Model comparison
Gemma 4 12B vs Grok 4.20
Head-to-head evidence from 4 shared benchmark results across 2 categories. Overall scores shown here use the public BenchAlign v5 ranking lane.
Public leaderboard positions: Gemma 4 12B #137 (Estimated); Grok 4.20 #88 (Estimated). Intervals and evidence labels describe ranking uncertainty, not a guarantee for a specific workload.
Evidence parity. Gemma 4 12B and Grok 4.20 share 4 comparable benchmark results. 2 of 8 categories are comparable. 19 results are unique to Gemma 4 12B; 14 to Grok 4.20.
Updated July 23, 2026- Shared results
- 4
- Gemma 4 12B only
- 19
- Grok 4.20 only
- 14
- Comparable categories
- 2 / 8
Pick Grok 4.20 if you want the stronger benchmark profile. Gemma 4 12B only becomes the better choice if its workflow or ecosystem matters more than the raw scoreboard.
Confidence note. This is a partial-evidence comparison with 4 shared benchmark results across 2 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
Grok 4.20 is clearly ahead on the BenchAlign aggregate, 54.68 to 47.29. The gap is large enough that you do not need to squint at the spreadsheet to see the difference.
Grok 4.20's sharpest advantage is in reasoning, where it averages 53.3 against 43.4. The single biggest benchmark swing on the page is MMMU-Pro, 69.1% to 75.2%.
Grok 4.20 gives you the larger context window at 2M, 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 | Gemma 4 12B | Δ | Grok 4.20 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reasoning | Gemma 4 12B43.4 | Margin→ 9.9 | Grok 4.2053.3 |
| Multimodal | Gemma 4 12B69.1 | Margin→ 1.0 | Grok 4.2070.1 |
| Agentic | Gemma 4 12BNot measured | MarginNo overlap | Grok 4.2047.1 |
| Coding | Gemma 4 12BNot measured | MarginNo overlap | Grok 4.2067.1 |
| Knowledge | Gemma 4 12B77.5 | MarginNo overlap | Grok 4.20Not measured |
| Math | Gemma 4 12B77.5 | MarginNo overlap | Grok 4.20Not measured |
Decisive benchmark drivers
The largest measured benchmark gaps in this matchup, with exact reported values.
More
- Source ↗
MMMU-Pro
MultimodalA 69.1%B 75.2%Winner: Grok 4.20Δ 6.1MMMU-Pro: Gemma 4 12B scored 69.1%; Grok 4.20 scored 75.2%. Grok 4.20 wins this benchmark.
Operational comparison
Runtime and commercial metrics are compared only when both models have a complete sourced value.
| Metric | Gemma 4 12B | Grok 4.20 | Comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| Input / output priceUSD per 1M tokens | Gemma 4 12BNot available | Grok 4.20$2 input / $6 output | A complete price comparison is not available. |
| Generation speedtokens per second | Gemma 4 12BNot available | Grok 4.20233 tok/s | A complete speed comparison is not available. |
| First-answer latencyseconds to first token | Gemma 4 12BNot available | Grok 4.2010.33 s | A complete latency comparison is not available. |
| Context windowmaximum listed tokens | Gemma 4 12B256K | Grok 4.202M | Grok 4.20 lists the larger context window. |
Benchmark Deep Dive
Agentic4 benchmarks
Coding5 benchmarks
ReasoningGrok 4.20 wins5 benchmarks
Knowledge13 benchmarks
| Benchmark | Gemma 4 12B | Grok 4.20 | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| GPQASource | 78.8% | — | Not comparable |
| GPQA-DSource | 78.8% | 88.5% | Grok 4.20 leads |
| MMLU-ProSource | 77.2% | — | Not comparable |
| HLE w/o toolsSource | 5.2% | 31.6% | Grok 4.20 leads |
| MMMLUSource | 83.4% | — | Not comparable |
| Artificial Analysis Intelligence IndexSource | 22.0% | — | Not comparable |
| AA-GPQA DiamondSource | 75.3% | — | Not comparable |
| AA-HLESource | 14.8% | — | Not comparable |
| AA-Omniscience IndexSource | -51.9% | — | Not comparable |
| AA-Omniscience AccuracySource | 16.0% | — | Not comparable |
| AA-Omniscience Hallucination RateSource | 80.8% | — | Not comparable |
| HealthBench HardSource | — | 20.3% | Not comparable |
| MedXpertQA (Text)Source | — | 50.2% | Not comparable |
Math1 benchmarks
| Benchmark | Gemma 4 12B | Grok 4.20 | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| AIME26Source | 77.5% | — | Not comparable |
MultimodalGrok 4.20 wins8 benchmarks
| Benchmark | Gemma 4 12B | Grok 4.20 | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| MMMU-ProSource | 69.1% | 75.2% | Grok 4.20 leads |
| MathVisionSource | 79.7% | — | Not comparable |
| MedXpertQA (MM)Source | 48.7% | 65.8% | Grok 4.20 leads |
| AA-MMMU-ProSource | 69.7% | — | Not comparable |
| CharXivSource | — | 60.9% | Not comparable |
| ERQASource | — | 54.1% | Not comparable |
| SimpleVQASource | — | 57.4% | Not comparable |
| Design Arena WebsiteSource | — | 1257 | Not comparable |
Inst. Following1 benchmarks
| Benchmark | Gemma 4 12B | Grok 4.20 | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA-IFBenchSource | 73.5% | — | Not comparable |
Frequently Asked Questions (3)
Which is better, Gemma 4 12B or Grok 4.20?
Grok 4.20 is ahead on BenchLM's BenchAlign leaderboard, 54.68 to 47.29. The biggest single separator in this matchup is MMMU-Pro, where the scores are 69.1% and 75.2%.
Which is better for reasoning, Gemma 4 12B or Grok 4.20?
Grok 4.20 has the edge for reasoning in this comparison, averaging 53.3 versus 43.4. Gemma 4 12B stays close enough that the answer can still flip depending on your workload.
Which is better for multimodal and grounded tasks, Gemma 4 12B or Grok 4.20?
Grok 4.20 has the edge for multimodal and grounded tasks in this comparison, averaging 70.1 versus 69.1. Inside this category, MedXpertQA (MM) is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.
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