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DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B vs Gemma 3 1B

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

DeepSeek · Google · Updated for 2026

Which is better?

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B outperforms in 2 benchmarks (GPQA, LiveCodeBench), while Gemma 3 1B is better at 0 benchmarks. DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Based on current benchmark, pricing, and model metadata for 2026.

Choose DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B

  • you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 2 of 2 shared benchmarks

Choose Gemma 3 1B

  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Mar 2025

At a glance

The differences that matter most.

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B
DeepSeek
Gemma 3 1B
Google
Benchmark wins
2 of 2
0 of 2
Input price
— / M
— / M
Output price
— / M
— / M
Context window
—
—
Released
Jan 2025
Mar 2025
License
MIT
Gemma

Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

2 benchmarks

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B outperforms in 2 benchmarks (GPQA, LiveCodeBench), while Gemma 3 1B is better at 0 benchmarks.

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Tue Aug 25 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Playground indexes and blind preference scores

Model Size

Parameter count comparison

780.0M diff

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B has 0.8B more parameters than Gemma 3 1B, making it 78.0% larger.

DeepSeek
DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B
1.8Bparameters
Google
Gemma 3 1B
1.0Bparameters
1.8B
DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B
1.0B
Gemma 3 1B

License

Usage and distribution terms

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B is licensed under MIT, while Gemma 3 1B uses Gemma.

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

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B

MIT

Open weights

Gemma 3 1B

Gemma

Open weights

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B was released on 2025-01-20, while Gemma 3 1B was released on 2025-03-12.

Gemma 3 1B is 2 months newer than DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B.

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B

Jan 20, 2025

1.6 years ago

Gemma 3 1B

Mar 12, 2025

1.5 years ago

1mo newer

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 Qwen 1.5B and Gemma 3 1B side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B
✓ Preferred
Gemma 3 1B
Open in Playground

FAQ

Common questions about DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B vs Gemma 3 1B.

Which is better, DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B or Gemma 3 1B?

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B is made by DeepSeek and Gemma 3 1B is made by Google. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B compare to Gemma 3 1B in benchmarks?

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B scores MATH-500: 83.9%, AIME 2024: 52.7%, GPQA: 33.8%, LiveCodeBench: 16.9%. Gemma 3 1B scores IFEval: 80.2%, GSM8k: 62.8%, Natural2Code: 56.0%, MATH: 48.0%, HumanEval: 41.5%.

What are the main differences between DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B and Gemma 3 1B?

Key differences include licensing (MIT vs Gemma). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B and Gemma 3 1B?

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 1.5B is developed by DeepSeek and Gemma 3 1B is developed by Google.

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