Phi 4 Mini vs Phi 4 Reasoning Plus
Phi 4 Reasoning Plus leads the LLM Stats Score 15.0 to -4.1.
Microsoft · Microsoft · Updated for 2026
Which is better?
Phi 4 Reasoning Plus leads the overall LLM Stats Score 15.0 to -4.1, ranking #247 overall.
In the 3 individual benchmarks reported for both models, Phi 4 Reasoning Plus wins 3; 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 Phi 4 Mini
- you are already invested in the Microsoft ecosystem
Choose Phi 4 Reasoning Plus
- overall performance matters — it scores 15.0 and ranks #247 on LLM Stats
- your work emphasizes reasoning — it leads those capability indexes
- you value its reported benchmark strengths — it wins 3 of 3 exact shared results
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Apr 2025
At a glance
The differences that matter most.
Capability indexes
Additional strengths measured across groups of related public benchmarks
Individual benchmarks
17 reported for Phi 4 Mini · 11 for Phi 4 Reasoning Plus
Phi 4 Mini outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Phi 4 Reasoning Plus is better at 3 benchmarks (Arena Hard, GPQA, MMLU-Pro).
Phi 4 Reasoning Plus significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Human preference
Blind head-to-head votes and playground preference scores
Model Size
Parameter count comparison
Phi 4 Reasoning Plus has 10.2B more parameters than Phi 4 Mini, making it 264.6% larger.
License
Usage and distribution terms
Both models are licensed under MIT.
Both models share the same licensing terms, providing consistent usage rights.
MIT
Open weights
MIT
Open weights
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
Phi 4 Mini was released on 2025-02-01, while Phi 4 Reasoning Plus was released on 2025-04-30.
Phi 4 Reasoning Plus is 3 months newer than Phi 4 Mini.
Feb 1, 2025
1.7 years ago
Apr 30, 2025
1.4 years ago
2mo newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
Phi 4 Mini has a knowledge cutoff of 2024-06-01, while Phi 4 Reasoning Plus has a cutoff of 2025-03-01.
Phi 4 Reasoning Plus has more recent training data (up to 2025-03-01), making it potentially better informed about events through that date compared to Phi 4 Mini (2024-06-01).
Jun 2024
Mar 2025
9 mo newerOutputs Comparison
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against Phi 4 Mini and Phi 4 Reasoning Plus side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
FAQ
Common questions about Phi 4 Mini vs Phi 4 Reasoning Plus.