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Head-to-head comparison

Gemma 3 12B vs GPT-4 Turbo

Gemma 3 12B (Google) and GPT-4 Turbo (OpenAI) compared on the ModelCap Index, API price, context window, provider availability, weight access and every public benchmark board they share. Figures are the same ones shown on the live rankings; nothing here is a hidden score.

Snapshot as of 18 August 2026

As of 18 August 2026, GPT-4 Turbo holds the stronger ModelCap Index position (#174 vs #177); Gemma 3 12B is 200× cheaper per output token ($0.15/1M vs $30.00/1M); and Gemma 3 12B offers the longer context window (131K vs 128K tokens).

Which should you choose?

Choose Gemma 3 12B if…

  • API cost matters — $0.15/1M output tokens against $30.00/1M, about 200× cheaper.
  • your workload is prompt-heavy — input tokens cost $0.05/1M against $10.00/1M.
  • you need the longer context window — 131K tokens against 128K.
  • you want the more recently listed model — Gemma 3 12B was listed 13 March 2025, GPT-4 Turbo 9 April 2024.

Choose GPT-4 Turbo if…

  • you want the stronger overall ModelCap Index position — #174 against #177 (20.9 vs 20.3 points).
  • Arena coding is your yardstick — 1347 against 1316.
  • Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index is your yardstick — 7.7 against 5.5.

Gemma 3 12B vs GPT-4 Turbo: specs, pricing and context

Specification comparison of Gemma 3 12B and GPT-4 Turbo
FieldGemma 3 12BGoogleGPT-4 TurboOpenAI
ModelCap Index position#177#174
Index score20.320.9
EvidenceMeasuredMeasured
Input price / 1M tokens$0.05$10.00
Output price / 1M tokens$0.15$30.00
Context window131K tokens128K tokens
Max output tokens16K4K
API providers listed11
Weight accessGated accessAPI only
Input modalitiesText, ImageText, Image
First listed13 March 20259 April 2024
PublisherGoogleOpenAI

Evidence: 3 public benchmark observations across 3 boards · 3 public benchmark observations across 3 boards. Prices are the lowest listed API offer per million tokens observed on the OpenRouter catalogue.

Benchmark scores: Gemma 3 12B vs GPT-4 Turbo

Public benchmark boards where Gemma 3 12B or GPT-4 Turbo has a published result
BoardGemma 3 12BGPT-4 TurboLeads
Arena codingArena (LMArena)13161293–134013471340–1354GPT-4 Turbo
BFCL V4UC Berkeley (Gorilla)30.4Prompt—Only one result
Artificial Analysis Intelligence IndexArtificial Analysis5.5intelligence-index7.7intelligence-indexGPT-4 Turbo

Scores are the sources' own published figures for each model's best evaluated configuration; ModelCap never re-runs a benchmark.

Want a different pairing? Open the interactive comparison tool to swap either model for any current ranked language model.

Gemma 3 12B vs GPT-4 Turbo: common questions

Is Gemma 3 12B better than GPT-4 Turbo?

GPT-4 Turbo ranks higher on the ModelCap Index as of 18 August 2026: #174 against #177. That is a capability ranking built from public benchmark evidence with published uncertainty; whether it is "better" for you also depends on price, context and where you can run it.

Is Gemma 3 12B cheaper than GPT-4 Turbo?

Gemma 3 12B is cheaper on output tokens: $0.15/1M against $30.00/1M. Input tokens are $0.05/1M for Gemma 3 12B and $10.00/1M for GPT-4 Turbo. Prices are the lowest listed API offer ModelCap observed, in USD per million tokens.

Which has the bigger context window, Gemma 3 12B or GPT-4 Turbo?

Gemma 3 12B has the larger context window: 131K tokens against 128K.

Which is better for coding, Gemma 3 12B or GPT-4 Turbo?

Arena coding: Gemma 3 12B 1316, GPT-4 Turbo 1347 — GPT-4 Turbo leads.

Are Gemma 3 12B and GPT-4 Turbo open-weight models?

Gemma 3 12B: Gated access. GPT-4 Turbo: API only. Open weights mean the checkpoint can be downloaded and self-hosted under its licence; API-only models are available solely through hosted endpoints.

Where can I run Gemma 3 12B and GPT-4 Turbo?

ModelCap currently lists 1 API provider for Gemma 3 12B and 1 for GPT-4 Turbo, from the OpenRouter catalogue snapshot the site serves; each model page lists the providers and their prices.

How current is this Gemma 3 12B vs GPT-4 Turbo comparison?

Every figure comes from the sealed ModelCap dataset published 18 August 2026; the page re-renders within a minute of each data refresh, and the ModelCap Index positions are the same ones shown on the live rankings.

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