Model Comparison

Claude Opus 4.6 vs Gemma 3 4BWhich is better in 2026?

Claude Opus 4.6 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Gemma 3 4B is 400.0x cheaper per token.

Verdict: Claude Opus 4.6 vs Gemma 3 4B — which is better?

Claude Opus 4.6 (by Anthropic) and Gemma 3 4B (by Google) are two of the AI models people compare most. Here is how they stack up on benchmarks, price and capabilities, and which one to pick in 2026.

Claude Opus 4.6 outperforms in 1 benchmarks (GPQA), while Gemma 3 4B is better at 0 benchmarks. Claude Opus 4.6 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

On price, Gemma 3 4B is roughly 400.0x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.

Claude Opus 4.6 also accepts a larger context window (1,000,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.

Choose Claude Opus 4.6 if…

  • you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 1 of 1 shared benchmarks
  • you process long inputs — it offers a 1,000,000 token context window
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Feb 2026

Choose Gemma 3 4B if…

  • cost matters — it's about 400.0x cheaper per token
  • you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune
Want to compare interactively?Try the playground

Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

1 benchmarks

Claude Opus 4.6 outperforms in 1 benchmarks (GPQA), while Gemma 3 4B is better at 0 benchmarks.

Claude Opus 4.6 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Sun Jun 07 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Pricing Analysis

Price comparison per million tokens

Gemma 3 4B costs less

For input processing, Claude Opus 4.6 ($5.00/1M tokens) is 250.0x more expensive than Gemma 3 4B ($0.02/1M tokens).

For output processing, Claude Opus 4.6 ($25.00/1M tokens) is 625.0x more expensive than Gemma 3 4B ($0.04/1M tokens).

In conclusion, Claude Opus 4.6 is more expensive than Gemma 3 4B.*

* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens

Lowest available price from all providers
Sun Jun 07 2026 • llm-stats.com
Anthropic
Claude Opus 4.6
Input tokens$5.00
Output tokens$25.00
Best providerAnthropic
Google
Gemma 3 4B
Input tokens$0.02
Output tokens$0.04
Best providerDeepinfra
Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue→

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Claude Opus 4.6 accepts 1,000,000 input tokens compared to Gemma 3 4B's 131,072 tokens. Gemma 3 4B can generate longer responses up to 131,072 tokens, while Claude Opus 4.6 is limited to 128,000 tokens.

Anthropic
Claude Opus 4.6
Input1,000,000 tokens
Output128,000 tokens
Google
Gemma 3 4B
Input131,072 tokens
Output131,072 tokens
Sun Jun 07 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Both Claude Opus 4.6 and Gemma 3 4B support multimodal inputs.

They are both capable of processing various types of data, offering versatility in application.

Claude Opus 4.6

Text
Images
Audio
Video

Gemma 3 4B

Text
Images
Audio
Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

Claude Opus 4.6 is licensed under a proprietary license, while Gemma 3 4B uses Gemma.

License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.

Claude Opus 4.6

Proprietary

Closed source

Gemma 3 4B

Gemma

Open weights

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Claude Opus 4.6 was released on 2026-02-05, while Gemma 3 4B was released on 2025-03-12.

Claude Opus 4.6 is 11 months newer than Gemma 3 4B.

Claude Opus 4.6

Feb 5, 2026

4 months ago

11mo newer
Gemma 3 4B

Mar 12, 2025

1.2 years ago

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

Gemma 3 4B has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2024-08-01, while Claude Opus 4.6's cutoff date is not specified.

We can confirm Gemma 3 4B's training data extends to 2024-08-01, but cannot make a direct comparison without Claude Opus 4.6's cutoff date.

Claude Opus 4.6

—

Gemma 3 4B

Aug 2024

Provider Availability

Claude Opus 4.6 is available from Anthropic. Gemma 3 4B is available from DeepInfra.

Claude Opus 4.6

anthropic logo
Anthropic
Input Price:Input: $5.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $25.00/1M

Gemma 3 4B

deepinfra logo
Deepinfra
Input Price:Input: $0.02/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.04/1M
* Prices shown are per million tokens

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue discussion→

Key Takeaways

Anthropic
Larger context window (1,000,000 tokens)
Higher GPQA score (91.3% vs 30.8%)
Google
Less expensive input tokens
Less expensive output tokens
Has open weights

Detailed Comparison

AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
Anthropic
Claude Opus 4.6
Google
Gemma 3 4B

FAQ

Common questions about Claude Opus 4.6 vs Gemma 3 4B.

Which is better, Claude Opus 4.6 or Gemma 3 4B?

Claude Opus 4.6 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Claude Opus 4.6 is made by Anthropic and Gemma 3 4B is made by Google. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does Claude Opus 4.6 compare to Gemma 3 4B in benchmarks?

Claude Opus 4.6 scores Vending-Bench 2: 100.0%, AIME 2025: 99.8%, Tau2 Telecom: 99.3%, Graphwalks parents >128k: 95.4%, MRCR v2 (8-needle): 93.0%. Gemma 3 4B scores IFEval: 90.2%, GSM8k: 89.2%, DocVQA: 75.8%, MATH: 75.6%, AI2D: 74.8%.

Is Claude Opus 4.6 cheaper than Gemma 3 4B?

Gemma 3 4B is 250.0x cheaper for input tokens. Claude Opus 4.6 costs $5.00/M input and $25.00/M output via anthropic. Gemma 3 4B costs $0.02/M input and $0.04/M output via deepinfra.

What are the context window sizes for Claude Opus 4.6 and Gemma 3 4B?

Claude Opus 4.6 supports 1.0M tokens and Gemma 3 4B supports 131K tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.

What are the main differences between Claude Opus 4.6 and Gemma 3 4B?

Key differences include context window (1.0M vs 131K), input pricing ($5.00 vs $0.02/M), licensing (Proprietary vs Gemma). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes Claude Opus 4.6 and Gemma 3 4B?

Claude Opus 4.6 is developed by Anthropic and Gemma 3 4B is developed by Google.

Related comparisons