The AI arena is free today

Open Superagent

Gemma 2 9B vs IBM Granite 4.2 3B

IBM Granite 4.2 3B leads the LLM Stats Score 15.6 to -4.8.

Google · IBM · Updated for 2026

Which is better?

IBM Granite 4.2 3B leads the overall LLM Stats Score 15.6 to -4.8, ranking #213 overall.

Based on current LLM Stats indexes, shared benchmarks, pricing, and model metadata for 2026.

Choose Gemma 2 9B

  • you are already invested in the Google ecosystem

Choose IBM Granite 4.2 3B

  • overall performance matters — it scores 15.6 and ranks #213 on LLM Stats
  • your work emphasizes reasoning — it leads those capability indexes
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Aug 2026

At a glance

The differences that matter most.

Gemma 2 9B
Google
IBM Granite 4.2 3B
IBM
Core performance indexes
LLM Stats Score
-4.8
#336
15.6
#213
Reasoning
-5.1
#329
12.0
#234
Coding
-11.0
#251
-6.7
#247
Cost, coverage & limits
Benchmark wins
—
—
Input price
— / M
— / M
Output price
— / M
— / M
Context window
—
—

Capability indexes

Additional strengths measured across groups of related public benchmarks

1 shared
Index
Gemma 2 9B
IBM Granite 4.2 3B
Math
-3.3#303
13.7#216
Conservative TrueSkill rating · higher is betterHow scores work

Individual benchmarks

16 reported for Gemma 2 9B · 13 for IBM Granite 4.2 3B

No common benchmarks found

Gemma 2 9B and IBM Granite 4.2 3Bdon't have any common benchmark datasets to compare. They may have been evaluated on different testing suites.

Human preference

Blind head-to-head votes and playground preference scores

Model Size

Parameter count comparison

6.2B diff

Gemma 2 9B has 6.2B more parameters than IBM Granite 4.2 3B, making it 208.0% larger.

Google
Gemma 2 9B
9.2Bparameters
IBM
IBM Granite 4.2 3B
3.0Bparameters
9.2B
Gemma 2 9B
3.0B
IBM Granite 4.2 3B

License

Usage and distribution terms

Gemma 2 9B is licensed under Gemma, while IBM Granite 4.2 3B uses Apache 2.0.

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

Gemma 2 9B

Gemma

Open weights

IBM Granite 4.2 3B

Apache 2.0

Open weights

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Gemma 2 9B was released on 2024-06-27, while IBM Granite 4.2 3B was released on 2026-08-25.

IBM Granite 4.2 3B is 26 months newer than Gemma 2 9B.

Gemma 2 9B

Jun 27, 2024

2.2 years ago

IBM Granite 4.2 3B

Aug 25, 2026

6 days ago

2.2yr newer

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

Neither model specifies a knowledge cutoff date.

Unable to compare the recency of their training data.

No cutoff dates available

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue discussion→

Judge for yourself.

Run your own prompts against Gemma 2 9B and IBM Granite 4.2 3B side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.

Gemma 2 9B
✓ Preferred
IBM Granite 4.2 3B
Open in Playground

FAQ

Common questions about Gemma 2 9B vs IBM Granite 4.2 3B.

Which is better, Gemma 2 9B or IBM Granite 4.2 3B?

IBM Granite 4.2 3B leads the LLM Stats Score 15.6 to -4.8. Gemma 2 9B is made by Google and IBM Granite 4.2 3B is made by IBM. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their capability indexes, individual benchmarks, pricing, and limits above.

How does Gemma 2 9B compare to IBM Granite 4.2 3B in benchmarks?

Gemma 2 9B scores ARC-E: 88.0%, BoolQ: 84.2%, HellaSwag: 81.9%, PIQA: 81.7%, Winogrande: 80.6%. IBM Granite 4.2 3B scores AIME 2025: 78.3%, IFBench: 74.3%, LiveCodeBench v6: 69.7%, MMLU-Pro: 67.8%, RULER 64k: 67.5%.

What are the main differences between Gemma 2 9B and IBM Granite 4.2 3B?

Key differences include LLM Stats Score (-4.8 vs 15.6), licensing (Gemma vs Apache 2.0). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes Gemma 2 9B and IBM Granite 4.2 3B?

Gemma 2 9B is developed by Google and IBM Granite 4.2 3B is developed by IBM.

Related comparisons