Skip to main content

Model comparison

DeepSeek-R1 vs Step 3.7 Flash

Data verified

Head-to-head evidence from 12 shared benchmark results across 5 categories. Overall scores shown here use the public BenchAlign v5 ranking lane.

DeepSeek
51.55/100
Margin
0.8pts
← winning
50.76/100
0 category wins0 category wins

BenchAlign evidence: DeepSeek-R1 supported; Step 3.7 Flash estimated. Intervals and evidence labels describe ranking uncertainty, not a guarantee for a specific workload.

Evidence parity. DeepSeek-R1 and Step 3.7 Flash share 12 comparable benchmark results. 0 of 8 categories are comparable. 0 results are unique to DeepSeek-R1; 18 to Step 3.7 Flash.

Updated July 16, 2026
Shared results
12
DeepSeek-R1 only
0
Step 3.7 Flash only
18
Comparable categories
0 / 8

Benchmark data for DeepSeek-R1 and Step 3.7 Flash is coming soon on BenchLM.

Confidence note. This is a partial-evidence comparison with 12 shared benchmark results across 5 evidence categories; 0 of 8 categories currently have scoreable aggregates for both models. Treat the verdict as directional until coverage is more balanced.

Why this result

BenchLM has partial data for these models, but not enough overlapping benchmark coverage to produce a fair score-level comparison yet.

DeepSeek-R1 is priced at $0.55 input / $2.19 output per 1M tokens, versus $0.20 input / $1.15 output per 1M tokens for Step 3.7 Flash. Step 3.7 Flash has the larger context window at 256K, compared with 128K for DeepSeek-R1.

Category breakdown

Exact category averages are shown below. Not measured means BenchLM does not have enough sourced public coverage for that model and category.

Category scores and score margins for DeepSeek-R1 and Step 3.7 Flash
CategoryDeepSeek-R1ΔStep 3.7 Flash
AgenticDeepSeek-R1Not measuredMarginNo overlapStep 3.7 Flash66.4
CodingDeepSeek-R1Not measuredMarginNo overlapStep 3.7 Flash56.3

Operational comparison

Runtime and commercial metrics are compared only when both models have a complete sourced value.

MetricDeepSeek-R1Step 3.7 FlashComparison
Input / output priceUSD per 1M tokensDeepSeek-R1$0.55 input / $2.19 outputStep 3.7 Flash$0.2 input / $1.15 outputStep 3.7 Flash has the lower combined listed price.
Generation speedtokens per secondDeepSeek-R1Not availableStep 3.7 FlashNot availableA complete speed comparison is not available.
First-answer latencyseconds to first tokenDeepSeek-R1Not availableStep 3.7 FlashNot availableA complete latency comparison is not available.
Context windowmaximum listed tokensDeepSeek-R1128KStep 3.7 Flash256KStep 3.7 Flash lists the larger context window.

Benchmark Deep Dive

Agentic
BenchmarkDeepSeek-R1Step 3.7 FlashResult
τ²-bench resultsSource 36.5%98.5%Step 3.7 Flash leads
Terminal-Bench 2.0Source 59.5%Not comparable
BrowseCompSource 75.8%Not comparable
DeepSearchQASource 92.8%Not comparable
GDPval-AASource 25.9%Not comparable
ToolathlonSource 49.5%Not comparable
Claw-EvalSource 67.1%Not comparable
HLE w/ toolsSource 47.2%Not comparable
Gert LabsSource 51.57%Not comparable
AA Agentic IndexSource 21.5%Not comparable
GDPval-AASource 1017Not comparable
APEX-Agents-AASource 14.8%Not comparable
Coding
BenchmarkDeepSeek-R1Step 3.7 FlashResult
Terminal-Bench HardSource 15.9%35.6%Step 3.7 Flash leads
AA-SciCodeSource 40.3%40.0%DeepSeek-R1 leads
SWE-bench ProSource 56.3%Not comparable
Terminal-Bench 2.0Source 59.5%Not comparable
AA Coding IndexSource 39.6%Not comparable
Reasoning
BenchmarkDeepSeek-R1Step 3.7 FlashResult
AA-LCRSource 54.7%63.7%Step 3.7 Flash leads
CritPtSource 1.4%2.3%Step 3.7 Flash leads
Knowledge
BenchmarkDeepSeek-R1Step 3.7 FlashResult
Artificial Analysis Intelligence IndexSource 20.1%30.3%Step 3.7 Flash leads
AA-GPQA DiamondSource 81.3%80.9%DeepSeek-R1 leads
AA-HLESource 14.9%19.9%Step 3.7 Flash leads
AA-Omniscience IndexSource -27.1%-37.5%DeepSeek-R1 leads
AA-Omniscience AccuracySource 31.0%25.4%DeepSeek-R1 leads
AA-Omniscience Hallucination RateSource 84.0%84.4%DeepSeek-R1 leads
Multimodal
BenchmarkDeepSeek-R1Step 3.7 FlashResult
SimpleVQASource 79.2%Not comparable
V*Source 95.3%Not comparable
AA-MMMU-ProSource 75.3%Not comparable
Design Arena WebsiteSource 1218Not comparable
Inst. Following
BenchmarkDeepSeek-R1Step 3.7 FlashResult
AA-IFBenchSource 39.6%67.3%Step 3.7 Flash leads
Frequently Asked Questions (3)

Can I compare DeepSeek-R1 and Step 3.7 Flash on BenchLM yet?

Not fully yet. BenchLM is tracking both models, but the sourced benchmark breakdown for this comparison is still coming soon.

Why does this comparison show “coming soon”?

BenchLM only shows category winners and benchmark-level calls when we have sourced results that can be compared fairly. For these models, the public benchmark coverage is not complete enough yet.

What data is available for DeepSeek-R1 and Step 3.7 Flash today?

DeepSeek-R1: $0.55 input / $2.19 output per 1M tokens Step 3.7 Flash: $0.20 input / $1.15 output per 1M tokens Both model pages still include creator, context window, reasoning mode, and other metadata while benchmark coverage fills in.

Self-host vs API cost

Estimates at 50,000 req/day · 1000 tokens/req average.

DeepSeek-R1
API / mo$2,055
Self-host / mo$18,221
Break-even583M/day
Step 3.7 Flash
API / mo$1,012
Self-host / moNot listed
Break-even
Proprietary model — self-hosting not applicable.
Model the full break-even

Related Comparisons

Last updated: July 16, 2026

The AI models change fast. We track them for you.

A weekly brief for engineers and researchers covering new models, ranking shifts, and pricing changes.

Free. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.