NVIDIA A100 Server
NVIDIA A100 Server is a professional AI/ML GPU cloud server available from Immers Cloud. The A100 remains the industry standard for many ML workloads, offering 80 GB HBM2e memory and proven reliability at a lower price point than the newer H100.
Specifications
| Component !! Specification |
|---|
| GPU || NVIDIA A100 SXM (Ampere architecture) |
| VRAM || 80 GB HBM2e |
| Memory Bandwidth || 2.0 TB/s |
| FP16 Performance || ~312 TFLOPS |
| TF32 Performance || ~156 TFLOPS |
| Interconnect || NVLink 3.0 (600 GB/s) |
| Starting Price || From $2.37/hr |
Performance
The A100 has been the backbone of AI infrastructure since 2020 and continues to be highly relevant:- 80 GB HBM2e — same VRAM as the H100, enough for most models
- 3rd-gen Tensor Cores with TF32, FP16, BF16, and INT8 support
- Multi-Instance GPU (MIG) — partition one A100 into up to 7 isolated instances
- 2.0 TB/s memory bandwidth — sufficient for most training and inference workloads
- Cost-effective AI model training (7B–30B parameters)
- Production inference serving at scale
- Fine-tuning with LoRA/QLoRA
- Computer vision (image classification, object detection, segmentation)
- Natural language processing and text generation
- Multi-instance GPU sharing for multiple small models
- Scientific computing (molecular dynamics, climate modeling)
- Proven, mature platform with years of production use
- 80 GB VRAM handles large models
- Multi-Instance GPU (MIG) for efficient resource sharing
- 38% cheaper than H100 per hour
- Excellent software ecosystem and community support
- Wide framework compatibility (PyTorch, TensorFlow, JAX)
- No FP8 support (H100 feature)
- No Transformer Engine
- Lower memory bandwidth than H100 (2.0 vs 3.35 TB/s)
- Previous generation — eventually will be phased out
- NVLink 3.0 (600 GB/s) vs H100's NVLink 4.0 (900 GB/s)
- NVIDIA H100 Server
- NVIDIA V100 Server
- NVIDIA RTX 4090 Server
- NVIDIA RTX A5000 Server
The A100 costs 38% less per hour than the NVIDIA H100 Server ($2.37 vs $3.83). For workloads that don't benefit from FP8 or the Transformer Engine, the A100 provides nearly equivalent results at lower cost.
For inference specifically, the A100 often provides better cost-efficiency than the H100 when serving models that fit within the FP16/INT8 precision range.
Best Use Cases
Pros and Cons
Advantages
Limitations
Pricing
Available from Immers Cloud starting at $2.37/hr. One of the best value propositions for professional-grade AI compute. Monthly cost for 24/7 usage: approximately $1,706.Recommendation
The NVIDIA A100 Server is the smart choice for teams that want professional-grade AI compute without paying H100 premium pricing. If your training workloads are in the 7B–30B parameter range, or you're doing inference serving, the A100 delivers excellent results at 38% lower hourly cost. Only upgrade to the NVIDIA H100 Server if you need FP8 training, Transformer Engine, or higher memory bandwidth.See Also
Category:GPU Servers Category:AI Training Category:Data Center GPU