# Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B vs Step 3.5 Flash

> Step 3.5 Flash is the stronger model overall, scoring 41.7 to 29.7 on the Noometry Index.

- Canonical page: https://noometry.com/compare/gemini-1-5-flash-8b-vs-step-3-5-flash
- Last updated: 2026-10-10
- Shared benchmarks: 17

## Summary

- They share 17 benchmarks with published results for both. Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B scores higher in 0 categories and Step 3.5 Flash in 8 categories; 8 gaps are clear of the uncertainty.
- The widest gap is in math, where Step 3.5 Flash leads 40.6 to 13.3.
- Step 3.5 Flash has downloadable open weights; the other is API-only.

## Snapshot

| | Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | Google | StepFun |
| Noometry Index | 29.7 | 41.7 |
| Rank | 292 | 116 |
| Context | — | 256K |
| Input $/M | — | $0.10 |
| Output $/M | — | $0.30 |
| Weights | Proprietary | Open |

## Coding

- Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B: 34.9 (#221)
- Step 3.5 Flash: 41.7 (#106)

| Benchmark | Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Coding | 1218 | 1436 |

## Reasoning

- Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B: 19.2 (#242)
- Step 3.5 Flash: 21.2 (#202)

| Benchmark | Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Hard Prompts | 1210 | 1411 |
| NYT Connections (extended) | — | 28.4% |
| DTBench | 50% | — |

## Math

- Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B: 13.3 (#296)
- Step 3.5 Flash: 40.6 (#77)

| Benchmark | Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Math | 1207 | 1408 |
| MathArena Final-Answer Competitions | — | 66.8% |
| OTIS Mock AIME 2024-2025 | 4.6% | — |

## Knowledge

- Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B: 16.0 (#285)
- Step 3.5 Flash: 39.0 (#127)

| Benchmark | Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Expert | 1185 | 1422 |
| GPQA Diamond | 33% | — |

## Multimodal

- Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B: 27.6 (#110)
- Step 3.5 Flash: —

| Benchmark | Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Vision | 1044 | — |

## Multilingual

- Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B: 38.6 (#224)
- Step 3.5 Flash: 50.7 (#115)

| Benchmark | Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Non-English | 1215 | 1386 |
| LMArena Chinese | 1231 | 1448 |
| LMArena French | 1233 | 1421 |
| LMArena German | 1206 | 1404 |
| LMArena Japanese | 1150 | 1353 |
| LMArena Korean | 1140 | 1350 |
| LMArena Russian | 1236 | 1385 |
| LMArena Spanish | 1212 | 1419 |

## Instruction Following

- Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B: 63.1 (#231)
- Step 3.5 Flash: 73.3 (#119)

| Benchmark | Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Instruction Following | 1199 | 1385 |

## Long Context

- Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B: 36.9 (#220)
- Step 3.5 Flash: 42.8 (#112)

| Benchmark | Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Longer Query | 1219 | 1402 |

## Writing & Preference

- Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B: 43.0 (#227)
- Step 3.5 Flash: 59.0 (#108)

| Benchmark | Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Text | 1226 | 1403 |
| LMArena Creative Writing | 1218 | 1357 |
| LMArena Multi-Turn | 1185 | 1405 |

## FAQ

### Is Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B better than Step 3.5 Flash?

Step 3.5 Flash is the stronger model overall, scoring 41.7 to 29.7 on the Noometry Index.

### Is Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B or Step 3.5 Flash better for coding?

Step 3.5 Flash scores higher on coding benchmarks: 41.7 versus 34.9 in the Noometry coding category.

### How many benchmarks do Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B and Step 3.5 Flash share?

17 benchmarks have published results for both models. Gemini 1.5 Flash 8B has 21 scored results on Noometry and Step 3.5 Flash has 19.