Gemma 2 27B vs Nova Lite
Nova Lite leads the LLM Stats Score 7.5 to -0.7.
Google · Amazon · Updated for 2026
Which is better?
Nova Lite leads the overall LLM Stats Score 7.5 to -0.7, ranking #303 overall.
In the 5 individual benchmarks reported for both models, Nova Lite wins 5; this is a narrower head-to-head signal than the composite indexes.
Based on current LLM Stats indexes, shared benchmarks, pricing, and model metadata for 2026.
Choose Gemma 2 27B
- you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune
Choose Nova Lite
- overall performance matters — it scores 7.5 and ranks #303 on LLM Stats
- your work emphasizes reasoning — it leads those capability indexes
- you value its reported benchmark strengths — it wins 5 of 5 exact shared results
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Nov 2024
At a glance
The differences that matter most.
Capability indexes
Additional strengths measured across groups of related public benchmarks
Individual benchmarks
16 reported for Gemma 2 27B · 27 for Nova Lite
Gemma 2 27B outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Nova Lite is better at 5 benchmarks (ARC-C, GSM8k, HumanEval, MATH, MMLU).
Nova Lite significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Human preference
Blind head-to-head votes and playground preference scores
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Only Nova Lite specifies input context (300,000 tokens). Only Nova Lite specifies output context (2,048 tokens).
Input capabilities
Documented input modalities across available providers
Nova Lite supports multimodal inputs, whereas Gemma 2 27B does not.
Nova Lite can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.
Gemma 2 27B
Nova Lite
License
Usage and distribution terms
Gemma 2 27B is licensed under Gemma, while Nova Lite uses a proprietary license.
License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.
Gemma
Open weights
Proprietary
Closed source
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
Gemma 2 27B was released on 2024-06-27, while Nova Lite was released on 2024-11-20.
Nova Lite is 5 months newer than Gemma 2 27B.
Jun 27, 2024
2.3 years ago
Nov 20, 2024
1.9 years ago
4mo 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 Gemma 2 27B and Nova Lite side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
FAQ
Common questions about Gemma 2 27B vs Nova Lite.