# Gemma 2 2b IT vs Nova 2 Lite

> Nova 2 Lite is the stronger model overall, scoring 39.0 to 32.5 on the Noometry Index.

- Canonical page: https://noometry.com/compare/gemma-2-2b-it-vs-nova-2-lite
- Last updated: 2026-10-10
- Shared benchmarks: 17

## Summary

- They share 17 benchmarks with published results for both. Gemma 2 2b IT scores higher in 0 categories and Nova 2 Lite in 8 categories; 8 gaps are clear of the uncertainty.
- The widest gap is in writing & preference, where Nova 2 Lite leads 54.1 to 36.6.
- Gemma 2 2b IT has downloadable open weights; the other is API-only.

## Snapshot

| | Gemma 2 2b IT | Nova 2 Lite |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | Google | Amazon |
| Noometry Index | 32.5 | 39.0 |
| Rank | 244 | 161 |
| Context | — | 1M |
| Input $/M | — | $0.30 |
| Output $/M | — | $2.50 |
| Weights | Open | Proprietary |

## Coding

- Gemma 2 2b IT: 31.8 (#268)
- Nova 2 Lite: 40.1 (#131)

| Benchmark | Gemma 2 2b IT | Nova 2 Lite |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Coding | 1112 | 1386 |

## Agentic & Tool Use

- Gemma 2 2b IT: —
- Nova 2 Lite: 23.9 (#114)

| Benchmark | Gemma 2 2b IT | Nova 2 Lite |
|---|---|---|
| Berkeley Function Calling Leaderboard | — | 27.1% |

## Reasoning

- Gemma 2 2b IT: 20.5 (#219)
- Nova 2 Lite: 26.4 (#120)

| Benchmark | Gemma 2 2b IT | Nova 2 Lite |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Hard Prompts | 1113 | 1364 |

## Math

- Gemma 2 2b IT: 30.1 (#212)
- Nova 2 Lite: 34.8 (#154)

| Benchmark | Gemma 2 2b IT | Nova 2 Lite |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Math | 1135 | 1359 |

## Knowledge

- Gemma 2 2b IT: 29.3 (#229)
- Nova 2 Lite: 42.5 (#88)

| Benchmark | Gemma 2 2b IT | Nova 2 Lite |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Expert | 1096 | 1360 |
| Vectara Hallucination Rate | — | 5.1% |

## Multilingual

- Gemma 2 2b IT: 32.5 (#252)
- Nova 2 Lite: 47.3 (#148)

| Benchmark | Gemma 2 2b IT | Nova 2 Lite |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Non-English | 1121 | 1337 |
| LMArena Chinese | 1132 | 1364 |
| LMArena French | 1156 | 1381 |
| LMArena German | 1114 | 1343 |
| LMArena Japanese | 1083 | 1273 |
| LMArena Korean | 1055 | 1284 |
| LMArena Russian | 1118 | 1343 |
| LMArena Spanish | 1140 | 1372 |

## Instruction Following

- Gemma 2 2b IT: 58.1 (#258)
- Nova 2 Lite: 70.7 (#156)

| Benchmark | Gemma 2 2b IT | Nova 2 Lite |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Instruction Following | 1118 | 1335 |

## Long Context

- Gemma 2 2b IT: 34.2 (#245)
- Nova 2 Lite: 40.6 (#145)

| Benchmark | Gemma 2 2b IT | Nova 2 Lite |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Longer Query | 1130 | 1335 |

## Writing & Preference

- Gemma 2 2b IT: 36.6 (#258)
- Nova 2 Lite: 54.1 (#150)

| Benchmark | Gemma 2 2b IT | Nova 2 Lite |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Text | 1156 | 1362 |
| LMArena Creative Writing | 1147 | 1291 |
| LMArena Multi-Turn | 1118 | 1338 |

## FAQ

### Is Gemma 2 2b IT better than Nova 2 Lite?

Nova 2 Lite is the stronger model overall, scoring 39.0 to 32.5 on the Noometry Index.

### Is Gemma 2 2b IT or Nova 2 Lite better for coding?

Nova 2 Lite scores higher on coding benchmarks: 40.1 versus 31.8 in the Noometry coding category.

### How many benchmarks do Gemma 2 2b IT and Nova 2 Lite share?

17 benchmarks have published results for both models. Gemma 2 2b IT has 17 scored results on Noometry and Nova 2 Lite has 19.
