Model comparison
Gemma 4 12B vs Qwen 3.6 Max (preview)
Head-to-head evidence from 11 shared benchmark results across 5 categories. Overall scores shown here use the public BenchAlign v5 ranking lane.
Public leaderboard positions: Gemma 4 12B #137 (Estimated); Qwen 3.6 Max (preview) #53 (Supported). Intervals and evidence labels describe ranking uncertainty, not a guarantee for a specific workload.
Evidence parity. Gemma 4 12B and Qwen 3.6 Max (preview) share 11 comparable benchmark results. 2 of 8 categories are comparable. 12 results are unique to Gemma 4 12B; 10 to Qwen 3.6 Max (preview).
Updated July 23, 2026- Shared results
- 11
- Gemma 4 12B only
- 12
- Qwen 3.6 Max (preview) only
- 10
- Comparable categories
- 2 / 8
Pick Qwen 3.6 Max (preview) if you want the stronger benchmark profile. Gemma 4 12B only becomes the better choice if mathematics is the priority.
Confidence note. This is a partial-evidence comparison with 11 shared benchmark results across 5 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
Qwen 3.6 Max (preview) is clearly ahead on the BenchAlign aggregate, 59.72 to 47.29. The gap is large enough that you do not need to squint at the spreadsheet to see the difference.
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 | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Math | Gemma 4 12B77.5 | Margin← 59.1 | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview)18.4 |
| Knowledge | Gemma 4 12B77.5 | Margin← 3.6 | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview)73.9 |
| Agentic | Gemma 4 12BNot measured | MarginNo overlap | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview)65.4 |
| Coding | Gemma 4 12BNot measured | MarginNo overlap | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview)51.0 |
| Reasoning | Gemma 4 12B43.4 | MarginNo overlap | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview)Not measured |
| Multimodal | Gemma 4 12B69.1 | MarginNo overlap | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview)Not measured |
Operational comparison
Runtime and commercial metrics are compared only when both models have a complete sourced value.
| Metric | Gemma 4 12B | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview) | Comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| Input / output priceUSD per 1M tokens | Gemma 4 12BNot available | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview)Not available | A complete price comparison is not available. |
| Generation speedtokens per second | Gemma 4 12BNot available | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview)Not available | A complete speed comparison is not available. |
| First-answer latencyseconds to first token | Gemma 4 12BNot available | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview)Not available | A complete latency comparison is not available. |
| Context windowmaximum listed tokens | Gemma 4 12B256K | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview)256K | Listed context windows are equal. |
Benchmark Deep Dive
Agentic4 benchmarks
Coding5 benchmarks
Reasoning4 benchmarks
KnowledgeGemma 4 12B wins12 benchmarks
| Benchmark | Gemma 4 12B | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
| Artificial Analysis Intelligence IndexSource | 22.0% | 40.0% | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview) leads |
| AA-GPQA DiamondSource | 75.3% | 88.8% | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview) leads |
| AA-HLESource | 14.8% | 28.9% | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview) leads |
| AA-Omniscience IndexSource | -51.9% | 10.2% | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview) leads |
| AA-Omniscience AccuracySource | 16.0% | 37.7% | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview) leads |
| AA-Omniscience Hallucination RateSource | 80.8% | 44.2% | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview) leads |
| SuperGPQASource | — | 73.9% | Not comparable |
MathGemma 4 12B wins3 benchmarks
Multimodal4 benchmarks
Inst. Following1 benchmarks
| Benchmark | Gemma 4 12B | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA-IFBenchSource | 73.5% | 76.6% | Qwen 3.6 Max (preview) leads |
Frequently Asked Questions (3)
Which is better, Gemma 4 12B or Qwen 3.6 Max (preview)?
Qwen 3.6 Max (preview) is ahead on BenchLM's BenchAlign leaderboard, 59.72 to 47.29.
Which is better for knowledge tasks, Gemma 4 12B or Qwen 3.6 Max (preview)?
Gemma 4 12B has the edge for knowledge tasks in this comparison, averaging 77.5 versus 73.9. Inside this category, AA-Omniscience Index is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.
Which is better for math, Gemma 4 12B or Qwen 3.6 Max (preview)?
Gemma 4 12B has the edge for math in this comparison, averaging 77.5 versus 18.4. Qwen 3.6 Max (preview) stays close enough that the answer can still flip depending on your workload.
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