NVIDIA L4 vs NVIDIA RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation Comparison

The Verdict

The recorded data positions the NVIDIA L4 and the NVIDIA RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation in different tiers of the database. The L4 has an average benchmark score of 131072, placing it in the 95th percentile among all GPUs. The RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation has no recorded benchmarks, an average score of 0, and sits in the 50th percentile. The L4 is the only one of the two with measurable performance data. The RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation is a newer, larger, and more powerful part on paper, but the database contains no test results to confirm its real-world standing. The L4 is a low-power, single-slot server card with 24 GB of memory, while the RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation is a dual-slot workstation card with 32 GB of memory, higher clock speeds, and more compute units. For any workload where a benchmark score is required, the L4 is the only option with evidence. For workloads where the specification sheet matters more than measured results, the RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation shows a clear theoretical advantage.

Architecture Differences

The L4 uses the AD104 chip built on the Ada Lovelace architecture, with a 5 nm process from TSMC. The RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation uses the GB203 chip built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture, also on a 5 nm process from TSMC. Transistor counts differ substantially: the L4 has 35,800 million transistors on a 294 mm² die, while the RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation has 45,600 million transistors on a 378 mm² die. Transistor density is nearly identical, with the L4 at 121.8M per mm² and the RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation at 120.6M per mm². The L4 belongs to the Server Ada generation, while the RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation is part of the Blackwell PRO W generation. The L4 uses GDDR6 memory, while the RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation uses GDDR7. Both support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The L4 has no display outputs, while the RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation provides four DisplayPort 2.1b outputs. The L4 draws 72 W with no power connectors, while the RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation draws 200 W and requires a single 16-pin connector.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database contains no head-to-head benchmark entries for these two products. The winsA and winsB counts are both zero. The L4 has two recorded benchmark scores: 140838 in Geekbench OpenCL and 121306 in Geekbench Vulkan. The RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation has an empty benchmark list. The L4's average benchmark score of 131072 places it near the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Ti, which scores 131938 and is 0.7% higher. The L4 also trails the NVIDIA RTX 4000 Ada Generation by 3.1% (that card scores 135218), the NVIDIA A10M by 3.1% (135230), and the AMD Radeon PRO W6800 by 3.2% (135396). These nearest rivals all have average scores within a few percent of the L4, which indicates the L4 is competitive with that group. The RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation has no nearest rivals listed, no benchmark scores, and no average score to compare. The raw specifications suggest it should outperform the L4 in compute throughput, but the absence of measured data means the head-to-head comparison cannot be quantified from the database.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ across nearly every measured specification. The L4 has a base clock of 795 MHz and a boost clock of 2040 MHz, while the RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation runs at 1635 MHz base and 2407 MHz boost. Memory size is 24 GB on the L4 versus 32 GB on the RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation. Memory type changes from GDDR6 to GDDR7, and the bus width expands from 192 bit to 256 bit. Memory bandwidth jumps from 300.1 GB/s on the L4 to 896.0 GB/s on the RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation. Shading units rise from 7424 to 10496, texture mapping units from 240 to 328, and raster operation units from 80 to 112. Ray tracing cores increase from 60 to 82, and tensor cores from 240 to 328. Pixel rate goes from 163.2 GPixel/s to 269.6 GPixel/s, texture rate from 489.6 GTexel/s to 789.5 GTexel/s, and FP32 compute from 30.29 TFLOPS to 50.53 TFLOPS. FP16 performance matches FP32 on both cards at 1:1 ratio, with the same 30.29 TFLOPS and 50.53 TFLOPS figures. Power draw rises from 72 W to 200 W, and the suggested power supply goes from 250 W to 550 W. The L4 is single-slot, the RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation is dual-slot. The L4 has no power connectors, the RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation has one 16-pin connector. Bus interface moves from PCIe 4.0 x16 to PCIe 5.0 x16. Physical dimensions change from 169 mm length and 56 mm height to 267 mm length, 111 mm height, and 40 mm width. Release dates differ: the L4 launched on 2023-03-20, the RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation on 2025-03-17. The L4 lists its predecessor as Server Ampere and successor as Server Hopper, while the RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation lists its predecessor as Workstation Ada and has no successor.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA L4 has an average benchmark score of 131072. The NVIDIA RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation has an average score of 0 because no benchmarks are recorded for it.

Q: How does the L4 compare to its closest rivals?

A: The L4 is 0.7% behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Ti (131938), 3.1% behind the NVIDIA RTX 4000 Ada Generation (135218), 3.1% behind the NVIDIA A10M (135230), and 3.2% behind the AMD Radeon PRO W6800 (135396). All four rivals score within a narrow band above the L4.

Q: What is the memory capacity difference?

A: The L4 has 24 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192 bit bus. The RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation has 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256 bit bus.

Q: How do the power requirements differ?

A: The L4 has a 72 W power draw and requires no power connectors. The RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation has a 200 W power draw and requires one 16-pin connector. The suggested power supply is 250 W for the L4 and 550 W for the RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation.

Q: Which card has display outputs?

A: The L4 has no display outputs. The RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation has four DisplayPort 2.1b outputs.

Q: What is the compute performance difference?

A: FP32 compute is 30.29 TFLOPS on the L4 and 50.53 TFLOPS on the RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation. FP16 compute matches FP32 on both cards at 1:1 ratio.

Where Each One Wins

The L4 wins in the database because it has actual benchmark results. Its Geekbench OpenCL score of 140838 and Geekbench Vulkan score of 121306 provide measurable performance data, and its 95th percentile ranking against all GPUs places it among high performers. The L4 also wins on power efficiency in the specification sheet: 72 W draw versus 200 W, no power connectors versus one 16-pin connector, and a 250 W suggested power supply versus 550 W. The single-slot design and shorter length (169 mm versus 267 mm) make it easier to fit in dense server configurations. The L4's release date of 2023-03-20 means it has been on the market longer, and its predecessor and successor are both listed in the database.

The RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation wins on every raw compute specification where numbers are recorded. It has a higher base clock (1635 MHz versus 795 MHz), higher boost clock (2407 MHz versus 2040 MHz), more shading units (10496 versus 7424), more ray tracing cores (82 versus 60), and more tensor cores (328 versus 240). Its FP32 throughput of 50.53 TFLOPS is substantially higher than the L4's 30.29 TFLOPS. Memory bandwidth is nearly three times higher at 896.0 GB/s versus 300.1 GB/s, and the 32 GB capacity exceeds the L4's 24 GB. The RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation also provides display outputs (four DisplayPort 2.1b), which the L4 lacks entirely, making it the only one of the two that can drive monitors directly. The PCIe 5.0 x16 interface is a generation newer than the L4's PCIe 4.0 x16. The release date of 2025-03-17 makes it the more recent product, and its larger die (378 mm² versus 294 mm²) and higher transistor count (45,600 million versus 35,800 million) indicate a more complex chip.

For a workload that requires measured performance data, the L4 is the only choice with evidence in the database. For a workload that demands the maximum specification sheet, the RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation is the stronger part on paper, particularly for memory-intensive tasks or any use case that needs display output. The L4's nearest rivals all sit within 3.2% of its average score, which suggests it is a well-positioned mid-to-high-tier card. The RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell Workstation's 50th percentile ranking is a placeholder value from the absence of benchmarks, not a reflection of expected performance. The data cannot confirm a winner in a direct comparison because only one side has test results.