diff --git a/src/axolotl/cli/merge_lora.py b/src/axolotl/cli/merge_lora.py
index 657ddcfe43..40504518c0 100644
--- a/src/axolotl/cli/merge_lora.py
+++ b/src/axolotl/cli/merge_lora.py
@@ -4,9 +4,11 @@
 from typing import Union
 
 import fire
+import torch
 
 from axolotl.cli.config import load_cfg
 from axolotl.cli.utils import load_model_and_tokenizer
+from axolotl.cli.utils.lora_merge import merge_lora_sharded_efficient
 from axolotl.utils.dict import DictDefault
 from axolotl.utils.logging import get_logger
 
@@ -15,12 +17,26 @@
 
 def do_merge_lora(*, cfg: DictDefault) -> None:
     """
-    Calls `transformers`' `merge_and_unload` on the model given in the `axolotl` config
-    along with the LoRA adapters to combine them into a single base model.
+    Merges LoRA adapters with base model using either memory-efficient or legacy approach.
 
     Args:
         cfg: Dictionary mapping `axolotl` config keys to values.
     """
+    merge_method = str(getattr(cfg, "merge_method", ""))
+    if merge_method == "legacy":
+        LOG.debug("Using legacy LoRA merging method...")
+        _do_merge_lora_legacy(cfg=cfg)
+    else:
+        LOG.debug("Using memory-efficient LoRA merging method...")
+    _do_merge_lora_efficient(cfg=cfg)
+
+
+def _do_merge_lora_legacy(*, cfg: DictDefault) -> None:
+    """
+    Legacy LoRA merging using merge_and_unload.
+    Loads the full model into memory before merging.
+    """
+    LOG.debug("Using legacy LoRA merging method...")
     model, tokenizer, processor = load_model_and_tokenizer(cfg=cfg)
     safe_serialization = cfg.save_safetensors is True
 
@@ -52,6 +68,31 @@ def do_merge_lora(*, cfg: DictDefault) -> None:
             processor.save_pretrained(str(Path(cfg.output_dir) / "merged"))
 
 
+def _do_merge_lora_efficient(*, cfg: DictDefault) -> None:
+    """
+    Memory-efficient LoRA merging using shard-by-shard processing.
+    Does not load the full model into memory.
+
+    Note: Currently only supports standard LoRA, not advanced methods like DoRA or RSLoRA.
+    Will automatically fall back to legacy method for unsupported configurations.
+    """
+    LOG.debug("Using memory-efficient LoRA merging method...")
+
+    output_path = Path(cfg.output_dir) / "merged"
+    safe_tensors = getattr(cfg, "save_safetensors", True)
+    device = "cuda" if torch.cuda.is_available() else "cpu"
+
+    merge_lora_sharded_efficient(
+        base_model_path=cfg.base_model,
+        lora_adapter_path=cfg.lora_model_dir,
+        output_path=output_path,
+        safe_tensors=safe_tensors,
+        device=device,
+    )
+
+    LOG.debug("Memory-efficient LoRA merge completed successfully!")
+
+
 def do_cli(config: Union[Path, str] = Path("examples/"), **kwargs) -> None:
     """
     Parses `axolotl` config, CLI args, and calls `do_merge_lora`. Note that various
@@ -83,7 +124,7 @@ def do_cli(config: Union[Path, str] = Path("examples/"), **kwargs) -> None:
         parsed_cfg.lora_model_dir = parsed_cfg.output_dir
     if not Path(parsed_cfg.lora_model_dir).exists():
         raise ValueError(
-            f"Target directory for merge: `{parsed_cfg.lora_model_dir}` does not exist."
+            f"Target directory for LoRA adapter weights does not exist: `{parsed_cfg.lora_model_dir}`"
         )
 
     do_merge_lora(cfg=parsed_cfg)
diff --git a/src/axolotl/cli/utils/lora_merge.py b/src/axolotl/cli/utils/lora_merge.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..74c94ed749
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/axolotl/cli/utils/lora_merge.py
@@ -0,0 +1,288 @@
+import gc
+import os
+import shutil
+from pathlib import Path
+from typing import Dict, Optional, Union
+
+import safetensors
+import safetensors.torch
+import torch
+from huggingface_hub import snapshot_download
+from peft import LoraConfig
+from tqdm import tqdm
+
+from axolotl.utils.logging import get_logger
+
+LOG = get_logger(__name__)
+
+
+def find_lora_weights(
+    lora_state: Dict[str, torch.Tensor], key: str
+) -> tuple[Optional[torch.Tensor], Optional[torch.Tensor]]:
+    """
+    Find corresponding LoRA A and B weights for a given key.
+    """
+    clean_key = key[:-7] if key.endswith(".weight") else key
+
+    a_key = f"base_model.model.{clean_key}.lora_A.weight"
+    b_key = f"base_model.model.{clean_key}.lora_B.weight"
+
+    lora_a = lora_state.get(a_key)
+    lora_b = lora_state.get(b_key)
+
+    if lora_a is not None and lora_b is not None:
+        return lora_a, lora_b
+    return None, None
+
+
+def get_model_shards(model_path: Path) -> list[Path]:
+    """Find all model shards in the given path."""
+    shards: list[Path] = []
+
+    patterns = ["model*.safetensors", "pytorch_model*.bin"]
+
+    for pattern in patterns:
+        shards.extend(model_path.glob(pattern))
+        if shards:
+            break
+
+    return sorted(shards)
+
+
+def copy_non_model_files(
+    input_path: Path, output_path: Path, model_shards: list[Path]
+) -> None:
+    """
+    Copy all non-model files to the output directory.
+
+    Args:
+        input_path: Source directory
+        output_path: Destination directory
+        model_shards: List of model shard files to skip
+    """
+    LOG.info("Copying non-model files to output directory...")
+
+    shard_names = {shard.name for shard in model_shards}
+
+    for filepath in input_path.glob("*"):
+        if filepath.is_dir():
+            continue
+        if filepath.name in shard_names:
+            continue
+        if (
+            filepath.name.startswith("model") and filepath.suffix == ".safetensors"
+        ) or (filepath.name.startswith("pytorch_model") and filepath.suffix == ".bin"):
+            continue
+        if filepath.suffix == ".gguf":
+            continue
+
+        LOG.debug(f"Copying {filepath.name} to output")
+        shutil.copy2(filepath, output_path)
+
+
+def _merge_tensor_with_lora(
+    tensor: torch.Tensor,
+    key: str,
+    lora_state: Dict[str, torch.Tensor],
+    scale: float,
+    lora_config_dict: Dict,
+    device: str,
+) -> torch.Tensor:
+    """
+    Helper function to merge a single tensor with its corresponding LoRA weights.
+
+    Args:
+        tensor: Base model tensor
+        key: Tensor key/name
+        lora_state: Dictionary containing LoRA weights
+        scale: LoRA scaling factor (alpha/r)
+        lora_config_dict: LoRA configuration dictionary
+        device: Device to perform computations on
+
+    Returns:
+        Merged tensor with LoRA applied
+    """
+    lora_a, lora_b = find_lora_weights(lora_state, key)
+
+    if lora_a is not None and lora_b is not None:
+        LOG.debug(f"Merging LoRA for {key}: {lora_a.shape}, {lora_b.shape}")
+
+        original_dtype = tensor.dtype
+        base_fp32 = tensor.to(device).to(torch.float32)
+        a_fp32 = lora_a.to(device).to(torch.float32)
+        b_fp32 = lora_b.to(device).to(torch.float32)
+        delta = scale * (b_fp32 @ a_fp32)
+        if bool(
+            lora_config_dict.get("fan_in_fan_out", False)
+            or lora_config_dict.get("lora_fan_in_fan_out", False)
+        ):
+            delta = delta.T
+        merged_tensor = (base_fp32 + delta).to(original_dtype).detach().cpu()
+        del base_fp32, a_fp32, b_fp32, delta
+        return merged_tensor, True
+    else:
+        return tensor.detach().cpu(), False
+
+
+def merge_lora_sharded_efficient(
+    base_model_path: Union[str, Path],
+    lora_adapter_path: Union[str, Path],
+    output_path: Union[str, Path],
+    device: str = "cpu",
+    safe_tensors: bool = True,
+) -> None:
+    """
+    Memory-efficient LoRA merging that processes shards individually
+    without loading the full model into memory.
+    """
+    base_model_path = Path(base_model_path)
+    lora_adapter_path = Path(lora_adapter_path)
+    output_path = Path(output_path)
+
+    if "/" in str(base_model_path) and not base_model_path.exists():
+        base_model_path = Path(snapshot_download(str(base_model_path)))
+
+    os.makedirs(output_path, exist_ok=True)
+
+    config_file = lora_adapter_path / "adapter_config.json"
+    if not config_file.exists():
+        raise FileNotFoundError(f"LoRA config not found: {config_file}")
+
+    lora_config_dict = LoraConfig.from_json_file(str(config_file))
+    if not lora_config_dict.get("r") or lora_config_dict["r"] <= 0:
+        raise ValueError("LoRA config 'r' must be > 0")
+
+    unsupported_methods = []
+
+    # Check for DoRA (Weight-Decomposed LoRA)
+    if lora_config_dict.get("use_dora", False):
+        unsupported_methods.append("DoRA (Weight-Decomposed LoRA)")
+
+    # Check for AdaLoRA (Adaptive LoRA)
+    if lora_config_dict.get("use_adalora", False):
+        unsupported_methods.append("AdaLoRA (Adaptive LoRA)")
+
+    # Check for VeRA (Vector-based Random Matrix Adaptation)
+    if lora_config_dict.get("use_vera", False):
+        unsupported_methods.append("VeRA (Vector-based Random Matrix Adaptation)")
+
+    # Check for other advanced LoRA variants by task_type
+    task_type = lora_config_dict.get("task_type", "")
+    if task_type and task_type not in [
+        "CAUSAL_LM",
+        "SEQ_2_SEQ_LM",
+        "TOKEN_CLS",
+        "SEQ_CLS",
+        "QUESTION_ANS",
+    ]:
+        unsupported_methods.append(f"Task type: {task_type}")
+
+    # Check for rank adaptation patterns (AdaLoRA indicators)
+    if any(
+        key in lora_config_dict
+        for key in ["rank_pattern", "alpha_pattern", "target_rank"]
+    ):
+        unsupported_methods.append("AdaLoRA (rank adaptation detected)")
+
+    # Check for advanced initialization methods
+    init_lora_weights = lora_config_dict.get("init_lora_weights", "")
+    if init_lora_weights and init_lora_weights not in [
+        "gaussian",
+        "loftq",
+        True,
+        False,
+    ]:
+        unsupported_methods.append(f"Advanced initialization: {init_lora_weights}")
+
+    if unsupported_methods:
+        methods_str = ", ".join(unsupported_methods)
+        raise NotImplementedError(
+            f"Memory-efficient LoRA merge only supports standard LoRA. "
+            f"Detected unsupported methods: {methods_str}. "
+            f"Please use the legacy merge method for advanced LoRA variants."
+        )
+
+    scale = float(lora_config_dict["lora_alpha"]) / float(lora_config_dict["r"])
+
+    LOG.debug(f"LoRA scale factor: {scale}")
+
+    lora_file = lora_adapter_path / "adapter_model.safetensors"
+    if not lora_file.exists():
+        lora_file = lora_adapter_path / "adapter_model.bin"
+        if not lora_file.exists():
+            raise FileNotFoundError(
+                f"LoRA adapter weights not found in {lora_adapter_path}"
+            )
+
+    LOG.debug(f"Loading LoRA weights from {lora_file}")
+
+    if lora_file.suffix == ".safetensors":
+        lora_state = safetensors.torch.load_file(lora_file)
+    else:
+        lora_state = torch.load(lora_file, map_location="cpu", weights_only=True)  # nosec B614
+    LOG.debug("Keeping LoRA weights on CPU; will move per-tensor during merge")
+
+    model_shards = get_model_shards(base_model_path)
+    if not model_shards:
+        raise FileNotFoundError(f"No model shards found in {base_model_path}")
+
+    LOG.debug(f"Found {len(model_shards)} model shards in {base_model_path}")
+    copy_non_model_files(base_model_path, output_path, model_shards)
+
+    merged_count = 0
+    total_tensors = 0
+
+    for shard_path in tqdm(model_shards, desc="Merging shards"):
+        merged_tensors = {}
+        metadata = {}
+
+        if shard_path.suffix == ".safetensors":
+            with safetensors.safe_open(shard_path, framework="pt", device="cpu") as f:
+                if hasattr(f, "metadata") and f.metadata():
+                    metadata = f.metadata()
+
+                for key in f.keys():
+                    total_tensors += 1
+                    tensor = f.get_tensor(key)
+                    merged_tensor, was_merged = _merge_tensor_with_lora(
+                        tensor, key, lora_state, scale, lora_config_dict, device
+                    )
+                    merged_tensors[key] = merged_tensor
+                    if was_merged:
+                        merged_count += 1
+        else:
+            state_dict = torch.load(  # nosec B614: loading trusted model weights
+                shard_path, map_location="cpu", weights_only=True
+            )
+            for key, tensor in state_dict.items():
+                total_tensors += 1
+                merged_tensor, was_merged = _merge_tensor_with_lora(
+                    tensor, key, lora_state, scale, lora_config_dict, device
+                )
+                merged_tensors[key] = merged_tensor
+                if was_merged:
+                    merged_count += 1
+
+        output_shard_path = output_path / shard_path.name
+        merged_tensors = {k: v.detach().cpu() for k, v in merged_tensors.items()}
+
+        if safe_tensors:
+            if not str(output_shard_path).endswith(".safetensors"):
+                output_shard_path = output_path / (shard_path.stem + ".safetensors")
+            safetensors.torch.save_file(
+                merged_tensors, output_shard_path, metadata=metadata
+            )
+        else:
+            if shard_path.suffix == ".safetensors":
+                safetensors.torch.save_file(
+                    merged_tensors, output_shard_path, metadata=metadata
+                )
+            else:
+                torch.save(merged_tensors, output_shard_path)
+
+        del merged_tensors
+        if device != "cpu" and torch.cuda.is_available():
+            torch.cuda.empty_cache()
+        gc.collect()
+
+    LOG.info(f"Applied LoRA to {merged_count}/{total_tensors} tensors")
diff --git a/src/axolotl/utils/schemas/peft.py b/src/axolotl/utils/schemas/peft.py
index af22913fd5..1cb5acb2a8 100644
--- a/src/axolotl/utils/schemas/peft.py
+++ b/src/axolotl/utils/schemas/peft.py
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 """Pydantic models for PEFT-related configuration"""
 
-from typing import Any
+from typing import Any, Literal
 
 from pydantic import BaseModel, Field, field_validator, model_validator
 
@@ -140,6 +140,12 @@ class LoraConfig(BaseModel):
     )
 
     merge_lora: bool | None = None
+    merge_lora_method: Literal["legacy", "memory_efficient"] | None = Field(
+        default="memory_efficient",
+        json_schema_extra={
+            "description": "Method to use for LoRA merging. 'memory_efficient' (default) processes shards individually to reduce memory usage, 'legacy' loads the full model into memory."
+        },
+    )
 
     @model_validator(mode="before")
     @classmethod