Model comparison
Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite vs Gemma 4 12B
Head-to-head evidence from 11 shared benchmark results across 4 categories. Overall scores shown here use the public BenchAlign v5 ranking lane.
Public leaderboard positions: Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite unranked (Not scored); Gemma 4 12B #137 (Estimated). Intervals and evidence labels describe ranking uncertainty, not a guarantee for a specific workload.
Evidence parity. Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite and Gemma 4 12B share 11 comparable benchmark results. 1 of 8 categories are comparable. 10 results are unique to Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite; 12 to Gemma 4 12B.
Updated July 21, 2026- Shared results
- 11
- Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite only
- 10
- Gemma 4 12B only
- 12
- Comparable categories
- 1 / 8
Treat this as a split decision. Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite makes more sense if reasoning is the priority or you need the larger 1M context window; Gemma 4 12B is the better fit if its strengths line up with your actual workload.
Confidence note. This is a partial-evidence comparison with 11 shared benchmark results across 4 evidence categories; 1 of 8 categories currently have scoreable aggregates for both models. Treat the verdict as directional until coverage is more balanced.
Why this result
Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite and Gemma 4 12B 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 gives you the larger context window at 1M, compared with 256K for Gemma 4 12B.
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 | Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite | Δ | Gemma 4 12B |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reasoning | Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite72.2 | Margin← 28.8 | Gemma 4 12B43.4 |
| Agentic | Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite63.4 | MarginNo overlap | Gemma 4 12BNot measured |
| Coding | Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite54.2 | MarginNo overlap | Gemma 4 12BNot measured |
| Knowledge | Gemini 3.5 Flash-LiteNot measured | MarginNo overlap | Gemma 4 12B77.5 |
| Math | Gemini 3.5 Flash-LiteNot measured | MarginNo overlap | Gemma 4 12B77.5 |
| Multimodal | Gemini 3.5 Flash-LiteNot measured | MarginNo overlap | Gemma 4 12B69.1 |
Decisive benchmark drivers
The largest measured benchmark gaps in this matchup, with exact reported values.
More
- Source ↗
MRCRv2
ReasoningA 72.2%B 43.4%Winner: Gemini 3.5 Flash-LiteΔ 28.8MRCRv2: Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite scored 72.2%; Gemma 4 12B scored 43.4%. 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.
| Metric | Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite | Gemma 4 12B | Comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| Input / output priceUSD per 1M tokens | Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite$0.3 input / $2.5 output | Gemma 4 12BNot available | A complete price comparison is not available. |
| Generation speedtokens per second | Gemini 3.5 Flash-LiteNot available | Gemma 4 12BNot available | A complete speed comparison is not available. |
| First-answer latencyseconds to first token | Gemini 3.5 Flash-LiteNot available | Gemma 4 12BNot available | A complete latency comparison is not available. |
| Context windowmaximum listed tokens | Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite1M | Gemma 4 12B256K | Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite lists the larger context window. |
Benchmark Deep Dive
Agentic8 benchmarks
| Benchmark | Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite | Gemma 4 12B | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Terminal-Bench 2.0Source | 54% | — | Not comparable |
| OSWorld-VerifiedSource | 74% | — | Not comparable |
| GDPval-AASource | 1140 | — | Not comparable |
| AA Agentic IndexSource | 26.8% | — | Not comparable |
| GDPval-AASource | 32.0% | — | Not comparable |
| AA BriefcaseSource | 634 | — | Not comparable |
| AA Tau3 BankingSource | 16.5% | — | Not comparable |
| τ²-bench resultsSource | — | 36.3% | Not comparable |
Coding4 benchmarks
ReasoningGemini 3.5 Flash-Lite wins4 benchmarks
Knowledge11 benchmarks
| Benchmark | Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite | Gemma 4 12B | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Artificial Analysis Intelligence IndexSource | 36.5% | 22.0% | Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite leads |
| AA-GPQA DiamondSource | 83.8% | 75.3% | Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite leads |
| AA-HLESource | 17.5% | 14.8% | Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite leads |
| AA-Omniscience IndexSource | 6.9% | -51.9% | Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite leads |
| AA-Omniscience AccuracySource | 30.3% | 16.0% | Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite leads |
| AA-Omniscience Hallucination RateSource | 33.5% | 80.8% | Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite leads |
| GPQASource | — | 78.8% | Not comparable |
| GPQA-DSource | — | 78.8% | Not comparable |
| MMLU-ProSource | — | 77.2% | Not comparable |
| HLE w/o toolsSource | — | 5.2% | Not comparable |
| MMMLUSource | — | 83.4% | Not comparable |
Math1 benchmarks
| Benchmark | Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite | Gemma 4 12B | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| AIME26Source | — | 77.5% | Not comparable |
Multimodal4 benchmarks
Inst. Following1 benchmarks
| Benchmark | Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite | Gemma 4 12B | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA-IFBenchSource | — | 73.5% | Not comparable |
Frequently Asked Questions (2)
Which is better, Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite or Gemma 4 12B?
Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite and Gemma 4 12B 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 reasoning, Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite or Gemma 4 12B?
Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite has the edge for reasoning in this comparison, averaging 72.2 versus 43.4. Inside this category, MRCRv2 is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.
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