Model Comparison

Gemma 3 12B vs Grok-1.5Which is better in 2026?

Gemma 3 12B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Verdict: Gemma 3 12B vs Grok-1.5 — which is better?

Gemma 3 12B (by Google) and Grok-1.5 (by xAI) 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 6 benchmarks (DocVQA, GPQA, GSM8k, HumanEval, MATH, MMLU-Pro), while Grok-1.5 is better at 0 benchmarks. Gemma 3 12B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Choose Gemma 3 12B if…

  • you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 6 of 6 shared benchmarks
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Mar 2025
  • you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune

Choose Grok-1.5 if…

  • you are already invested in the xAI ecosystem
Want to compare interactively?Try the playground

Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

6 benchmarks

Gemma 3 12B outperforms in 6 benchmarks (DocVQA, GPQA, GSM8k, HumanEval, MATH, MMLU-Pro), while Grok-1.5 is better at 0 benchmarks.

Gemma 3 12B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Sun Jun 07 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Only Gemma 3 12B specifies input context (131,072 tokens). Only Gemma 3 12B specifies output context (131,072 tokens).

Google
Gemma 3 12B
Input131,072 tokens
Output131,072 tokens
xAI
Grok-1.5
Input- tokens
Output- tokens
Sun Jun 07 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Gemma 3 12B supports multimodal inputs, whereas Grok-1.5 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

Grok-1.5

Text
Images
Audio
Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

Gemma 3 12B is licensed under Gemma, while Grok-1.5 uses a proprietary license.

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

Gemma 3 12B

Gemma

Open weights

Grok-1.5

Proprietary

Closed source

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Gemma 3 12B was released on 2025-03-12, while Grok-1.5 was released on 2024-03-28.

Gemma 3 12B is 12 months newer than Grok-1.5.

Gemma 3 12B

Mar 12, 2025

1.2 years ago

11mo newer
Grok-1.5

Mar 28, 2024

2.2 years ago

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→

Key Takeaways

Google
Larger context window (131,072 tokens)
Supports multimodal inputs
Has open weights
Higher DocVQA score (87.1% vs 85.6%)
Higher GPQA score (40.9% vs 35.9%)
Higher GSM8k score (94.4% vs 90.0%)
Higher HumanEval score (85.4% vs 74.1%)
Higher MATH score (83.8% vs 50.6%)
Higher MMLU-Pro score (60.6% vs 51.0%)
xAI

No standout differentiators in the data we have for this pair.

Detailed Comparison

AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
Google
Gemma 3 12B
xAI
Grok-1.5

FAQ

Common questions about Gemma 3 12B vs Grok-1.5.

Which is better, Gemma 3 12B or Grok-1.5?

Gemma 3 12B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Gemma 3 12B is made by Google and Grok-1.5 is made by xAI. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does Gemma 3 12B compare to Grok-1.5 in benchmarks?

Gemma 3 12B scores GSM8k: 94.4%, IFEval: 88.9%, DocVQA: 87.1%, BIG-Bench Hard: 85.7%, HumanEval: 85.4%. Grok-1.5 scores GSM8k: 90.0%, DocVQA: 85.6%, MMLU: 81.3%, HumanEval: 74.1%, MMMU: 53.6%.

What are the context window sizes for Gemma 3 12B and Grok-1.5?

Gemma 3 12B supports 131K tokens and Grok-1.5 supports an unknown number of 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 Grok-1.5?

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

Who makes Gemma 3 12B and Grok-1.5?

Gemma 3 12B is developed by Google and Grok-1.5 is developed by xAI.

Related comparisons