a separate question: it follows memory bandwidth and, for a mixture of experts, the active parameters.
GPUs that run DeepSeek V3.2, cheapest first.
For each format, the smallest node of each GPU model that holds the weights and a 32K context, sorted by spot price. One row per GPU model; larger nodes of the same GPU work too.
| Format | GPU | GPU memory | Spot | On-demand | 730 h spot | Action |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4-bit | 8× A40Ampere · 345 GB needed | 384 GB | $0.48 | $0.72 | $350.40 | Deploy |
| 4-bit | 8× L40Ada Lovelace · 345 GB needed | 384 GB | $0.72 | $1.52 | $525.60 | Deploy |
| 4-bit | 8× A100 PCIe 80GBAmpere · 345 GB needed | 640 GB | $0.72 | $1.52 | $525.60 | Deploy |
| 4-bit | 4× RTX PRO 6000 BlackwellBlackwell · 345 GB needed | 384 GB | $0.76 | $1.56 | $554.80 | Deploy |
| FP8 (native) | 4× MI325XCDNA 3 · 692 GB needed | 1024 GB | $4.36 | $6.36 | $3,182.80 | Deploy |
| FP8 (native) | 8× H200 NVLHopper · 692 GB needed | 1128 GB | $5.52 | $7.92 | $4,029.60 | Deploy |
| FP8 (native) | 8× H200 SXMHopper · 692 GB needed | 1128 GB | $6.00 | $8.72 | $4,380.00 | Deploy |
| FP8 (native) | 8× MI300XCDNA 3 · 692 GB needed | 1536 GB | $7.92 | $11.60 | $5,781.60 | Deploy |
| BF16 | 8× MI300XCDNA 3 · 1.37 TB needed | 1536 GB | $7.92 | $11.60 | $5,781.60 | Deploy |
| BF16 | 8× MI325XCDNA 3 · 1.37 TB needed | 2048 GB | $8.72 | $12.72 | $6,365.60 | Deploy |
Spot capacity can be reclaimed with a 2-minute notice; for a live endpoint, use on-demand. How spot works · serving a language model.
What a long context costs in memory.
Multi-head latent attention: one compressed 576-value vector per token and layer, 61 layers.
| Context | KV cache, 1 sequence | 8 sequences |
|---|---|---|
| 8K tokens | 0.58 GB | 4.61 GB |
| 32K tokens | 2.3 GB | 18.4 GB |
| 128K tokens | 9.21 GB | 73.7 GB |
| 160K tokens | 11.5 GB | 92.1 GB |
Serving several users
KV cacheEvery concurrent request keeps its own cache, so memory for context grows with users × context length. A server batching 8 requests of 32K needs eight times the single-sequence figure — 18.4 GB here.
- Recommended node8× A40
- Weights at 4-bit343 GB
- Context that fits, 1 sequence41K
Paged attention (vLLM, SGLang) allocates the cache in blocks as requests grow, so a node holds more short requests than the worst case suggests.
DeepSeek V3.2, as published.
- Developer
- DeepSeekV3 architecture with DeepSeek Sparse Attention
- Parameters
- 671B total, 37B active per token685B in the published checkpoint (embedding tables, prediction or vision modules included); memory figures use this count
- Architecture
- Mixture of experts, 61 layersMulti-head latent attention: one compressed 576-value vector per token and layer, 61 layers
- Context window
- 163,840 tokensAs set in the published configuration
- Published format
- FP8, 690 GB checkpoint
- Licence
- MIT
- Released
- 1 December 2025
- Source
- deepseek-ai/DeepSeek-V3.2config.json read 26 October 2026
Serve it with vLLM
template: vLLMOn 8× A40, from the instance terminal:
$ vllm serve deepseek-ai/DeepSeek-V3.2 \ --tensor-parallel-size 8 \ --max-model-len 32768
Very recent architectures need a recent vLLM; the model card gives the minimum version and any extra flags.
DeepSeek V3.2 on a GPU — the questions that come up
How much VRAM does DeepSeek V3.2 need?
For the weights alone: 1.37 TB at BF16, 690 GB at FP8 and 343 GB at 4-bit. Add 2.3 GB of KV cache for one 32K-token context, or 11.5 GB at the full 160K window, and keep about 10% of the memory free for activations.
Can DeepSeek V3.2 run on a single GPU?
One RTX 4090 (24 GB): no. One RTX 5090 (32 GB): no. One H100 SXM (80 GB): no. One H200 SXM (141 GB): no. One B200 SXM (180 GB): no. Those answers assume a 32K context and the widest format that still fits.
What is the cheapest way to run DeepSeek V3.2?
Here, 8× A40 at 4-bit: $0.48 per hour on spot and $0.72 on-demand, billed per minute — $350.40 for a 730-hour month on spot. That node has 384 GB of GPU memory for the 345 GB this setup needs.
Does DeepSeek V3.2 need less memory because only 37B parameters are active?
No. A mixture-of-experts model routes each token through a few experts, but every expert has to be resident in GPU memory, so the memory bill follows the 671B total. What the 37B active parameters change is the work per token: generation reads far less of the weights each step than a dense model of the same size would, which is why it is fast for its size.
Which format should I run it in?
DeepSeek V3.2 is published in FP8, a 690 GB checkpoint — the format its developers serve it in, so it is the safe default. BF16 keeps the published weights untouched and is the format for fine-tuning. FP8 halves the memory and runs in hardware on Hopper, Ada, Blackwell and MI300-class GPUs. 4-bit quantisation (AWQ, GPTQ, GGUF) quarters it, at a quality cost that is larger on small models than on big ones; check it against your own evaluation before relying on it.
How do I deploy it?
Pick the node in the table above and launch it with the vLLM template; the model downloads from Hugging Face (deepseek-ai/DeepSeek-V3.2) on first start. Spread the weights over the node with --tensor-parallel-size equal to the GPU count, and set --max-model-len to the context you need. New architectures need a recent vLLM: check the model card for the minimum version.
Sizing another model? GPU requirements for 64 open models · serving a language model · fine-tuning.
DeepSeek V3.2 on 8× A40 for $0.48 an hour.
Launch the node with the vLLM template, point it at deepseek-ai/DeepSeek-V3.2, stop it when you are done. Prepaid, billed by the minute.
Billed per minute from the moment the instance is reachable. Minimum credit $30, no subscription.