n4-highmem-48vsn4a-highmem-48

n4a-highmem-48 is 15% cheaper than n4-highmem-48 on demand in Iowa, saving $314.34 a month. They use different processor architectures (x86_64 and arm64), so software built for one may need rebuilding to run on the other.

At a glancen4-highmem-48n4a-highmem-48
On-demand$2.857/hr$2.426/hr15% less
Lowest rate$1.685/hrSpot, can be interrupted$0.8732/hr48% lessSpot, can be interrupted
Size48 vCPUs, 384 GiB48 vCPUs, 384 GiB
ProcessorIntel Xeon (Emerald Rapids)Google Axion
Architecturex86_64arm64

Prices in Iowa

“Off” is the discount against each type’s own on-demand price. Linux, USD per hour.

Optionn4-highmem-48n4a-highmem-48n4a-highmem-48 vs n4-highmem-48
On-demandPay by the hour$2.857$2.426▼ 15%
SpotCan be interrupted41% off$1.68564% off$0.8732▼ 48%
1-yr committed useNo upfront37% off$1.8034% off$1.601▼ 11%
3-yr committed useNo upfront55% off$1.28555% off$1.092▼ 15%

Key differences

The biggest lead each one has.

Where n4-highmem-48 leads
Max persistent disks128 vs 32
4× higher
Where n4a-highmem-48 leads
On-demand price$2.426 vs $2.857 per hour
15% cheaper

Specs

5 of 11 specs differ. Those are in bold.

Compute2 of 3 differn4-highmem-48n4a-highmem-48
vCPUs4848
Architecturex86_64arm64
ProcessorIntel Xeon (Emerald Rapids)Google Axion
MemoryAll 1 matchn4-highmem-48n4a-highmem-48
Memory (GiB)384384
NetworkingAll 1 matchn4-highmem-48n4a-highmem-48
NetworkUp to 32 GbpsUp to 32 Gbps
Storage1 of 2 differn4-highmem-48n4a-highmem-48
StorageNetwork disks onlyNetwork disks only
Max persistent disks12832
Instance details1 of 2 differn4-highmem-48n4a-highmem-48
Familyn4n4a
CategoryGeneral purposeGeneral purpose
Other1 of 2 differn4-highmem-48n4a-highmem-48
SeriesN4N4A
Specs sourceCompute Engine APICompute Engine API

On-demand prices by region

Cheapest for n4-highmem-48 first. Linux, USD per hour.

Regionn4-highmem-48n4a-highmem-48Difference
IowaUsed in summaryus-central1$2.857$2.426▼ 15%
Northern Virginiaus-east4$2.857$2.426▼ 15%
Oregonus-west1$2.857$2.426▼ 15%
South Carolinaus-east1$2.857$2.426▼ 15%
Netherlandseurope-west4$2.999$2.547▼ 15%
Belgiumeurope-west1$3.145$2.67▼ 15%
Londoneurope-west2$3.256$2.765▼ 15%
Frankfurteurope-west3$3.371$2.862▼ 15%
Singaporeasia-southeast1$3.524$2.991▼ 15%

Keep exploring

Each type’s own page, and how it compares with others.

n4-highmem-48General purpose, n4 family
n4-highmem-48 prices and specsEvery size in the n4 family

Compare n4-highmem-48 with

n4d-highmem-48n2-highmem-48
n4a-highmem-48General purpose, n4a family
n4a-highmem-48 prices and specsEvery size in the n4a family

Compare n4a-highmem-48 with

n4d-highmem-48

Pay the committed rate, with commitment protection

The best committed rate on these two is 55% below on-demand. Connect your cloud accounts to unlock greater savings with commitment protection.

Connect Google Cloud account

GCP Compute Engine Linux prices in USD. Monthly figures use 730 hours. Prices last updated 12 Nov 2026.