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Head-to-head comparison

Gemma 3 12B vs GPT-4o (2024-08-06)

Gemma 3 12B (Google) and GPT-4o (2024-08-06) (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 9 September 2026

As of 9 September 2026, GPT-4o (2024-08-06) holds the stronger ModelCap Index position (#132 vs #133); Gemma 3 12B is 66.7× cheaper per output token ($0.15/1M vs $10.00/1M); 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 $10.00/1M, about 66.7× cheaper.
  • your workload is prompt-heavy — input tokens cost $0.05/1M against $2.50/1M.
  • you need the longer context window — 131K tokens against 128K.
  • AA Humanity's Last Exam is your yardstick — 4.2% against 2.3%.
  • you want the more recently listed model — Gemma 3 12B was listed 13 March 2025, GPT-4o (2024-08-06) 6 August 2024.

Choose GPT-4o (2024-08-06) if…

  • you want the stronger overall ModelCap Index position — #132 against #133 (30.1 vs 30.0 points).
  • you want provider choice — 2 listed API providers against 1.
  • Arena coding is your yardstick — 1360 against 1316.
  • AA τ²-Bench Telecom is your yardstick — 28.9% against 10.8%.

Gemma 3 12B vs GPT-4o (2024-08-06): specs, pricing and context

Specification comparison of Gemma 3 12B and GPT-4o (2024-08-06)
FieldGemma 3 12BGoogleGPT-4o (2024-08-06)OpenAI
ModelCap Index position#133#132
Index score30.030.1
EvidenceMeasuredMeasured
Input price / 1M tokens$0.05$2.50
Output price / 1M tokens$0.15$10.00
Context window131K tokens128K tokens
Max output tokens16K16K
API providers listed12
Weight accessGated accessAPI only
Input modalitiesText, ImageText, Image, File
First listed13 March 20256 August 2024
PublisherGoogleOpenAI

Evidence: 3 public benchmark observations across 3 boards · 2 public benchmark observations across 2 boards. Prices are the lowest listed API offer per million tokens observed on the OpenRouter catalogue.

Benchmark scores: Gemma 3 12B vs GPT-4o (2024-08-06)

Public benchmark boards where Gemma 3 12B or GPT-4o (2024-08-06) has a published result
BoardGemma 3 12BGPT-4o (2024-08-06)Leads
Arena codingArena (LMArena)13161293–134013601352–1368GPT-4o (2024-08-06)
BFCL V4UC Berkeley (Gorilla)30.4Prompt—Only one result
AA Intelligence IndexArtificial Analysis3.8intelligence-index:v4.3:non-reasoning—Only one result
AA Terminal-Bench 2.1Artificial Analysis0.0%terminal-bench:2.1:terminus-2:e2b:pass-at-1:3-repeats:source-model="Gemma 3 12B":reasoning=false—Only one result
AA τ²-Bench TelecomArtificial Analysis10.8%tau2:telecom:dual-control:pass-at-1:3-repeats:source-model="Gemma 3 12B":reasoning=false28.9%tau2:telecom:dual-control:pass-at-1:3-repeats:source-model="GPT-4o (Aug)":reasoning=falseGPT-4o (2024-08-06)
AA Humanity's Last ExamArtificial Analysis4.2%hle:may-2025:text-only-2158:no-tools:pass-at-1:source-model="Gemma 3 12B":reasoning=false2.3%hle:may-2025:text-only-2158:no-tools:pass-at-1:source-model="GPT-4o (Aug)":reasoning=falseGemma 3 12B

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-4o (2024-08-06): common questions

Is Gemma 3 12B better than GPT-4o (2024-08-06)?

GPT-4o (2024-08-06) ranks higher on the ModelCap Index as of 9 September 2026: #132 against #133. 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. Their published uncertainty intervals overlap, so the rank difference alone does not establish a reliable capability advantage for your workload.

Is Gemma 3 12B cheaper than GPT-4o (2024-08-06)?

Gemma 3 12B is cheaper on output tokens: $0.15/1M against $10.00/1M. Input tokens are $0.05/1M for Gemma 3 12B and $2.50/1M for GPT-4o (2024-08-06). Prices are the lowest listed API offer ModelCap observed, in USD per million tokens. For 1,000 requests with 2,000 input and 500 output tokens each (2M input + 0.5M output), the listed-rate estimate is $0.17 for Gemma 3 12B versus $10.00 for GPT-4o (2024-08-06). Gemma 3 12B costs 98.3% less in this scenario. This excludes caching, batch discounts, prompt-length tiers, tool charges and retries; verify the selected endpoint before budgeting.

Which has the bigger context window, Gemma 3 12B or GPT-4o (2024-08-06)?

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

Which is better for coding, Gemma 3 12B or GPT-4o (2024-08-06)?

Arena coding: Gemma 3 12B 1316, GPT-4o (2024-08-06) 1360 — GPT-4o (2024-08-06) leads.

Are Gemma 3 12B and GPT-4o (2024-08-06) open-weight models?

Gemma 3 12B: Gated access. GPT-4o (2024-08-06): 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-4o (2024-08-06)?

ModelCap currently lists 1 API provider for Gemma 3 12B and 2 for GPT-4o (2024-08-06), 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-4o (2024-08-06) comparison?

Every figure comes from the sealed ModelCap dataset published 9 September 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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