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DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B vs Gemma 2 9B

DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B leads the LLM Stats Score 7.1 to -4.8.

DeepSeek · Google · Updated for 2026

Which is better?

DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B leads the overall LLM Stats Score 7.1 to -4.8, ranking #279 overall.

Based on current LLM Stats indexes, shared benchmarks, pricing, and model metadata for 2026.

Choose DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B

  • overall performance matters — it scores 7.1 and ranks #279 on LLM Stats
  • your work emphasizes reasoning — it leads those capability indexes
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Jan 2025

Choose Gemma 2 9B

  • you are already invested in the Google ecosystem

At a glance

The differences that matter most.

Core performance indexes
7.1
#279
-4.8
#341
7.4
#270
-5.2
#333
2.7
#217
-11.0
#256
Cost, coverage & limits
Benchmark wins
Input price
— / M
— / M
Output price
— / M
— / M
Context window

Capability indexes

Additional strengths measured across groups of related public benchmarks

1 shared
Index
DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B
Gemma 2 9B
10.9#240
-3.4#305
Conservative TrueSkill rating · higher is betterHow scores work

Individual benchmarks

4 reported for DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B · 16 for Gemma 2 9B

No common benchmarks found

DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B and Gemma 2 9Bdon't have any common benchmark datasets to compare. They may have been evaluated on different testing suites.

Human preference

Blind head-to-head votes and playground preference scores

Model Size

Parameter count comparison

1.2B diff

Gemma 2 9B has 1.2B more parameters than DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B, making it 15.1% larger.

DeepSeek
DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B
8.0Bparameters
Google
Gemma 2 9B
9.2Bparameters
8.0B
DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B
9.2B
Gemma 2 9B

License

Usage and distribution terms

DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B is licensed under MIT, while Gemma 2 9B uses Gemma.

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

DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B

MIT

Open weights

Gemma 2 9B

Gemma

Open weights

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B was released on 2025-01-20, while Gemma 2 9B was released on 2024-06-27.

DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B is 7 months newer than Gemma 2 9B.

DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B

Jan 20, 2025

1.6 years ago

6mo newer
Gemma 2 9B

Jun 27, 2024

2.2 years ago

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

Neither model specifies a knowledge cutoff date.

Unable to compare the recency of their training data.

No cutoff dates available

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue discussion

Judge for yourself.

Run your own prompts against DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B and Gemma 2 9B side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.

DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B
✓ Preferred
Gemma 2 9B
Open in Playground

FAQ

Common questions about DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B vs Gemma 2 9B.

Which is better, DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B or Gemma 2 9B?

DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B leads the LLM Stats Score 7.1 to -4.8. DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B is made by DeepSeek and Gemma 2 9B is made by Google. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their capability indexes, individual benchmarks, pricing, and limits above.

How does DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B compare to Gemma 2 9B in benchmarks?

DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B scores MATH-500: 89.1%, AIME 2024: 80.0%, GPQA: 49.0%, LiveCodeBench: 39.6%. Gemma 2 9B scores ARC-E: 88.0%, BoolQ: 84.2%, HellaSwag: 81.9%, PIQA: 81.7%, Winogrande: 80.6%.

What are the main differences between DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B and Gemma 2 9B?

Key differences include LLM Stats Score (7.1 vs -4.8), licensing (MIT vs Gemma). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B and Gemma 2 9B?

DeepSeek R1 Distill Llama 8B is developed by DeepSeek and Gemma 2 9B is developed by Google.