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IBM Granite 4.2 3B vs Llama 3.2 3B Instruct

IBM Granite 4.2 3B leads the LLM Stats Score 15.6 to -5.9.

IBM · Meta · Updated for 2026

Which is better?

IBM Granite 4.2 3B leads the overall LLM Stats Score 15.6 to -5.9, ranking #213 overall.

In the 1 individual benchmarks reported for both models, IBM Granite 4.2 3B wins 1; this is a narrower head-to-head signal than the composite indexes.

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
  • your work emphasizes reasoning — it leads those capability indexes
  • you value its reported benchmark strengths — it wins 1 of 1 exact shared results
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Aug 2026

Choose Llama 3.2 3B Instruct

  • you want predictable pricing at $0.01/M input and $0.02/M output

At a glance

The differences that matter most.

IBM Granite 4.2 3B
IBM
Llama 3.2 3B Instruct
Meta
Core performance indexes
LLM Stats Score
15.6
#213
-5.9
#344
Reasoning
12.0
#234
-6.5
#337
Cost, coverage & limits
Benchmark wins
1 of 1
0 of 1
Input price
— / M
$0.01 / M
Output price
— / M
$0.02 / M
Context window
—
128,000

Capability indexes

Additional strengths measured across groups of related public benchmarks

2 shared
Index
IBM Granite 4.2 3B
Llama 3.2 3B Instruct
Math
13.7#216
-3.3#302
Tool use
5.3#144
4.7#149
Conservative TrueSkill rating · higher is betterHow scores work

Individual benchmarks

13 reported for IBM Granite 4.2 3B · 15 for Llama 3.2 3B Instruct

1 shared

IBM Granite 4.2 3B outperforms in 1 benchmarks (GPQA), while Llama 3.2 3B Instruct is better at 0 benchmarks.

IBM Granite 4.2 3B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Mon Aug 31 2026 • llm-stats.com

Human preference

Blind head-to-head votes and playground preference scores

Model Size

Parameter count comparison

210.0M diff

Llama 3.2 3B Instruct has 0.2B more parameters than IBM Granite 4.2 3B, making it 7.0% larger.

IBM
IBM Granite 4.2 3B
3.0Bparameters
Meta
Llama 3.2 3B Instruct
3.2Bparameters
3.0B
IBM Granite 4.2 3B
3.2B
Llama 3.2 3B Instruct

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Only Llama 3.2 3B Instruct specifies input context (128,000 tokens). Only Llama 3.2 3B Instruct specifies output context (128,000 tokens).

IBM
IBM Granite 4.2 3B
Input- tokens
Output- tokens
Meta
Llama 3.2 3B Instruct
Input128,000 tokens
Output128,000 tokens
Mon Aug 31 2026 • llm-stats.com

License

Usage and distribution terms

IBM Granite 4.2 3B is licensed under Apache 2.0, while Llama 3.2 3B Instruct uses Llama 3.2 Community 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

Llama 3.2 3B Instruct

Llama 3.2 Community License

Open weights

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

IBM Granite 4.2 3B was released on 2026-08-25, while Llama 3.2 3B Instruct was released on 2024-09-25.

IBM Granite 4.2 3B is 23 months newer than Llama 3.2 3B Instruct.

IBM Granite 4.2 3B

Aug 25, 2026

5 days ago

1.9yr newer
Llama 3.2 3B Instruct

Sep 25, 2024

1.9 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 Llama 3.2 3B Instruct side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.

IBM Granite 4.2 3B
✓ Preferred
Llama 3.2 3B Instruct
Open in Playground

FAQ

Common questions about IBM Granite 4.2 3B vs Llama 3.2 3B Instruct.

Which is better, IBM Granite 4.2 3B or Llama 3.2 3B Instruct?

IBM Granite 4.2 3B leads the LLM Stats Score 15.6 to -5.9. IBM Granite 4.2 3B is made by IBM and Llama 3.2 3B Instruct is made by Meta. 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 Llama 3.2 3B Instruct 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%. Llama 3.2 3B Instruct scores NIH/Multi-needle: 84.7%, ARC-C: 78.6%, GSM8k: 77.7%, IFEval: 77.4%, HellaSwag: 69.8%.

What are the context window sizes for IBM Granite 4.2 3B and Llama 3.2 3B Instruct?

IBM Granite 4.2 3B supports an unknown number of tokens and Llama 3.2 3B Instruct supports 128K tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.

What are the main differences between IBM Granite 4.2 3B and Llama 3.2 3B Instruct?

Key differences include LLM Stats Score (15.6 vs -5.9), licensing (Apache 2.0 vs Llama 3.2 Community License). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes IBM Granite 4.2 3B and Llama 3.2 3B Instruct?

IBM Granite 4.2 3B is developed by IBM and Llama 3.2 3B Instruct is developed by Meta.

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