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Head-to-head comparison

Gemma 3 12B vs Qwen2.5 72B Instruct

Gemma 3 12B (Google) and Qwen2.5 72B Instruct (Qwen) 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 17 August 2026

As of 17 August 2026, Gemma 3 12B holds the stronger ModelCap Index position (#180 vs #182); Gemma 3 12B is 2.7× cheaper per output token ($0.15/1M vs $0.40/1M); and Gemma 3 12B offers the longer context window (131K vs 33K tokens).

Which should you choose?

Choose Gemma 3 12B if…

  • you want the stronger overall ModelCap Index position — #180 against #182 (20.3 vs 18.2 points).
  • API cost matters — $0.15/1M output tokens against $0.40/1M, about 2.7× cheaper.
  • your workload is prompt-heavy — input tokens cost $0.05/1M against $0.36/1M.
  • you need the longer context window — 131K tokens against 33K.
  • you want the more recently listed model — Gemma 3 12B was listed 13 March 2025, Qwen2.5 72B Instruct 19 September 2024.

Choose Qwen2.5 72B Instruct if…

  • you want provider choice — 2 listed API providers against 1.
  • Arena coding is your yardstick — 1356 against 1316.
  • Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index is your yardstick — 9.4 against 5.5.

Gemma 3 12B vs Qwen2.5 72B Instruct: specs, pricing and context

Specification comparison of Gemma 3 12B and Qwen2.5 72B Instruct
FieldGemma 3 12BGoogleQwen2.5 72B InstructQwen
ModelCap Index position#180#182
Index score20.318.2
EvidenceMeasuredMeasured
Input price / 1M tokens$0.05$0.36
Output price / 1M tokens$0.15$0.40
Context window131K tokens33K tokens
Max output tokens16K16K
API providers listed12
Weight accessGated accessRestricted license
Input modalitiesText, ImageText
First listed13 March 202519 September 2024
PublisherGoogleQwen

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 Qwen2.5 72B Instruct

Public benchmark boards where Gemma 3 12B or Qwen2.5 72B Instruct has a published result
BoardGemma 3 12BQwen2.5 72B InstructLeads
Arena codingArena (LMArena)13161293–134013561348–1363Qwen2.5 72B Instruct
BFCL V4UC Berkeley (Gorilla)30.4Prompt—Only one result
Artificial Analysis Intelligence IndexArtificial Analysis5.5intelligence-index9.4intelligence-indexQwen2.5 72B Instruct

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 Qwen2.5 72B Instruct: common questions

Is Gemma 3 12B better than Qwen2.5 72B Instruct?

Gemma 3 12B ranks higher on the ModelCap Index as of 17 August 2026: #180 against #182. 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 Qwen2.5 72B Instruct?

Gemma 3 12B is cheaper on output tokens: $0.15/1M against $0.40/1M. Input tokens are $0.05/1M for Gemma 3 12B and $0.36/1M for Qwen2.5 72B Instruct. Prices are the lowest listed API offer ModelCap observed, in USD per million tokens.

Which has the bigger context window, Gemma 3 12B or Qwen2.5 72B Instruct?

Gemma 3 12B has the larger context window: 131K tokens against 33K.

Which is better for coding, Gemma 3 12B or Qwen2.5 72B Instruct?

Arena coding: Gemma 3 12B 1316, Qwen2.5 72B Instruct 1356 — Qwen2.5 72B Instruct leads.

Are Gemma 3 12B and Qwen2.5 72B Instruct open-weight models?

Gemma 3 12B: Gated access. Qwen2.5 72B Instruct: Restricted license. 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 Qwen2.5 72B Instruct?

ModelCap currently lists 1 API provider for Gemma 3 12B and 2 for Qwen2.5 72B Instruct, 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 Qwen2.5 72B Instruct comparison?

Every figure comes from the sealed ModelCap dataset published 17 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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