NVIDIA L40 vs NVIDIA RTX 4000 Ada Generation Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The data is unambiguous: the NVIDIA L40 dominates the NVIDIA RTX 4000 Ada Generation in every recorded benchmark. Across the two head-to-head tests, the L40 secures 2 wins out of 2, while the RTX 4000 Ada Generation fails to claim a single victory. This is not a close contest; the performance gap is substantial in both compute and graphics API workloads.

In the Geekbench OpenCL test, which measures general-purpose compute throughput, the L40 scores 330,926 points against 146,593 for the RTX 4000 Ada Generation. That represents a 125.7% advantage for the L40, meaning it delivers more than double the raw compute performance in this workload. The OpenCL result is particularly telling because it exercises the GPU's shader array, memory subsystem, and driver overhead in a unified way; the L40's lead here indicates a fundamental throughput advantage, not just an optimization quirk.

The Vulkan benchmark tells a similar story, though the margin narrows slightly. The L40 posts 237,295 points, while the RTX 4000 Ada Generation manages 123,842. The delta is 91.6%, so the L40 is still nearly twice as fast, but the gap is less extreme than in OpenCL. Vulkan workloads often scale with geometry processing, rasterization, and memory bandwidth; the L40's wider memory bus and larger ROP count likely contribute to this result, even if the relative advantage is smaller than in pure compute.

The average benchmark score across all recorded tests reinforces the hierarchy. The L40 averages 284,111 points, placing it in the 99th percentile of all GPUs in the database. The RTX 4000 Ada Generation averages 135,218 points, which puts it in the 95th percentile. Both are high-performing cards, but the L40 sits at the very top of the distribution while the RTX 4000 Ada Generation is merely near the top.

Context from the nearest rivals makes the L40's position even clearer. The L40's average score trails the NVIDIA RTX 6000 Ada Generation by just 1.1%, a negligible difference that puts the two cards in the same performance tier. It also sits 3.9% behind the NVIDIA L40S and 10.7% behind the AMD Instinct MI300X, but it leads the NVIDIA L20 by 13.1%. For the RTX 4000 Ada Generation, the competitive picture is different: it essentially ties the NVIDIA A10M (0% delta), trails the AMD Radeon PRO W6800 by 0.1%, and sits 0.4% behind the AMD Radeon Pro W6800X Duo. The RTX 4000 Ada Generation is competitive within its class, but that class is far below the L40's.

Where Each One Wins

The L40 wins everywhere the measurements matter. In OpenCL compute, it is more than twice as fast as the RTX 4000 Ada Generation, which makes it the clear choice for workloads dominated by FP32 shader throughput, tensor operations, and memory bandwidth. The L40's 90.52 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, 864.0 GB/s of memory bandwidth, and 48 GB of VRAM are all substantially higher than the RTX 4000 Ada Generation's 26.73 TFLOPS, 360.0 GB/s, and 20 GB respectively. For large dataset processing, training-inference hybrid workloads, or rendering tasks that spill beyond 20 GB, the L40 has a structural advantage that no amount of driver tuning can close.

The Vulkan result, while still a decisive L40 victory, suggests a more nuanced use-case split. The 91.6% lead in Vulkan is smaller than the 125.7% lead in OpenCL. Vulkan workloads that are draw-call bound or latency sensitive may not scale perfectly with raw hardware resources, which could explain why the RTX 4000 Ada Generation closes some of the gap. Still, the L40 wins outright, and the RTX 4000 Ada Generation does not have a single benchmark where it is ahead.

The RTX 4000 Ada Generation's strengths are not reflected in benchmark scores but rather in physical and power characteristics. It consumes 130 W versus the L40's 300 W, and it fits in a single slot versus the L40's dual-slot footprint. It also runs a higher base clock (1500 MHz versus 735 MHz), which indicates better per-watt efficiency at low utilization. For workstations where thermal headroom is limited, power draw is capped, or slot space is at a premium, the RTX 4000 Ada Generation is the only one of the two that fits. But in pure performance terms, the recorded data shows no scenario where it wins.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA L40 scores 284,111 on average, while the NVIDIA RTX 4000 Ada Generation scores 135,218. The L40 is in the 99th percentile of all GPUs, compared to the 95th percentile for the RTX 4000 Ada Generation.

Q: How large is the performance gap in OpenCL?

A: The L40 scores 330,926 in Geekbench OpenCL, which is 125.7% higher than the RTX 4000 Ada Generation's 146,593. This means the L40 is more than twice as fast in this compute workload.

Q: Does the RTX 4000 Ada Generation win any benchmark?

A: No. In the two head-to-head tests recorded (Geekbench OpenCL and Geekbench Vulkan), the L40 wins both. The RTX 4000 Ada Generation has zero wins in the database comparisons.

Q: How does the L40 compare to its closest rival, the RTX 6000 Ada Generation?

A: The L40 trails the RTX 6000 Ada Generation by only 1.1% in average score, making them effectively equivalent in performance. The L40 also leads the NVIDIA L20 by 13.1% and trails the L40S by 3.9%.

Q: Is the RTX 4000 Ada Generation competitive within its own class?

A: Yes. It essentially ties the NVIDIA A10M (0% delta), trails the AMD Radeon PRO W6800 by 0.1%, and is 0.4% behind the AMD Radeon Pro W6800X Duo. It competes closely with these workstation cards, but all of these are far below the L40.

Q: What is the power draw difference?

A: The L40 has a TDP of 300 W, while the RTX 4000 Ada Generation has a TDP of 130 W. The RTX 4000 Ada Generation also suggests a 300 W power supply, whereas the L40 suggests a 700 W unit.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ in nearly every major specification. The L40 uses 48 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 384-bit bus, delivering 864.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The RTX 4000 Ada Generation has 20 GB of GDDR6 on a 160-bit bus, yielding 360.0 GB/s. That is a 2.4x memory capacity advantage and a 2.4x bandwidth advantage for the L40.

Compute resources are equally lopsided. The L40 has 18,176 shading units, 568 TMUs, and 192 ROPs, while the RTX 4000 Ada Generation has 6,144 shading units, 192 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. The L40 also carries 142 RT cores and 568 tensor cores, versus 48 RT cores and 192 tensor cores on the smaller card. Pixel rate and texture rate follow suit: the L40 hits 478.1 GPixel/s and 1,414.3 GTexel/s, while the RTX 4000 Ada Generation manages 139.2 GPixel/s and 417.6 GTexel/s.

Clock behavior differs as well. The RTX 4000 Ada Generation runs a higher base clock at 1500 MHz versus 735 MHz, but the L40 has a higher boost clock at 2490 MHz versus 2175 MHz. Memory clock is identical at 2250 MHz (18 Gbps effective). The L40 has a larger die at 609 mm² with 76,300 million transistors, while the RTX 4000 Ada Generation uses a 294 mm² die with 35,800 million transistors. Transistor density is similar: 125.3M per mm² for the L40 and 121.8M per mm² for the RTX 4000 Ada Generation.

Physical dimensions also differ. The L40 is 267 mm long and 111 mm tall, while the RTX 4000 Ada Generation is 245 mm long and 112 mm tall. The L40 is dual-slot; the RTX 4000 Ada Generation is single-slot. Both use a single 16-pin power connector and PCIe 4.0 x16. Display outputs are identical at 4x DisplayPort 1.4a.

Architecture Differences

Both GPUs are built on TSMC's 5 nm process and use the Ada Lovelace architecture, but they employ different chips. The L40 uses the AD102 die, while the RTX 4000 Ada Generation uses the AD104 die. The AD102 is the flagship Ada Lovelace chip, which explains the L40's much higher resource counts: 76,300 million transistors across 609 mm², compared to 35,800 million across 294 mm² for AD104.

The generation labels confirm their different market positions. The L40 is classified under "Server Ada (Lxx)" with a predecessor of "Server Ampere" and a successor of "Server Hopper." The RTX 4000 Ada Generation is classified under "Workstation Ada (x000A)" with a predecessor of "Workstation Ampere" and a successor of "Blackwell PRO W." This means the L40 is positioned for server deployments, while the RTX 4000 Ada Generation targets workstation use cases.

The L40's production status is "End-of-life," whereas the RTX 4000 Ada Generation is still "Active." The L40 was released on 2022-10-12, and the RTX 4000 Ada Generation followed on 2023-08-08. Both support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The memory type is GDDR6 for both, and the effective memory clock is identical at 18 Gbps.

The most consequential architectural difference beyond chip size is the memory subsystem. The L40's 384-bit bus and 864.0 GB/s bandwidth are more than double the RTX 4000 Ada Generation's 160-bit bus and 360.0 GB/s. For data-heavy workloads such as large model inference, high-resolution rendering, or multi-stream video processing, this bandwidth differential is often the deciding factor.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear conclusion: the NVIDIA L40 is the faster card by every measurable benchmark, and the NVIDIA RTX 4000 Ada Generation is the lower-power, smaller-footprint alternative. If performance is the only criterion, the L40 wins outright. Its 125.7% OpenCL lead and 91.6% Vulkan lead are decisive, and its 99th percentile ranking places it among the fastest GPUs in the database.

However, the RTX 4000 Ada Generation has its own rationale. It draws 130 W versus 300 W, fits in a single slot, and is still an active product with a 95th percentile ranking. For systems with strict power limits or dense multi-GPU configurations where space is tight, the RTX 4000 Ada Generation is the only viable option of the two. Its performance is also well-matched to its direct competitors (A10M, Radeon PRO W6800), so it is not a weak card in absolute terms, it is simply in a lower tier.

The L40's end-of-life status tempers its appeal for new deployments. The RTX 4000 Ada Generation remains active and has a successor path to Blackwell PRO W, while the L40 is succeeded by Server Hopper. For organizations that must plan for long-term support, the active RTX 4000 Ada Generation may be preferable despite lower performance. For those who need maximum compute and memory bandwidth today, the L40 is the clear choice from the recorded data. The verdict depends on priorities: raw performance points to the L40, while power efficiency, form factor, and product lifecycle favor the RTX 4000 Ada Generation.