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IBM Granite 4.2 3B vs Grok-2 mini

IBM Granite 4.2 3B leads the LLM Stats Score 15.6 to 8.8.

IBM · xAI · Updated for 2026

Which is better?

IBM Granite 4.2 3B leads the overall LLM Stats Score 15.6 to 8.8, ranking #213 overall.

The models split the 2 individual benchmarks reported for both models evenly.

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

Choose IBM Granite 4.2 3B

  • overall performance matters — it scores 15.6 and ranks #213 on LLM Stats
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Aug 2026
  • you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune

Choose Grok-2 mini

  • you are already invested in the xAI ecosystem

At a glance

The differences that matter most.

IBM Granite 4.2 3B
IBM
Grok-2 mini
xAI
Core performance indexes
LLM Stats Score
15.6
#213
8.8
#258
Reasoning
12.0
#234
8.4
#261
Coding
-6.7
#247
6.0
#182
Cost, coverage & limits
Benchmark wins
1 of 2
1 of 2
Input price
— / M
— / M
Output price
— / M
— / M
Context window
—
—

Capability indexes

Additional strengths measured across groups of related public benchmarks

1 shared
Index
IBM Granite 4.2 3B
Grok-2 mini
Math
13.7#216
16.0#202
Conservative TrueSkill rating · higher is betterHow scores work

Individual benchmarks

13 reported for IBM Granite 4.2 3B · 8 for Grok-2 mini

2 shared

IBM Granite 4.2 3B outperforms in 1 benchmarks (GPQA), while Grok-2 mini is better at 1 benchmark (MMLU-Pro).

Both models are evenly matched across the benchmarks.

Mon Aug 31 2026 • llm-stats.com

Human preference

Blind head-to-head votes and playground preference scores

Input capabilities

Documented input modalities across available providers

Grok-2 mini supports multimodal inputs, whereas IBM Granite 4.2 3B does not.

Grok-2 mini can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.

IBM Granite 4.2 3B

Text
Images
Audio
Video

Grok-2 mini

Text
Images
Audio
Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

IBM Granite 4.2 3B is licensed under Apache 2.0, while Grok-2 mini uses a proprietary license.

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

IBM Granite 4.2 3B

Apache 2.0

Open weights

Grok-2 mini

Proprietary

Closed source

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

IBM Granite 4.2 3B was released on 2026-08-25, while Grok-2 mini was released on 2024-08-13.

IBM Granite 4.2 3B is 25 months newer than Grok-2 mini.

IBM Granite 4.2 3B

Aug 25, 2026

5 days ago

2.0yr newer
Grok-2 mini

Aug 13, 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.

No cutoff dates available

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue discussion→

Judge for yourself.

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

IBM Granite 4.2 3B
✓ Preferred
Grok-2 mini
Open in Playground

FAQ

Common questions about IBM Granite 4.2 3B vs Grok-2 mini.

Which is better, IBM Granite 4.2 3B or Grok-2 mini?

IBM Granite 4.2 3B leads the LLM Stats Score 15.6 to 8.8. IBM Granite 4.2 3B is made by IBM and Grok-2 mini is made by xAI. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their capability indexes, individual benchmarks, pricing, and limits above.

How does IBM Granite 4.2 3B compare to Grok-2 mini in benchmarks?

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%. Grok-2 mini scores DocVQA: 93.2%, MMLU: 86.2%, HumanEval: 85.7%, MATH: 73.0%, MMLU-Pro: 72.0%.

What are the main differences between IBM Granite 4.2 3B and Grok-2 mini?

Key differences include LLM Stats Score (15.6 vs 8.8), multimodal support (no vs yes), licensing (Apache 2.0 vs Proprietary). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes IBM Granite 4.2 3B and Grok-2 mini?

IBM Granite 4.2 3B is developed by IBM and Grok-2 mini is developed by xAI.

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