Model Comparison

Gemma 3 12B vs GPT OSS 20BWhich is better in 2026?

GPT OSS 20B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Gemma 3 12B is 1.4x cheaper per token.

Verdict: Gemma 3 12B vs GPT OSS 20B — which is better?

Gemma 3 12B (by Google) and GPT OSS 20B (by OpenAI) 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 3 12B outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while GPT OSS 20B is better at 1 benchmark (GPQA). GPT OSS 20B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

On price, Gemma 3 12B is roughly 1.4x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.

Choose Gemma 3 12B if…

  • cost matters — it's about 1.4x cheaper per token

Choose GPT OSS 20B if…

  • you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 1 of 1 shared benchmarks
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Aug 2025

Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

1 benchmarks

Gemma 3 12B outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while GPT OSS 20B is better at 1 benchmark (GPQA).

GPT OSS 20B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Mon Jul 27 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Pricing Analysis

Price comparison per million tokens

Gemma 3 12B costs less

For input processing, Gemma 3 12B ($0.05/1M tokens) costs the same as GPT OSS 20B ($0.05/1M tokens).

For output processing, Gemma 3 12B ($0.10/1M tokens) is 2.0x cheaper than GPT OSS 20B ($0.20/1M tokens).

In conclusion, GPT OSS 20B is more expensive than Gemma 3 12B.*

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

Lowest available price from all providers
Mon Jul 27 2026 • llm-stats.com
Google
Gemma 3 12B
Input tokens$0.05
Output tokens$0.10
Best providerDeepinfra
OpenAI
GPT OSS 20B
Input tokens$0.05
Output tokens$0.20
Best providerNovita
Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue→

Model Size

Parameter count comparison

8.9B diff

GPT OSS 20B has 8.9B more parameters than Gemma 3 12B, making it 74.2% larger.

Google
Gemma 3 12B
12.0Bparameters
OpenAI
GPT OSS 20B
20.9Bparameters
12.0B
Gemma 3 12B
20.9B
GPT OSS 20B

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Both models have the same input context window of 131,072 tokens. Gemma 3 12B can generate longer responses up to 131,072 tokens, while GPT OSS 20B is limited to 32,768 tokens.

Google
Gemma 3 12B
Input131,072 tokens
Output131,072 tokens
OpenAI
GPT OSS 20B
Input131,072 tokens
Output32,768 tokens
Mon Jul 27 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Gemma 3 12B supports multimodal inputs, whereas GPT OSS 20B does not.

Gemma 3 12B can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.

Gemma 3 12B

Text
Images
Audio
Video

GPT OSS 20B

Text
Images
Audio
Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

Gemma 3 12B is licensed under Gemma, while GPT OSS 20B uses Apache 2.0.

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

Gemma 3 12B

Gemma

Open weights

GPT OSS 20B

Apache 2.0

Open weights

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Gemma 3 12B was released on 2025-03-12, while GPT OSS 20B was released on 2025-08-05.

GPT OSS 20B is 5 months newer than Gemma 3 12B.

Gemma 3 12B

Mar 12, 2025

1.4 years ago

GPT OSS 20B

Aug 5, 2025

11 months ago

4mo 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

Provider Availability

Gemma 3 12B is available from DeepInfra. GPT OSS 20B is available from Novita, Fireworks, Groq, OpenAI.

Gemma 3 12B

deepinfra logo
Deepinfra
Input Price:Input: $0.05/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.10/1M

GPT OSS 20B

novita logo
Novita
Input Price:Input: $0.05/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.20/1M
fireworks logo
Fireworks
Input Price:Input: $0.10/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.50/1M
groq logo
Groq
Input Price:Input: $0.10/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.50/1M
openai logo
OpenAI
Input Price:Input: $0.10/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.50/1M
* Prices shown are per million tokens

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue discussion→

Key Takeaways

Google
Supports multimodal inputs
Less expensive output tokens
OpenAI
Higher GPQA score (71.5% vs 40.9%)

Detailed Comparison

Interactive Arena

Judge for yourself.

Run your own prompts against Gemma 3 12B and GPT OSS 20B side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.

Gemma 3 12B
✓ Preferred
GPT OSS 20B
Open in Playground
AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
Google
Gemma 3 12B
OpenAI
GPT OSS 20B

FAQ

Common questions about Gemma 3 12B vs GPT OSS 20B.

Which is better, Gemma 3 12B or GPT OSS 20B?

GPT OSS 20B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Gemma 3 12B is made by Google and GPT OSS 20B is made by OpenAI. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does Gemma 3 12B compare to GPT OSS 20B in benchmarks?

Gemma 3 12B scores GSM8k: 94.4%, IFEval: 88.9%, DocVQA: 87.1%, BIG-Bench Hard: 85.7%, HumanEval: 85.4%. GPT OSS 20B scores MMLU: 85.3%, CodeForces: 74.3%, GPQA: 71.5%, TAU-bench Retail: 54.8%, HealthBench: 42.5%.

Is Gemma 3 12B cheaper than GPT OSS 20B?

Both models cost $0.05 per million input tokens.

What are the context window sizes for Gemma 3 12B and GPT OSS 20B?

Gemma 3 12B supports 131K tokens and GPT OSS 20B supports 131K tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.

What are the main differences between Gemma 3 12B and GPT OSS 20B?

Key differences include multimodal support (yes vs no), licensing (Gemma vs Apache 2.0). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes Gemma 3 12B and GPT OSS 20B?

Gemma 3 12B is developed by Google and GPT OSS 20B is developed by OpenAI.

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