Model Comparison
Gemma 3 27B vs Llama 3.1 405B InstructWhich is better in 2026?
Llama 3.1 405B Instruct shows notably better performance in the majority of benchmarks. Gemma 3 27B is 7.1x cheaper per token.
Verdict: Gemma 3 27B vs Llama 3.1 405B Instruct — which is better?
Gemma 3 27B (by Google) and Llama 3.1 405B Instruct (by Meta) 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 27B outperforms in 2 benchmarks (IFEval, MATH), while Llama 3.1 405B Instruct is better at 4 benchmarks (GPQA, GSM8k, HumanEval, MMLU-Pro). Llama 3.1 405B Instruct shows notably better performance in the majority of benchmarks.
On price, Gemma 3 27B is roughly 7.1x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
Gemma 3 27B also accepts a larger context window (131,072 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.
Choose Gemma 3 27B if…
- cost matters — it's about 7.1x cheaper per token
- you process long inputs — it offers a 131,072 token context window
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Mar 2025
Choose Llama 3.1 405B Instruct if…
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 4 of 6 shared benchmarks
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
Gemma 3 27B outperforms in 2 benchmarks (IFEval, MATH), while Llama 3.1 405B Instruct is better at 4 benchmarks (GPQA, GSM8k, HumanEval, MMLU-Pro).
Llama 3.1 405B Instruct shows notably better performance in the majority of benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Human preference votes
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, Gemma 3 27B ($0.10/1M tokens) is 8.9x cheaper than Llama 3.1 405B Instruct ($0.89/1M tokens).
For output processing, Gemma 3 27B ($0.20/1M tokens) is 4.5x cheaper than Llama 3.1 405B Instruct ($0.89/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Llama 3.1 405B Instruct is more expensive than Gemma 3 27B.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Model Size
Parameter count comparison
Llama 3.1 405B Instruct has 378.0B more parameters than Gemma 3 27B, making it 1400.0% larger.
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Gemma 3 27B accepts 131,072 input tokens compared to Llama 3.1 405B Instruct's 128,000 tokens. Gemma 3 27B can generate longer responses up to 131,072 tokens, while Llama 3.1 405B Instruct is limited to 128,000 tokens.
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
Gemma 3 27B supports multimodal inputs, whereas Llama 3.1 405B Instruct does not.
Gemma 3 27B can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.
Gemma 3 27B
Llama 3.1 405B Instruct
License
Usage and distribution terms
Gemma 3 27B is licensed under Gemma, while Llama 3.1 405B Instruct uses Llama 3.1 Community License.
License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.
Gemma
Open weights
Llama 3.1 Community License
Open weights
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
Gemma 3 27B was released on 2025-03-12, while Llama 3.1 405B Instruct was released on 2024-07-23.
Gemma 3 27B is 8 months newer than Llama 3.1 405B Instruct.
Mar 12, 2025
1.4 years ago
7mo newerJul 23, 2024
2.0 years ago
Knowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
Neither model specifies a knowledge cutoff date.
Unable to compare the recency of their training data.
Provider Availability
Gemma 3 27B is available from DeepInfra, Novita. Llama 3.1 405B Instruct is available from Lambda, DeepInfra, Fireworks, Bedrock, Together, Hyperbolic, Google, Replicate.
Gemma 3 27B
Llama 3.1 405B Instruct
Outputs Comparison
Key Takeaways
Gemma 3 27B
View detailsDetailed Comparison
Interactive Arena
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against Gemma 3 27B and Llama 3.1 405B Instruct side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
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FAQ
Common questions about Gemma 3 27B vs Llama 3.1 405B Instruct.