Long documents
Prompts that approach the documented context limit
Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4 has the larger documented context window.
Confidence: documented
Gemma 3 27B vs Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
Updated September 24, 2026. Rank says Gemma 3 27B is ahead. Price, access, and your workload can each overturn that. Public scores include evidence status and uncertainty.
Both of these models will change. Get the price, version and retirement notices for the pair, each with its source. Follow model changes
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Decision reading
The public evidence has no benchmark result shared by both models, so it does not support a quality verdict. Use the documented cost, context, and runtime rows instead. 0 results are shared. Category rows resting on Estimated evidence or different benchmark sets are marked directional and do not name a winner.
Model B
NVIDIA
19.1/100
Estimated · Public rank #186
90% interval 9.2–29.0
- Shared results
- 0
- Gemma 3 27B only
- 0
- Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4 only
- 13
- Like-for-like categories
- 0 / 8
Supported: Gemma 3 27B · Estimated: Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4How the comparison works
Which one for your work
Recommendations appear only when a shared evidence basis or an explicit operating constraint supports the call. Secondary and unsupported use cases stay disclosed below the initial list.
Show secondary and unsupported calls
Coding work
Code generation, repair, and software-engineering tasks
Not enough matched evidence
Gemma 3 27B and Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4 are scored on Estimated evidence for coding, so the reading is directional rather than like-for-like.
Confidence: limitedAgentic work
Tool use, computer use, and multi-step task completion
Not enough matched evidence
Gemma 3 27B and Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4 are scored on Estimated evidence for agentic, so the reading is directional rather than like-for-like.
Confidence: limitedChat turn cost
1K fresh input + 500 output tokens
Not enough matched evidence
A complete comparable API-rate estimate is not available for both models.
Confidence: listed-ratesCache-heavy agent loop cost
200K cached + 20K fresh input + 10K output tokens
Not enough matched evidence
The page does not recommend a cost winner because at least one model cannot fit the stated workload in one request. Gemma 3 27B does not fit this workload in one request. Gemma 3 27B has no comparable published API token rate. Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4 has no comparable published API token rate.
Confidence: listed-ratesRepository review cost
50K fresh input + 3K output tokens
Not enough matched evidence
The page does not recommend a cost winner because at least one model cannot fit the stated workload in one request. Gemma 3 27B does not fit this workload in one request. Gemma 3 27B has no comparable published API token rate. Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4 has no comparable published API token rate.
Confidence: listed-rates
Which one for a specific job
Choose a job from the LLM Selector's task catalog to see the category row it rests on, under the same basis rules as the table below. A directional row stays directional; choosing a job never creates a winner.
The same task catalog as the LLM Selector. Each job names the evidence surface it rests on; nothing here adds a new score.
13.0Gemma 3 27B11.4Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
Directional only · BenchAlign v5.7
Gemma 3 27B scores higher, but at least one score rests on Estimated evidence or a different benchmark set. Directional only, no winner.
Coding scores combine specific tasks and setups. Match the editor, harness, and effort to your workflow.
Same basis rules as the category table below
What is actually comparable
Shared results can support a head-to-head reading. Results present for only one model describe coverage, not superiority.
13 Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4 only
4 categories rest on Estimated evidence or different evidence sets. Those rows remain visible for coverage context but do not name a winner.
Shape of the matched evidence
Only shared public evidence is shown. Sparse evidence stays a ruled list rather than being closed into a radar shape.
A shared-evidence shape is not available.
BenchLM does not draw a radar or infer missing axes when the matched evidence is too sparse.
Category results, on a stated basis
Each row shows the public-lane category score for both models: the BenchAlign v5.7 lane for agentic, coding, and knowledge, and the weighted public rows elsewhere, with the same rank each model page reports. A row is like-for-like only when both scores rest on Supported evidence or the same weighted set. Directional and not-comparable rows remain visible, but they never receive a winner.
Agentic
Directional only- Gemma 3 27B
- 6.9
- Estimated · #105/105
- Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
- 7.3
- Estimated · #104/105
- Basis
- BenchAlign v5.7 lane · 0 vs 4 public rows
- Reading
- Directional only
Coding
Directional only- Gemma 3 27B
- 13.0
- Estimated · #133/135
- Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
- 11.4
- Estimated · #135/135
- Basis
- BenchAlign v5.7 lane · 0 vs 4 public rows
- Reading
- Directional only
Knowledge
Directional only- Gemma 3 27B
- 24.1
- Estimated · #152/158
- Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
- 20.7
- Estimated · #154/158
- Basis
- BenchAlign v5.7 lane · 0 vs 4 public rows
- Reading
- Directional only
Instruction following
Directional only- Gemma 3 27B
- 34.3
- #110/124
- Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
- 68.5
- #67/124
- Basis
- Provisional lane · 0 vs 1 weighted rows
- Reading
- Directional only
Reasoning
Not comparable- Gemma 3 27B
- 27.1
- Unranked · 2 rankable rows
- Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
- 55.9
- Unranked · 1 rankable row
- Basis
- Provisional lane · 0 vs 0 weighted rows
- Reading
- Not comparable
Multimodal
Not comparable- Gemma 3 27B
- 30.8
- Unranked · 1 rankable row
- Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
- Not ranked
- Basis
- Provisional lane · 0 vs 0 weighted rows
- Reading
- Not comparable
Multilingual
Not comparable- Gemma 3 27B
- Not ranked
- Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
- Not ranked
- Basis
- Provisional lane · 0 vs 0 weighted rows
- Reading
- Not comparable
Math
Not comparable- Gemma 3 27B
- Not ranked
- Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
- Not ranked
- Basis
- Provisional lane · 0 vs 0 weighted rows
- Reading
- Not comparable
| Category | Gemma 3 27B | Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4 | Basis | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agentic | 6.9Estimated · #105/105 | 7.3Estimated · #104/105 | Directional onlyBenchAlign v5.7 lane · 0 vs 4 public rows | Directional only |
| Coding | 13.0Estimated · #133/135 | 11.4Estimated · #135/135 | Directional onlyBenchAlign v5.7 lane · 0 vs 4 public rows | Directional only |
| Knowledge | 24.1Estimated · #152/158 | 20.7Estimated · #154/158 | Directional onlyBenchAlign v5.7 lane · 0 vs 4 public rows | Directional only |
| Instruction following | 34.3#110/124 | 68.5#67/124 | Directional onlyProvisional lane · 0 vs 1 weighted rows | Directional only |
| Reasoning | 27.1Unranked · 2 rankable rows | 55.9Unranked · 1 rankable row | Not comparableProvisional lane · 0 vs 0 weighted rows | Not comparable |
| Multimodal | 30.8Unranked · 1 rankable row | Not ranked | Not comparableProvisional lane · 0 vs 0 weighted rows | Not comparable |
| Multilingual | Not ranked | Not ranked | Not comparableProvisional lane · 0 vs 0 weighted rows | Not comparable |
| Math | Not ranked | Not ranked | Not comparableProvisional lane · 0 vs 0 weighted rows | Not comparable |
Ranks count the models scored in each category’s lane, so the agentic, coding, and knowledge denominators (BenchAlign v5.7) differ from the provisional-lane categories. Unranked scores sit on the provisional lane’s scale but never name a winner. Like-for-like rows within 0.5 points read as a practical tie.
Bars run 0–100Methodology
What each workload costs
Three fixed token mixes turn per-token rates into comparable decisions. Each scenario states context fit and whether cached input had to fall back to the published list-input rate.
Chat turn
1K fresh input + 500 output tokens
- Gemma 3 27B
- Self-hosted; infrastructure cost varies
- Fits in one request
- Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
- Self-hosted; infrastructure cost varies
- Fits in one request
Gemma 3 27B has no comparable published API token rate. Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4 has no comparable published API token rate.
Repository review
50K fresh input + 3K output tokens
- Gemma 3 27B
- Self-hosted; infrastructure cost varies
- Does not fit in one request
- Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
- Self-hosted; infrastructure cost varies
- Fits in one request
Gemma 3 27B does not fit this workload in one request. Gemma 3 27B has no comparable published API token rate. Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4 has no comparable published API token rate.
Cache-heavy agent loop
200K cached + 20K fresh input + 10K output tokens
- Gemma 3 27B
- Self-hosted; infrastructure cost varies
- Does not fit in one request
- Cached-input rate unavailable
- Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
- Self-hosted; infrastructure cost varies
- Fits in one request
- Cached-input rate unavailable
Gemma 3 27B does not fit this workload in one request. Gemma 3 27B has no comparable published API token rate. Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4 has no comparable published API token rate.
Cached input falls back to the list input rate only where a cached rate is unpublished
Specification differences
Sourced differences are shown directly. Missing facts stay explicit instead of being inferred from a model name or family.
SpecificationGemma 3 27BNemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
Context window
Maximum documented context; output-token limits may be lower.
Gemma 3 27B
32K
Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
API model ID
Gemma 3 27B
Not sourced
Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
Not sourced
Cached-input rate
A missing cached-input rate falls back to the listed input rate only in the stated workload estimate.
Gemma 3 27B
No comparable hosted API rate
Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
No comparable hosted API rate
NVIDIA Nemotron 3.5 Lightning model cardDocumented inputs
Gemma 3 27B
Not sourced
Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
Not sourced
Documented outputs
Gemma 3 27B
Not sourced
Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
Not sourced
Provider availability
Gemma 3 27B
Not sourced
Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
Not sourced
Reasoning profile
Gemma 3 27B
Non-Reasoning
Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
Reasoning
Weight access
Gemma 3 27B
Open Weight
Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
Open Weight
License
Gemma 3 27B
Open Weight
Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
Open Weight
Release date
Gemma 3 27B
2025-03-12
Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4
2026-08-11
If you already use one of these models
- Deployment change
- The models list different providers, so authentication, endpoint behavior, limits, and feature support may change.
- Quality signal
- The public evidence has no benchmark result shared by both models, so it does not support a quality verdict.
- Workload cost
- A complete comparable API-rate estimate is not available for both models.
- Context tradeoff
- Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4 has the larger documented window (1M).
Run the same representative tasks against both endpoints before changing production traffic.
Questions
Which is better, Gemma 3 27B or Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4?
The public evidence has no benchmark result shared by both models, so it does not support a quality verdict. The page therefore keeps the decision tied to the specific documented workload.
Which is better for coding, Gemma 3 27B or Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4?
Gemma 3 27B scores higher for coding on the public lane, 13 to 11.4. Gemma 3 27B and Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4 are scored on Estimated evidence for coding, so the reading is directional rather than like-for-like. BenchLM does not name a winner for coding from a directional reading; read the shared benchmark rows directly and test the models on the same task set.
Which is better for agentic tasks, Gemma 3 27B or Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4?
Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4 scores higher for agentic tasks on the public lane, 7.3 to 6.9. Gemma 3 27B and Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4 are scored on Estimated evidence for agentic tasks, so the reading is directional rather than like-for-like. BenchLM does not name a winner for agentic tasks from a directional reading; read the shared benchmark rows directly and test the models on the same task set.
Which costs less, Gemma 3 27B or Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4?
Both models do not have comparable published API token rates, so this page does not name a universal price winner.
Which has the larger context window, Gemma 3 27B or Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4?
Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP4 has the larger documented context window: 1M, compared with 32K.
Benchmark evidence
The full public result ledger is available for audit without forcing a wide desktop table onto a phone.
Browse raw public benchmark evidence13 rows
Agentic
Terminal-Bench 2.1
Gemma 3 27B—Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP423.5%SourceNot directly comparable
PinchBench
Gemma 3 27B—Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP483.4%SourceNot directly comparable
BrowseComp
Gemma 3 27B—Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP436.8%SourceNot directly comparable
τ³-bench results
Gemma 3 27B—Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP49.5%SourceNot directly comparable
Coding
SWE-bench Verified
Gemma 3 27B—Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP452.8%SourceNot directly comparable
SWE Multilingual
Gemma 3 27B—Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP436.5%SourceNot directly comparable
Terminal-Bench 2.1
Gemma 3 27B—Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP423.5%SourceNot directly comparable
SciCode
Gemma 3 27B—Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP431.4%SourceNot directly comparable
Knowledge
GPQA
Gemma 3 27B—Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP475.6%SourceNot directly comparable
GPQA-D
Gemma 3 27B—Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP475.6%SourceNot directly comparable
HLE w/o tools
Gemma 3 27B—Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP410.5%SourceNot directly comparable
MMLU-Pro
Gemma 3 27B—Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP481.6%SourceNot directly comparable
Instruction following
IFBench
Gemma 3 27B—Nemotron 3.5 Lightning 30B A3B NVFP472.9%SourceNot directly comparable
13 public results · 0 shared
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Last updated September 24, 2026