Model Comparison

Gemma 2 9B vs Gemma 3n E2BWhich is better in 2026?

Gemma 2 9B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Verdict: Gemma 2 9B vs Gemma 3n E2B — which is better?

Gemma 2 9B (by Google) and Gemma 3n E2B (by Google) 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.

Gemma 2 9B outperforms in 9 benchmarks (ARC-C, ARC-E, BoolQ, HellaSwag, Natural Questions, PIQA, Social IQa, TriviaQA, Winogrande), while Gemma 3n E2B is better at 0 benchmarks. Gemma 2 9B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Choose Gemma 2 9B if…

  • you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 9 of 9 shared benchmarks
  • you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune

Choose Gemma 3n E2B if…

  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Jun 2025

Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

9 benchmarks

Gemma 2 9B outperforms in 9 benchmarks (ARC-C, ARC-E, BoolQ, HellaSwag, Natural Questions, PIQA, Social IQa, TriviaQA, Winogrande), while Gemma 3n E2B is better at 0 benchmarks.

Gemma 2 9B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Sat Jul 18 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Model Size

Parameter count comparison

1.2B diff

Gemma 2 9B has 1.2B more parameters than Gemma 3n E2B, making it 15.5% larger.

Google
Gemma 2 9B
9.2Bparameters
Google
Gemma 3n E2B
8.0Bparameters
9.2B
Gemma 2 9B
8.0B
Gemma 3n E2B

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Gemma 3n E2B supports multimodal inputs, whereas Gemma 2 9B does not.

Gemma 3n E2B can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.

Gemma 2 9B

Text
Images
Audio
Video

Gemma 3n E2B

Text
Images
Audio
Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

Gemma 2 9B is licensed under Gemma, while Gemma 3n E2B uses a proprietary license.

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

Gemma 2 9B

Gemma

Open weights

Gemma 3n E2B

Proprietary

Closed source

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Gemma 2 9B was released on 2024-06-27, while Gemma 3n E2B was released on 2025-06-26.

Gemma 3n E2B is 12 months newer than Gemma 2 9B.

Gemma 2 9B

Jun 27, 2024

2.1 years ago

Gemma 3n E2B

Jun 26, 2025

1.1 years ago

12mo newer

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

Gemma 3n E2B has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2024-06-01, while Gemma 2 9B's cutoff date is not specified.

We can confirm Gemma 3n E2B's training data extends to 2024-06-01, but cannot make a direct comparison without Gemma 2 9B's cutoff date.

Gemma 2 9B

—

Gemma 3n E2B

Jun 2024

Outputs Comparison

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Key Takeaways

Google
Has open weights
Higher ARC-C score (68.4% vs 51.7%)
Higher ARC-E score (88.0% vs 75.8%)
Higher BoolQ score (84.2% vs 76.4%)
Higher HellaSwag score (81.9% vs 72.2%)
Higher Natural Questions score (29.2% vs 15.5%)
Higher PIQA score (81.7% vs 78.9%)
Higher Social IQa score (53.4% vs 48.8%)
Higher TriviaQA score (76.6% vs 60.8%)
Higher Winogrande score (80.6% vs 66.8%)
Google
Supports multimodal inputs

Detailed Comparison

Interactive Arena

Judge for yourself.

Run your own prompts against Gemma 2 9B and Gemma 3n E2B side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.

Gemma 2 9B
✓ Preferred
Gemma 3n E2B
Open in Playground
AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
Google
Gemma 2 9B
Google
Gemma 3n E2B

FAQ

Common questions about Gemma 2 9B vs Gemma 3n E2B.

Which is better, Gemma 2 9B or Gemma 3n E2B?

Gemma 2 9B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Gemma 2 9B is made by Google and Gemma 3n E2B is made by Google. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does Gemma 2 9B compare to Gemma 3n E2B in benchmarks?

Gemma 2 9B scores ARC-E: 88.0%, BoolQ: 84.2%, HellaSwag: 81.9%, PIQA: 81.7%, Winogrande: 80.6%. Gemma 3n E2B scores PIQA: 78.9%, BoolQ: 76.4%, ARC-E: 75.8%, HellaSwag: 72.2%, Winogrande: 66.8%.

What are the main differences between Gemma 2 9B and Gemma 3n E2B?

Key differences include multimodal support (no vs yes), licensing (Gemma vs Proprietary). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

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