Model Comparison

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B vs Phi-3.5-mini-instructWhich is better in 2026?

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Verdict: DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B vs Phi-3.5-mini-instruct — which is better?

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B (by DeepSeek) and Phi-3.5-mini-instruct (by Microsoft) 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.

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B outperforms in 1 benchmarks (GPQA), while Phi-3.5-mini-instruct is better at 0 benchmarks. DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Choose DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B if…

  • you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 1 of 1 shared benchmarks
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Jan 2025

Choose Phi-3.5-mini-instruct if…

  • you want predictable pricing at $0.10/M input and $0.10/M output
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Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

1 benchmarks

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B outperforms in 1 benchmarks (GPQA), while Phi-3.5-mini-instruct is better at 0 benchmarks.

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Tue Jun 09 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Model Size

Parameter count comparison

11.0B diff

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B has 11.0B more parameters than Phi-3.5-mini-instruct, making it 289.5% larger.

DeepSeek
DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B
14.8Bparameters
Microsoft
Phi-3.5-mini-instruct
3.8Bparameters
14.8B
DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B
3.8B
Phi-3.5-mini-instruct

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Only Phi-3.5-mini-instruct specifies input context (128,000 tokens). Only Phi-3.5-mini-instruct specifies output context (128,000 tokens).

DeepSeek
DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B
Input- tokens
Output- tokens
Microsoft
Phi-3.5-mini-instruct
Input128,000 tokens
Output128,000 tokens
Tue Jun 09 2026 • llm-stats.com

License

Usage and distribution terms

Both models are licensed under MIT.

Both models share the same licensing terms, providing consistent usage rights.

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B

MIT

Open weights

Phi-3.5-mini-instruct

MIT

Open weights

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B was released on 2025-01-20, while Phi-3.5-mini-instruct was released on 2024-08-23.

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B is 5 months newer than Phi-3.5-mini-instruct.

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B

Jan 20, 2025

1.4 years ago

5mo newer
Phi-3.5-mini-instruct

Aug 23, 2024

1.8 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→

Key Takeaways

DeepSeek
Higher GPQA score (59.1% vs 30.4%)
Microsoft
Larger context window (128,000 tokens)

Detailed Comparison

AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
DeepSeek
DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B
Microsoft
Phi-3.5-mini-instruct

FAQ

Common questions about DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B vs Phi-3.5-mini-instruct.

Which is better, DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B or Phi-3.5-mini-instruct?

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B is made by DeepSeek and Phi-3.5-mini-instruct is made by Microsoft. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B compare to Phi-3.5-mini-instruct in benchmarks?

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B scores MATH-500: 93.9%, AIME 2024: 80.0%, GPQA: 59.1%, LiveCodeBench: 53.1%. Phi-3.5-mini-instruct scores GSM8k: 86.2%, ARC-C: 84.6%, RULER: 84.1%, PIQA: 81.0%, OpenBookQA: 79.2%.

What are the context window sizes for DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B and Phi-3.5-mini-instruct?

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B supports an unknown number of tokens and Phi-3.5-mini-instruct supports 128K tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.

Who makes DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B and Phi-3.5-mini-instruct?

DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 14B is developed by DeepSeek and Phi-3.5-mini-instruct is developed by Microsoft.

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