Model Comparison

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite vs Mistral Medium 3.5Which is better in 2026?

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite is 3.5x cheaper per token.

Verdict: Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite vs Mistral Medium 3.5 — which is better?

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite (by Google) and Mistral Medium 3.5 (by Mistral AI) 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 3.5 Flash-Lite outperforms in 1 benchmarks (GDPval-AA), while Mistral Medium 3.5 is better at 0 benchmarks. Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

On price, Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite is roughly 3.5x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite also accepts a larger context window (1,048,576 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.

Choose Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite if…

  • you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 1 of 1 shared benchmarks
  • cost matters — it's about 3.5x cheaper per token
  • you process long inputs — it offers a 1,048,576 token context window
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Jul 2026

Choose Mistral Medium 3.5 if…

  • you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune

Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

1 benchmarks

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite outperforms in 1 benchmarks (GDPval-AA), while Mistral Medium 3.5 is better at 0 benchmarks.

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Sun Jul 26 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Pricing Analysis

Price comparison per million tokens

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite costs less

For input processing, Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite ($0.30/1M tokens) is 5.0x cheaper than Mistral Medium 3.5 ($1.50/1M tokens).

For output processing, Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite ($2.50/1M tokens) is 3.0x cheaper than Mistral Medium 3.5 ($7.50/1M tokens).

In conclusion, Mistral Medium 3.5 is more expensive than Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite.*

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

Lowest available price from all providers
Sun Jul 26 2026 • llm-stats.com
Google
Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite
Input tokens$0.30
Output tokens$2.50
Best providerGoogle
Mistral AI
Mistral Medium 3.5
Input tokens$1.50
Output tokens$7.50
Best providerMistral
Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue→

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite accepts 1,048,576 input tokens compared to Mistral Medium 3.5's 256,000 tokens. Mistral Medium 3.5 can generate longer responses up to 256,000 tokens, while Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite is limited to 65,536 tokens.

Google
Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite
Input1,048,576 tokens
Output65,536 tokens
Mistral AI
Mistral Medium 3.5
Input256,000 tokens
Output256,000 tokens
Sun Jul 26 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Both Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite and Mistral Medium 3.5 support multimodal inputs.

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

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite

Text
Images
Audio
Video

Mistral Medium 3.5

Text
Images
Audio
Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite is licensed under a proprietary license, while Mistral Medium 3.5 uses Modified MIT License.

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

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite

Proprietary

Closed source

Mistral Medium 3.5

Modified MIT License

Open weights

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite was released on 2026-07-21, while Mistral Medium 3.5 was released on 2026-04-29.

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite is 3 months newer than Mistral Medium 3.5.

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite

Jul 21, 2026

4 days ago

2mo newer
Mistral Medium 3.5

Apr 29, 2026

2 months ago

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2026-03-31, while Mistral Medium 3.5's cutoff date is not specified.

We can confirm Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite's training data extends to 2026-03-31, but cannot make a direct comparison without Mistral Medium 3.5's cutoff date.

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite

Mar 2026

Mistral Medium 3.5

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Provider Availability

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite is available from Google. Mistral Medium 3.5 is available from Mistral AI.

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite

google logo
Google
Input Price:Input: $0.30/1MOutput Price:Output: $2.50/1M

Mistral Medium 3.5

mistral logo
Mistral
Input Price:Input: $1.50/1MOutput Price:Output: $7.50/1M
* Prices shown are per million tokens

Outputs Comparison

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Key Takeaways

Google
Larger context window (1,048,576 tokens)
Less expensive input tokens
Less expensive output tokens
Higher GDPval-AA score (38.0% vs 30.9%)
Mistral AI
Has open weights

Detailed Comparison

Interactive Arena

Judge for yourself.

Run your own prompts against Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite and Mistral Medium 3.5 side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite
✓ Preferred
Mistral Medium 3.5
Open in Playground
AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
Google
Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite
Mistral AI
Mistral Medium 3.5

FAQ

Common questions about Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite vs Mistral Medium 3.5.

Which is better, Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite or Mistral Medium 3.5?

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite is made by Google and Mistral Medium 3.5 is made by Mistral AI. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite compare to Mistral Medium 3.5 in benchmarks?

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite scores CharXiv-R: 76.5%, OSWorld-Verified: 74.0%, SWE-Bench Pro: 54.2%, Terminal-Bench 2.1: 54.0%, MLE-Bench: 39.2%. Mistral Medium 3.5 scores COLLIE: 95.8%, Tau3 Telecom: 91.4%, AIME 2025: 86.3%, SWE-Bench Verified: 77.6%, Tau3 Retail: 76.1%.

Is Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite cheaper than Mistral Medium 3.5?

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite is 5.0x cheaper for input tokens. Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite costs $0.30/M input and $2.50/M output via google. Mistral Medium 3.5 costs $1.50/M input and $7.50/M output via mistral.

What are the context window sizes for Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite and Mistral Medium 3.5?

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite supports 1.0M tokens and Mistral Medium 3.5 supports 256K tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.

What are the main differences between Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite and Mistral Medium 3.5?

Key differences include context window (1.0M vs 256K), input pricing ($0.30 vs $1.50/M), licensing (Proprietary vs Modified MIT License). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite and Mistral Medium 3.5?

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite is developed by Google and Mistral Medium 3.5 is developed by Mistral AI.

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