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Head-to-head comparison

Gemma 3 27B vs GPT-4o-mini

Gemma 3 27B (Google) and GPT-4o-mini (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, Gemma 3 27B holds the stronger ModelCap Index position (#115 vs #117); Gemma 3 27B is 1.3× cheaper per output token ($0.45/1M vs $0.60/1M); and Gemma 3 27B offers the longer context window (131K vs 128K tokens).

Which should you choose?

Choose Gemma 3 27B if…

  • you want the stronger overall ModelCap Index position — #115 against #117 (35.9 vs 35.0 points).
  • API cost matters — $0.45/1M output tokens against $0.60/1M, about 1.3× cheaper.
  • your workload is prompt-heavy — input tokens cost $0.08/1M against $0.15/1M.
  • you need the longer context window — 131K tokens against 128K.
  • you want provider choice — 4 listed API providers against 2.
  • AA Humanity's Last Exam is your yardstick — 4.4% against 4.2%.
  • you want the more recently listed model — Gemma 3 27B was listed 12 March 2025, GPT-4o-mini 18 July 2024.

Choose GPT-4o-mini if…

  • AA Terminal-Bench 2.1 is your yardstick — 5.6% against 4.5%.

Gemma 3 27B vs GPT-4o-mini: specs, pricing and context

Specification comparison of Gemma 3 27B and GPT-4o-mini
FieldGemma 3 27BGoogleGPT-4o-miniOpenAI
ModelCap Index position#115#117
Index score35.935.0
EvidenceMeasuredMeasured
Input price / 1M tokens$0.08$0.15
Output price / 1M tokens$0.45$0.60
Context window131K tokens128K tokens
Max output tokens118K16K
API providers listed42
Weight accessGated accessAPI only
Input modalitiesText, ImageText, Image, File
First listed12 March 202518 July 2024
PublisherGoogleOpenAI

Evidence: 3 public benchmark observations across 3 boards · publisher-corpus-prior over 182 held-out anchors (61%); 1 specialist-board observation at 2.1% support (40%); shrunk 22.1 up toward the measured corpus. Prices are the lowest listed API offer per million tokens observed on the OpenRouter catalogue.

Benchmark scores: Gemma 3 27B vs GPT-4o-mini

Public benchmark boards where Gemma 3 27B or GPT-4o-mini has a published result
BoardGemma 3 27BGPT-4o-miniLeads
Arena codingArena (LMArena)13581351–1365—Only one result
ARC-AGI-2ARC Prize Foundation—0.0%Only one result
BFCL V4UC Berkeley (Gorilla)29.5Prompt—Only one result
AA Intelligence IndexArtificial Analysis4.9intelligence-index:v4.3:non-reasoning—Only one result
AA Terminal-Bench 2.1Artificial Analysis4.5%terminal-bench:2.1:terminus-2:e2b:pass-at-1:3-repeats:source-model="Gemma 3 27B":reasoning=false5.6%terminal-bench:2.1:terminus-2:e2b:pass-at-1:3-repeats:source-model="GPT-4o mini":reasoning=falseGPT-4o-mini
AA τ²-Bench TelecomArtificial Analysis10.5%tau2:telecom:dual-control:pass-at-1:3-repeats:source-model="Gemma 3 27B":reasoning=false—Only one result
AA Humanity's Last ExamArtificial Analysis4.4%hle:may-2025:text-only-2158:no-tools:pass-at-1:source-model="Gemma 3 27B":reasoning=false4.2%hle:may-2025:text-only-2158:no-tools:pass-at-1:source-model="GPT-4o mini":reasoning=falseGemma 3 27B

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 27B vs GPT-4o-mini: common questions

Is Gemma 3 27B better than GPT-4o-mini?

Gemma 3 27B ranks higher on the ModelCap Index as of 9 September 2026: #115 against #117. 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 27B cheaper than GPT-4o-mini?

Gemma 3 27B is cheaper on output tokens: $0.45/1M against $0.60/1M. Input tokens are $0.08/1M for Gemma 3 27B and $0.15/1M for GPT-4o-mini. 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 $0.39 for Gemma 3 27B versus $0.60 for GPT-4o-mini. Gemma 3 27B costs 35.8% 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 27B or GPT-4o-mini?

Gemma 3 27B has the larger context window: 131K tokens against 128K.

Which is better for coding, Gemma 3 27B or GPT-4o-mini?

AA Terminal-Bench 2.1: Gemma 3 27B 4.5%, GPT-4o-mini 5.6% — GPT-4o-mini leads.

Are Gemma 3 27B and GPT-4o-mini open-weight models?

Gemma 3 27B: Gated access. GPT-4o-mini: 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 27B and GPT-4o-mini?

ModelCap currently lists 4 API providers for Gemma 3 27B and 2 for GPT-4o-mini, from the OpenRouter catalogue snapshot the site serves; each model page lists the providers and their prices.

How current is this Gemma 3 27B vs GPT-4o-mini 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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