Can a Desktop CPU, DDR5 dual-channel (32GB) run Phi-4 14B?

Just about — Phi-4 14B runs at Q2_K (5.6 GB) at about 5–7 tok/s on a Desktop CPU, DDR5 dual-channel (32GB).

How much memory does Phi-4 14B need?

Phi-4 14B needs about 7.2 GB at 4K context at its smallest quantization. A Desktop CPU, DDR5 dual-channel (32GB) has 32.0 GB.

Tight fit: Phi-4 14B on a Desktop CPU, DDR5 dual-channel (32GB) at Q2_K

Yes, but it's tight.

Tight / slow

Best fit: Phi-4 14B at Q2_K · 5.6 GB weights · 5–7 tok/s on a Desktop CPU, DDR5 dual-channel (32GB).

Arena Text Overall · style-controlled

1,256Q2_K untested

phi-4 · published configuration reference · Q2_K not tested

Arena Text Overall (style-controlled), exact published entry phi-4, 2026-10-08: reference rating 1,256.3. Published confidence bounds 1,251.7–1,260.9. 24,126 votes. Published phi-4 configuration reference. Reasoning mode is not disclosed by the Arena dataset. Tested precision, runtime and sampling settings are not disclosed in this dataset. Selected Q2_K has not been measured by this Arena entry. No quantization quality adjustment is applied.

Snapshot published 2026-10-08 · snapshot imported 2026-10-11 UTC · validated last-good data · manual refresh

Arena leaderboard dataset · Arena / lmarena-ai, Arena Leaderboard Dataset (CC BY 4.0). Selected Text Overall style-controlled rows; field names adapted, ratings unchanged. · dataset CC BY 4.0 · revision e16f90232986

Total memory at 4K context: 7.2 GB; Weights + KV cache + runtime overhead
Estimated generation: 5–7 tok/s
Estimated first token: ~3m

Every quantization on this machine

On small screens, each quant lists every metric below its name. On wider screens, scroll sideways for total memory, speed and fit. Keyboard: focus the table, then use the arrow keys. Quant names stay visible.

Phi-4 14B quantizations on Desktop CPU, DDR5 dual-channel (32GB), estimated at 4K context. Weights and total memory are shown separately.
Quant	Weights	Total memory	Speed	Fit
Q2_K	5.6 GB	7.2 GB	5–7 tok/s	Tight / slow
Q3_K_M	7.2 GB	8.8 GB	4–6 tok/s	Tight / slow
Q4_K_M	8.9 GB	10.5 GB	3–5 tok/s	Tight / slow
Q5_K_M	10.4 GB	12.0 GB	3–4 tok/s	Tight / slow
Q6_K	12.0 GB	13.7 GB	2–4 tok/s	Tight / slow
Q8_0	15.6 GB	17.2 GB	2–3 tok/s	Tight / slow
FP16	29.3 GB	31.0 GB	— not resident	Won't fit

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