Model Comparison

Gemini 3 Flash vs Qwen3 VL 4B InstructWhich is better in 2026?

Gemini 3 Flash significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct is 5.0x cheaper per token.

Verdict: Gemini 3 Flash vs Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct — which is better?

Gemini 3 Flash (by Google) and Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct (by Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team) 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.

Gemini 3 Flash outperforms in 6 benchmarks (AIME 2025, CharXiv-R, MMMU-Pro, ScreenSpot Pro, SimpleQA, VideoMMMU), while Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct is better at 0 benchmarks. Gemini 3 Flash significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

On price, Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct is roughly 5.0x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.

Gemini 3 Flash also accepts a larger context window (1,000,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.

Choose Gemini 3 Flash if…

  • you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 6 of 6 shared benchmarks
  • you process long inputs — it offers a 1,000,000 token context window
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Dec 2025

Choose Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct if…

  • cost matters — it's about 5.0x 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

6 benchmarks

Gemini 3 Flash outperforms in 6 benchmarks (AIME 2025, CharXiv-R, MMMU-Pro, ScreenSpot Pro, SimpleQA, VideoMMMU), while Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct is better at 0 benchmarks.

Gemini 3 Flash significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Sun Jun 07 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Pricing Analysis

Price comparison per million tokens

Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct costs less

For input processing, Gemini 3 Flash ($0.50/1M tokens) is 5.0x more expensive than Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct ($0.10/1M tokens).

For output processing, Gemini 3 Flash ($3.00/1M tokens) is 5.0x more expensive than Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct ($0.60/1M tokens).

In conclusion, Gemini 3 Flash is more expensive than Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct.*

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

Lowest available price from all providers
Sun Jun 07 2026 • llm-stats.com
Google
Gemini 3 Flash
Input tokens$0.50
Output tokens$3.00
Best providerGoogle
Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct
Input tokens$0.10
Output tokens$0.60
Best providerDeepinfra
Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue→

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Gemini 3 Flash accepts 1,000,000 input tokens compared to Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct's 262,144 tokens. Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct can generate longer responses up to 262,144 tokens, while Gemini 3 Flash is limited to 65,536 tokens.

Google
Gemini 3 Flash
Input1,000,000 tokens
Output65,536 tokens
Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct
Input262,144 tokens
Output262,144 tokens
Sun Jun 07 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Both Gemini 3 Flash and Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct support multimodal inputs.

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

Gemini 3 Flash

Text
Images
Audio
Video

Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct

Text
Images
Audio
Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

Gemini 3 Flash is licensed under a proprietary license, while Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct uses Apache 2.0.

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

Gemini 3 Flash

Proprietary

Closed source

Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct

Apache 2.0

Open weights

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Gemini 3 Flash was released on 2025-12-17, while Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct was released on 2025-09-22.

Gemini 3 Flash is 3 months newer than Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct.

Gemini 3 Flash

Dec 17, 2025

5 months ago

2mo newer
Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct

Sep 22, 2025

8 months ago

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

Gemini 3 Flash has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2025-01-31, while Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct's cutoff date is not specified.

We can confirm Gemini 3 Flash's training data extends to 2025-01-31, but cannot make a direct comparison without Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct's cutoff date.

Gemini 3 Flash

Jan 2025

Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct

—

Provider Availability

Gemini 3 Flash is available from Google. Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct is available from DeepInfra.

Gemini 3 Flash

google logo
Google
Input Price:Input: $0.50/1MOutput Price:Output: $3.00/1M

Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct

deepinfra logo
Deepinfra
Input Price:Input: $0.10/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.60/1M
* Prices shown are per million tokens

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue discussion→

Key Takeaways

Google
Larger context window (1,000,000 tokens)
Higher AIME 2025 score (99.7% vs 46.6%)
Higher CharXiv-R score (80.3% vs 39.7%)
Higher MMMU-Pro score (81.2% vs 53.2%)
Higher ScreenSpot Pro score (69.1% vs 59.5%)
Higher SimpleQA score (68.7% vs 48.0%)
Higher VideoMMMU score (86.9% vs 56.2%)
Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team

Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct

View details

Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team

Less expensive input tokens
Less expensive output tokens
Has open weights

Detailed Comparison

AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
Google
Gemini 3 Flash
Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct

FAQ

Common questions about Gemini 3 Flash vs Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct.

Which is better, Gemini 3 Flash or Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct?

Gemini 3 Flash significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Gemini 3 Flash is made by Google and Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct is made by Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does Gemini 3 Flash compare to Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct in benchmarks?

Gemini 3 Flash scores Vending-Bench 2: 100.0%, AIME 2025: 99.7%, Global PIQA: 92.8%, MMMLU: 91.8%, GPQA: 90.4%. Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct scores DocVQAtest: 95.3%, ScreenSpot: 94.0%, OCRBench: 88.1%, MMBench-V1.1: 85.1%, AI2D: 84.1%.

Is Gemini 3 Flash cheaper than Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct?

Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct is 5.0x cheaper for input tokens. Gemini 3 Flash costs $0.50/M input and $3.00/M output via google. Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct costs $0.10/M input and $0.60/M output via deepinfra.

What are the context window sizes for Gemini 3 Flash and Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct?

Gemini 3 Flash supports 1.0M tokens and Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct supports 262K tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.

What are the main differences between Gemini 3 Flash and Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct?

Key differences include context window (1.0M vs 262K), input pricing ($0.50 vs $0.10/M), licensing (Proprietary vs Apache 2.0). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes Gemini 3 Flash and Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct?

Gemini 3 Flash is developed by Google and Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct is developed by Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team.

Related comparisons