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Model comparison

DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) vs Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite

Data verified

Head-to-head evidence from 18 shared benchmark results across 4 categories. Overall scores shown here use the public BenchAlign v5 ranking lane.

N/A
No comparison
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2 category wins0 category wins

Evidence parity. DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) and Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite share 18 comparable benchmark results. 2 of 8 categories are comparable. 27 results are unique to DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max); 3 to Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite.

Updated July 21, 2026
Shared results
18
DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) only
27
Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite only
3
Comparable categories
2 / 8

Treat this as a split decision. DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) makes more sense if coding is the priority or you want the cheaper token bill; Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite is the better fit if its strengths line up with your actual workload.

Confidence note. This is a partial-evidence comparison with 18 shared benchmark results across 4 evidence categories; 2 of 8 categories currently have scoreable aggregates for both models. Treat the verdict as directional until coverage is more balanced.

Why this result

DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) and Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite finish on the same BenchAlign overall score, so this is less about a single winner and more about where the edge shows up. The BenchAlign headline says tie; the benchmark table is where the real choice happens.

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite is also the more expensive model on tokens at $0.30 input / $2.50 output per 1M tokens, versus $0.14 input / $0.28 output per 1M tokens for DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max). That is roughly 8.9x on output cost alone.

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 V4 Flash (Max) and Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite
CategoryDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)ΔGemini 3.5 Flash-Lite
CodingDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)68.8Margin← 14.6Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite54.2
AgenticDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)63.8Margin← 0.4Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite63.4
ReasoningDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Not measuredMarginNo overlapGemini 3.5 Flash-Lite72.2
KnowledgeDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)55.3MarginNo overlapGemini 3.5 Flash-LiteNot measured
MathDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)94.8MarginNo overlapGemini 3.5 Flash-LiteNot measured

Decisive benchmark drivers

The largest measured benchmark gaps in this matchup, with exact reported values.

More
A · DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)B · Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite

  1. Terminal-Bench 2.0

    Agentic
    Source ↗
    A 56.9%B 54%
    Winner: DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Δ 2.9
    Terminal-Bench 2.0: DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) scored 56.9%; Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite scored 54%. DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) wins this benchmark.

  2. SWE-bench Pro

    Coding
    Source ↗
    A 52.6%B 54.2%
    Winner: Gemini 3.5 Flash-LiteΔ 1.6
    SWE-bench Pro: DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) scored 52.6%; Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite scored 54.2%. Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite wins this benchmark.

Operational comparison

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

MetricDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Gemini 3.5 Flash-LiteComparison
Input / output priceUSD per 1M tokensDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)$0.14 input / $0.28 outputGemini 3.5 Flash-Lite$0.3 input / $2.5 outputDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) has the lower combined listed price.
Generation speedtokens per secondDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Not availableGemini 3.5 Flash-LiteNot availableA complete speed comparison is not available.
First-answer latencyseconds to first tokenDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Not availableGemini 3.5 Flash-LiteNot availableA complete latency comparison is not available.
Context windowmaximum listed tokensDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)1MGemini 3.5 Flash-Lite1MListed context windows are equal.

Benchmark Deep Dive

AgenticDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) wins
BenchmarkDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Gemini 3.5 Flash-LiteResult
Terminal-Bench 2.0Source 56.9%54%DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads
BrowseCompSource 73.2%—Not comparable
HLE w/ toolsSource 45.1%—Not comparable
MCP AtlasSource 69%—Not comparable
GDPval-AASource 11891140DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads
ToolathlonSource 47.8%—Not comparable
AA Agentic IndexSource 31.1%26.8%DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads
τ²-bench resultsSource 95%—Not comparable
GDPval-AASource 34.4%32.0%DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads
AA BriefcaseSource 831634DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads
AA EnterpriseOps-GymSource 39.6%—Not comparable
AA Harvey LABSource 81.3%—Not comparable
AA ITBenchSource 31.5%—Not comparable
AA Tau3 BankingSource 22.9%16.5%DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads
terminalBenchHardSource 35.6%—Not comparable
OSWorld-VerifiedSource —74%Not comparable
CodingDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) wins
BenchmarkDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Gemini 3.5 Flash-LiteResult
CodeforcesSource 3052.0—Not comparable
SWE-bench VerifiedSource 79%—Not comparable
SWE-bench ProSource 52.6%54.2%Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite leads
SWE MultilingualSource 73.3%—Not comparable
Terminal-Bench 2.0Source 56.9%54.0%DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads
AA Coding IndexSource 56.2%49.3%DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads
AA-SciCodeSource 44.9%40.9%DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads
Reasoning
BenchmarkDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Gemini 3.5 Flash-LiteResult
MRCR 1MSource 78.7%—Not comparable
CorpusQA 1MSource 60.5%—Not comparable
AA-LCRSource 63.0%62.0%DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads
CritPtSource 7.1%0.0%DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads
MRCRv2Source —72.2%Not comparable
Knowledge
BenchmarkDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Gemini 3.5 Flash-LiteResult
MMLU-ProSource 86.2%—Not comparable
SimpleQASource 34.1%—Not comparable
Chinese-SimpleQASource 78.9%—Not comparable
GPQASource 88.1%—Not comparable
GPQA-DSource 88.1%—Not comparable
HLESource 34.8%—Not comparable
Artificial Analysis Intelligence IndexSource 40.3%36.5%DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads
AA-GPQA DiamondSource 89.4%83.8%DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads
AA-HLESource 32.1%17.5%DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads
AA-Omniscience IndexSource -22.9%6.9%Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite leads
AA-Omniscience AccuracySource 37.2%30.3%DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads
AA-Omniscience Hallucination RateSource 95.8%33.5%Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite leads
AA Openness IndexSource 50.0%—Not comparable
Math
BenchmarkDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Gemini 3.5 Flash-LiteResult
HMMT Feb 2026Source 94.8%—Not comparable
IMOAnswerBenchSource 88.4%—Not comparable
ApexSource 33.0%—Not comparable
Apex ShortlistSource 85.7%—Not comparable
Multimodal
BenchmarkDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Gemini 3.5 Flash-LiteResult
Design Arena WebsiteSource 1238—Not comparable
AA-MMMU-ProSource —79.0%Not comparable
Inst. Following
BenchmarkDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Gemini 3.5 Flash-LiteResult
AA-IFBenchSource 79.2%—Not comparable
Frequently Asked Questions (3)

Which is better, DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) or Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite?

DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) and Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite are tied on the BenchAlign overall score, so the right pick depends on which category matters most for your use case.

Which is better for coding, DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) or Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite?

DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) has the edge for coding in this comparison, averaging 68.8 versus 54.2. Inside this category, AA Coding Index is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.

Which is better for agentic tasks, DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) or Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite?

DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) has the edge for agentic tasks in this comparison, averaging 63.8 versus 63.4. Inside this category, AA Briefcase is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.

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