DALL-E 3
OpenAI · dense · 3.5B parameters · 4,096 context
Parameters
3.5B
Context Window
4K tokens
Architecture
Dense
Best GPU
RTX 4070 Ti
Cheapest API
$40.00/M
Intelligence Brief
DALL-E 3 is a 3.5B parameter DENSE model from OpenAI, featuring Multi-Head Attention (MHA) with 32 layers and 2,560 hidden dimensions. With a 4,096 token context window, it supports vision, multilingual. The most cost-effective API deployment is via openai at $40.00/M output tokens. For self-hosted inference, RTX 4070 Ti delivers optimal throughput at $237/month.
Architecture Details
Memory Requirements
BF16 Weights
7.0 GB
FP8 Weights
3.5 GB
INT4 Weights
1.8 GB
GPU Compatibility Matrix
DALL-E 3 is compatible with 100% of GPU configurations across 41 GPUs at 3 precision levels.
GPU Recommendations
BF16 · 1 GPU · vllm
100/100
score
Throughput
349.9 tok/s
Latency (ITL)
2.9ms
Est. TTFT
0ms
Cost/Month
$237
Cost/M Tokens
$0.26
BF16 · 1 GPU · vllm
100/100
score
Throughput
527.6 tok/s
Latency (ITL)
1.9ms
Est. TTFT
0ms
Cost/Month
$133
Cost/M Tokens
$0.10
BF16 · 1 GPU · vllm
100/100
score
Throughput
349.9 tok/s
Latency (ITL)
2.9ms
Est. TTFT
0ms
Cost/Month
$209
Cost/M Tokens
$0.23
Deployment Options
API Deployment
openai
$40.00/M
output tokens
Single GPU
RTX 4070 Ti
$237/mo
Min VRAM: 4 GB
Multi-GPU
RTX 3070 x2
438.8 tok/s
TP· $171/mo
API Pricing Comparison
| Provider | Input $/M | Output $/M | Badges |
|---|---|---|---|
| openai | $40.00 | $40.00 | Cheapest |
Cost Analysis
| Provider | Input $/M | Output $/M | ~Monthly Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| openaiBest Value | $40.00 | $40.00 | $400 |
Cost per 1,000 Requests
Short (500 tok)
$28.00
via openai
Medium (2K tok)
$112.00
via openai
Long (8K tok)
$400.00
via openai
Performance Estimates
Throughput by GPU
VRAM Breakdown (RTX 4070 Ti, BF16)
Capabilities
Features
Supported Frameworks
Supported Precisions
Where to Deploy DALL-E 3
Self-Hosted Infrastructure
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Frequently Asked Questions
How much VRAM does DALL-E 3 need for inference?
DALL-E 3 requires approximately 7.0 GB of VRAM at BF16 precision, 3.5 GB at FP8, or 1.8 GB at INT4 quantization. Additional VRAM is needed for KV-cache (163840 bytes per token) and activations (~1.00 GB).
What is the best GPU for DALL-E 3?
The top recommended GPU for DALL-E 3 is the RTX 4070 Ti using BF16 precision. It achieves approximately 349.9 tokens/sec at an estimated cost of $237/month ($0.26/M tokens). Score: 100/100.
How much does DALL-E 3 inference cost?
DALL-E 3 API inference starts from $40.00/M input tokens and $40.00/M output tokens. Self-hosted inference costs depend on your GPU configuration — use our ROI calculator for a detailed breakdown.