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Gemma 3 12B vs Grok 4.6

Comparing Gemma 3 12B and Grok 4.6 across benchmarks, pricing, and capabilities.

Google · xAI · Updated for 2026

Which is better?

Gemma 3 12B and Grok 4.6 trade strengths across price, capabilities, and technical limits. The better choice depends on the workload.

On price, Gemma 3 12B is roughly 48.0x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.

Grok 4.6 also accepts a larger context window (500,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.

Based on current benchmark, pricing, and model metadata for 2026.

Choose Gemma 3 12B

  • cost matters — it's about 48.0x cheaper per token
  • you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune

Choose Grok 4.6

  • you process long inputs — it offers a 500,000 token context window
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Aug 2026

At a glance

The differences that matter most.

Gemma 3 12B
Google
Grok 4.6
xAI
Benchmark wins
—
—
Input price
$0.05 / M
$2.00 / M
Output price
$0.10 / M
$6.00 / M
Context window
131,072
500,000
Released
Mar 2025
Aug 2026
License
Gemma
Proprietary

Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

No common benchmarks found

Gemma 3 12B and Grok 4.6don't have any common benchmark datasets to compare. They may have been evaluated on different testing suites.

Arena Performance

Playground indexes and blind preference scores

Pricing Analysis

Price comparison per million tokens

Gemma 3 12B costs less

For input processing, Gemma 3 12B ($0.05/1M tokens) is 40.0x cheaper than Grok 4.6 ($2.00/1M tokens).

For output processing, Gemma 3 12B ($0.10/1M tokens) is 60.0x cheaper than Grok 4.6 ($6.00/1M tokens).

In conclusion, Grok 4.6 is more expensive than Gemma 3 12B.*

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

Lowest available price from all providers
Mon Aug 24 2026 • llm-stats.com
Google
Gemma 3 12B
Input tokens$0.05
Output tokens$0.10
Best providerDeepinfra
xAI
Grok 4.6
Input tokens$2.00
Output tokens$6.00
Best providerxAI
Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue→

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Grok 4.6 accepts 500,000 input tokens compared to Gemma 3 12B's 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 4.6
Input500,000 tokens
Output- tokens
Mon Aug 24 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Both Gemma 3 12B and Grok 4.6 support multimodal inputs.

They are both capable of processing various types of data, offering versatility in application.

Gemma 3 12B

Text
Images
Audio
Video

Grok 4.6

Text
Images
Audio
Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

Gemma 3 12B is licensed under Gemma, while Grok 4.6 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 4.6

Proprietary

Closed source

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Gemma 3 12B was released on 2025-03-12, while Grok 4.6 was released on 2026-08-12.

Grok 4.6 is 17 months newer than Gemma 3 12B.

Gemma 3 12B

Mar 12, 2025

1.5 years ago

Grok 4.6

Aug 12, 2026

1 weeks ago

1.4yr newer

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

Grok 4.6 has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2026-02-01, while Gemma 3 12B's cutoff date is not specified.

We can confirm Grok 4.6's training data extends to 2026-02-01, but cannot make a direct comparison without Gemma 3 12B's cutoff date.

Gemma 3 12B

—

Grok 4.6

Feb 2026

Provider Availability

Gemma 3 12B is available from DeepInfra. Grok 4.6 is available from xAI.

Gemma 3 12B

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

Grok 4.6

xai logo
xAI
Input Price:Input: $2.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $6.00/1M
* Prices shown are per million tokens

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue discussion→

Judge for yourself.

Run your own prompts against Gemma 3 12B and Grok 4.6 side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.

Gemma 3 12B
✓ Preferred
Grok 4.6
Open in Playground

FAQ

Common questions about Gemma 3 12B vs Grok 4.6.

Which is better, Gemma 3 12B or Grok 4.6?

Gemma 3 12B (Google) and Grok 4.6 (xAI) each have strengths in different areas. Compare their benchmark scores, pricing, context windows, and capabilities above to determine which fits your needs.

How does Gemma 3 12B compare to Grok 4.6 in benchmarks?

Gemma 3 12B scores GSM8k: 94.4%, IFEval: 88.9%, DocVQA: 87.1%, BIG-Bench Hard: 85.7%, HumanEval: 85.4%. Grok 4.6 scores CursorBench v3.2: 69.9%, DeepSWE 1.1: 65.9%, FrontierCode: 61.3%, AA-Index: 61.0%, GDPval-AA: 58.4%.

Is Gemma 3 12B cheaper than Grok 4.6?

Gemma 3 12B is 40.0x cheaper for input tokens. Gemma 3 12B costs $0.05/M input and $0.10/M output via deepinfra. Grok 4.6 costs $2.00/M input and $6.00/M output via xai.

What are the context window sizes for Gemma 3 12B and Grok 4.6?

Gemma 3 12B supports 131K tokens and Grok 4.6 supports 500K 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 4.6?

Key differences include context window (131K vs 500K), input pricing ($0.05 vs $2.00/M), licensing (Gemma vs Proprietary). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes Gemma 3 12B and Grok 4.6?

Gemma 3 12B is developed by Google and Grok 4.6 is developed by xAI.

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