Evidence: benchmark results vendor-reported
LFM3 1.7B — VRAM, speed & local setup
Written by Jakub Rusinowski · Last updated
A 1.7B edge model tuned for agent harnesses, with a 256K context. Of its 24 layers, 13 are gated short convolutions with no KV cache, 5 use a 256-token sliding window and 6 use global attention. Ollama carries it as lfm3:1.7b (1.1 GB at Q4_K_M) and llama.cpp has loaded it since 27 October 2026.
LFM3 1.7B needs about 2 GB of VRAM at Q4_K_M — quantized weights plus framework overhead, before any KV cache. On Apple Silicon that figure comes out of unified memory.
VRAM and speed by quantization
Quoted against NVIDIA RTX 4090 (24 GB). Includes the KV cache at 8K context, so it reads higher than the headline figure.
| Quant | Memory | VRAM | Speed (est.) | Fit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q2_K 2.63 bpw | 1.5 GB | ~325 tok/s | Fits | |
| Q3_K_M 3.41 bpw | 1.6 GB | ~303 tok/s | Fits | |
| Q4_K_M 4.83 bpw | 2 GB | ~270 tok/s | Fits | |
| Q5_K_M 5.67 bpw | 2.1 GB | ~254 tok/s | Fits | |
| Q6_K 6.56 bpw | 2.3 GB | ~238 tok/s | Fits | |
| Q8_0 8.50 bpw | 2.7 GB | ~210 tok/s | Fits | |
| F16 16.00 bpw | 4.4 GB | ~145 tok/s | Fits |
Black marker = usable memory on the NVIDIA RTX 4090 (24 GB). Estimates from the memory-bandwidth roofline on the methodology page. LFM3 1.7B VRAM calculator →
Get LFM3 1.7B running
The cheapest catalogued GPU that runs LFM3 1.7B is the Intel Arc B570 (10 GB).
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How to run LFM3 1.7B
Install Ollama, then run:
ollama run lfm3:1.7bSpecifications
Verified — Checked against the primary source — the model card or the vendor spec page — and corroborated by a second independent source.
- Parameters
- 1.7 Billion
- Context window
- 262,144
- Architecture
- Hybrid: 13 short-conv + 5 sliding-window + 6 global-attention layers
- Provider
- Liquid AI
- Licence
- LFM Open License v1.0
- Practical deployment
- Edge device (phone, SBC)
- Specified at
- Q4_K_M
- System RAM
- 8 GB
- Record updated
- 2026-11-03
Weights are downloadable and commercial use is permitted, subject to the licence’s acceptable-use terms.
Commercial use is licensed only below $10M annual revenue; above that, a separate agreement.
Limits and caveats
- Commercial use is licensed only below US$10M annual revenue.
- Benchmarks on the card are vendor-reported.
See also LFM2.5 2.6B
Quality and use cases
Scores as published by the model’s authors or an independent evaluator — quality, not throughput, and not measured by us.
Other Liquid LFM3 sizes
LFM3 1.7B — frequently asked questions
How much VRAM does LFM3 1.7B need?
About 2 GB at Q4_K_M — quantized weights plus framework overhead, before any KV cache. The cache grows with context length and is added on top; the table above folds it in. Apple Silicon counts unified memory toward the same figure.
Does LFM3 1.7B run on an RTX 4090 (24 GB)?
Yes. LFM3 1.7B needs about 2 GB at Q4_K_M, inside a 24 GB card, at an estimated 270 tokens/sec.
How do I run LFM3 1.7B locally?
Install Ollama and run `ollama run lfm3:1.7b`. That pulls the weights and starts a local OpenAI-compatible endpoint; after the download nothing leaves the machine.
What other sizes does Liquid LFM3 come in?
LFM3 1.7B (2 GB), LFM3-VL 2B (2 GB). Every size shares the family's training and licence; the larger ones score higher and need proportionally more memory.