# GPT-5.3 Codex vs Granite 4.2 8B

> GPT-5.3 Codex is the stronger model overall, scoring 45.8 to 40.5 on the Noometry Index. Granite 4.2 8B costs 45× less per token, which makes it the better buy when GPT-5.3 Codex's lead doesn't matter for your workload.

- Canonical page: https://noometry.com/compare/gpt-5-3-codex-vs-granite-4-2-8b
- Last updated: 2026-10-12
- Shared benchmarks: 0

## Summary

- The widest gap is in coding, where GPT-5.3 Codex leads 48.6 to 40.5.
- Granite 4.2 8B is cheaper at $0.06 / $0.25 per million input/output tokens, against $1.75 / $14 for GPT-5.3 Codex.
- GPT-5.3 Codex accepts more context: 400K tokens versus 131K.
- Granite 4.2 8B has downloadable open weights; the other is API-only.

## Snapshot

| | GPT-5.3 Codex | Granite 4.2 8B |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | OpenAI | IBM |
| Noometry Index | 45.8 | 40.5 |
| Rank | 69 | 148 |
| Context | 400K | 131K |
| Input $/M | $1.75 | $0.06 |
| Output $/M | $14 | $0.25 |
| Weights | Proprietary | Open |

## Coding

- GPT-5.3 Codex: 48.6 (#56)
- Granite 4.2 8B: 40.5 (#137)

| Benchmark | GPT-5.3 Codex | Granite 4.2 8B |
|---|---|---|
| SWE-bench Verified | 74.8% | — |
| LMArena WebDev | 1409 | — |
| WeirdML | 79.3% | — |
| LMArena Coding | — | 1380 |
| ALE-Bench | 1,655 | — |

## Agentic & Tool Use

- GPT-5.3 Codex: 48.0 (#9)
- Granite 4.2 8B: —

| Benchmark | GPT-5.3 Codex | Granite 4.2 8B |
|---|---|---|
| Terminal-Bench | 78.4% | — |
| METR Time Horizons | 74.5% | — |
| Vending-Bench 2 | 5,940 | — |

## Reasoning

- GPT-5.3 Codex: —
- Granite 4.2 8B: 26.6 (#131)

| Benchmark | GPT-5.3 Codex | Granite 4.2 8B |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Hard Prompts | — | 1329 |
| Epoch Capabilities Index | 156.77 | — |

## Knowledge

- GPT-5.3 Codex: —
- Granite 4.2 8B: 38.4 (#145)

| Benchmark | GPT-5.3 Codex | Granite 4.2 8B |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Expert | — | 1384 |

## Multilingual

- GPT-5.3 Codex: —
- Granite 4.2 8B: 44.5 (#178)

| Benchmark | GPT-5.3 Codex | Granite 4.2 8B |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Non-English | — | 1302 |
| LMArena Chinese | — | 1366 |
| LMArena Russian | — | 1285 |

## Instruction Following

- GPT-5.3 Codex: —
- Granite 4.2 8B: 68.7 (#184)

| Benchmark | GPT-5.3 Codex | Granite 4.2 8B |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Instruction Following | — | 1301 |

## Long Context

- GPT-5.3 Codex: —
- Granite 4.2 8B: 40.3 (#159)

| Benchmark | GPT-5.3 Codex | Granite 4.2 8B |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Longer Query | — | 1324 |

## Writing & Preference

- GPT-5.3 Codex: —
- Granite 4.2 8B: 49.6 (#189)

| Benchmark | GPT-5.3 Codex | Granite 4.2 8B |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Text | — | 1320 |
| LMArena Creative Writing | — | 1236 |
| LMArena Multi-Turn | — | 1301 |

## FAQ

### Is GPT-5.3 Codex better than Granite 4.2 8B?

GPT-5.3 Codex is the stronger model overall, scoring 45.8 to 40.5 on the Noometry Index. Granite 4.2 8B costs 45× less per token, which makes it the better buy when GPT-5.3 Codex's lead doesn't matter for your workload.

### Which is cheaper, GPT-5.3 Codex or Granite 4.2 8B?

Granite 4.2 8B is cheaper. It lists at $0.06 per million input tokens and $0.25 per million output tokens; GPT-5.3 Codex lists at $1.75 and $14.

### Is GPT-5.3 Codex or Granite 4.2 8B better for coding?

GPT-5.3 Codex scores higher on coding benchmarks: 48.6 versus 40.5 in the Noometry coding category.

### Which has the bigger context window?

GPT-5.3 Codex does, with 400K tokens against 131K.

### How many benchmarks do GPT-5.3 Codex and Granite 4.2 8B share?

0 benchmarks have published results for both models. GPT-5.3 Codex has 8 scored results on Noometry and Granite 4.2 8B has 11.