IBM Granite 4.2 3B vs Llama 3.2 90B Instruct
IBM Granite 4.2 3B leads the LLM Stats Score 15.6 to 5.4.
IBM · Meta · Updated for 2026
Which is better?
IBM Granite 4.2 3B leads the overall LLM Stats Score 15.6 to 5.4, 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
- 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 90B Instruct
- you want predictable pricing at $0.35/M input and $0.40/M output
At a glance
The differences that matter most.
Capability indexes
Additional strengths measured across groups of related public benchmarks
Individual benchmarks
13 reported for IBM Granite 4.2 3B · 13 for Llama 3.2 90B Instruct
IBM Granite 4.2 3B outperforms in 1 benchmarks (GPQA), while Llama 3.2 90B Instruct is better at 0 benchmarks.
IBM Granite 4.2 3B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Human preference
Blind head-to-head votes and playground preference scores
Model Size
Parameter count comparison
Llama 3.2 90B Instruct has 87.0B more parameters than IBM Granite 4.2 3B, making it 2900.0% larger.
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Only Llama 3.2 90B Instruct specifies input context (128,000 tokens). Only Llama 3.2 90B Instruct specifies output context (128,000 tokens).
Input capabilities
Documented input modalities across available providers
Llama 3.2 90B Instruct supports multimodal inputs, whereas IBM Granite 4.2 3B does not.
Llama 3.2 90B Instruct can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.
IBM Granite 4.2 3B
Llama 3.2 90B Instruct
License
Usage and distribution terms
IBM Granite 4.2 3B is licensed under Apache 2.0, while Llama 3.2 90B Instruct uses Llama 3.2.
License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.
Apache 2.0
Open weights
Llama 3.2
Open weights
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
IBM Granite 4.2 3B was released on 2026-08-25, while Llama 3.2 90B Instruct was released on 2024-09-25.
IBM Granite 4.2 3B is 23 months newer than Llama 3.2 90B Instruct.
Aug 25, 2026
5 days ago
1.9yr newerSep 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.
Outputs Comparison
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against IBM Granite 4.2 3B and Llama 3.2 90B Instruct side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
FAQ
Common questions about IBM Granite 4.2 3B vs Llama 3.2 90B Instruct.