DeepSeek VL2 vs LFM2.5-VL-3B
LFM2.5-VL-3B shows notably better performance in the majority of benchmarks.
DeepSeek · Liquid AI · Updated for 2026
Which is better?
DeepSeek VL2 outperforms in 2 benchmarks (ChartQA, DocVQA), while LFM2.5-VL-3B is better at 6 benchmarks (MMBench-V1.1, MME, MMStar, OCRBench, RealWorldQA, TextVQA). LFM2.5-VL-3B shows notably better performance in the majority of benchmarks.
Based on current benchmark, pricing, and model metadata for 2026.
Choose DeepSeek VL2
- you are already invested in the DeepSeek ecosystem
Choose LFM2.5-VL-3B
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 6 of 8 shared benchmarks
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Aug 2026
At a glance
The differences that matter most.
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
DeepSeek VL2 outperforms in 2 benchmarks (ChartQA, DocVQA), while LFM2.5-VL-3B is better at 6 benchmarks (MMBench-V1.1, MME, MMStar, OCRBench, RealWorldQA, TextVQA).
LFM2.5-VL-3B shows notably better performance in the majority of benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Playground indexes and blind preference scores
Model Size
Parameter count comparison
DeepSeek VL2 has 23.9B more parameters than LFM2.5-VL-3B, making it 764.4% larger.
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Only DeepSeek VL2 specifies input context (129,280 tokens). Only DeepSeek VL2 specifies output context (129,280 tokens).
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
Both DeepSeek VL2 and LFM2.5-VL-3B support multimodal inputs.
They are both capable of processing various types of data, offering versatility in application.
DeepSeek VL2
LFM2.5-VL-3B
License
Usage and distribution terms
DeepSeek VL2 is licensed under deepseek, while LFM2.5-VL-3B uses LFM Open License v1.0.
License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.
deepseek
Open weights
LFM Open License v1.0
Open weights
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
DeepSeek VL2 was released on 2024-12-13, while LFM2.5-VL-3B was released on 2026-08-12.
LFM2.5-VL-3B is 20 months newer than DeepSeek VL2.
Dec 13, 2024
1.7 years ago
Aug 12, 2026
1 weeks ago
1.7yr newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
Neither model specifies a knowledge cutoff date.
Unable to compare the recency of their training data.
Outputs Comparison
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against DeepSeek VL2 and LFM2.5-VL-3B side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
FAQ
Common questions about DeepSeek VL2 vs LFM2.5-VL-3B.