# Granite 4.2 3b vs Palm 2

> Granite 4.2 3b is the stronger model overall, scoring 39.4 to 30.0 on the Noometry Index.

- Canonical page: https://noometry.com/compare/granite-4-2-3b-vs-palm-2
- Last updated: 2026-10-10
- Shared benchmarks: 9

## Summary

- They share 9 benchmarks with published results for both. Granite 4.2 3b scores higher in 6 categories and Palm 2 in 0 categories; 6 gaps are clear of the uncertainty.
- The widest gap is in writing & preference, where Granite 4.2 3b leads 47.2 to 25.6.
- Granite 4.2 3b has downloadable open weights; the other is API-only.

## Snapshot

| | Granite 4.2 3b | Palm 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | IBM | Google |
| Noometry Index | 39.4 | 30.0 |
| Rank | 169 | 298 |
| Context | — | — |
| Input $/M | — | — |
| Output $/M | — | — |
| Weights | Open | Proprietary |

## Coding

- Granite 4.2 3b: 40.0 (#151)
- Palm 2: 29.0 (#311)

| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 3b | Palm 2 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Coding | 1361 | 994 |

## Reasoning

- Granite 4.2 3b: 26.0 (#138)
- Palm 2: 19.1 (#271)

| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 3b | Palm 2 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Hard Prompts | 1306 | 1005 |

## Math

- Granite 4.2 3b: —
- Palm 2: 30.8 (#231)

| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 3b | Palm 2 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Math | — | 1049 |

## Knowledge

- Granite 4.2 3b: 36.3 (#171)
- Palm 2: —

| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 3b | Palm 2 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Expert | 1315 | — |

## Multilingual

- Granite 4.2 3b: 42.1 (#198)
- Palm 2: 20.9 (#295)

| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 3b | Palm 2 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Non-English | 1268 | 916 |
| LMArena Chinese | 1269 | 887 |
| LMArena Russian | 1249 | — |

## Instruction Following

- Granite 4.2 3b: 67.1 (#200)
- Palm 2: 51.0 (#296)

| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 3b | Palm 2 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Instruction Following | 1273 | 1010 |

## Long Context

- Granite 4.2 3b: 39.2 (#185)
- Palm 2: 30.8 (#285)

| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 3b | Palm 2 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Longer Query | 1291 | 1010 |

## Writing & Preference

- Granite 4.2 3b: 47.2 (#212)
- Palm 2: 25.6 (#304)

| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 3b | Palm 2 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Text | 1293 | 1027 |
| LMArena Creative Writing | 1205 | 991 |
| LMArena Multi-Turn | 1290 | 994 |

## FAQ

### Is Granite 4.2 3b better than Palm 2?

Granite 4.2 3b is the stronger model overall, scoring 39.4 to 30.0 on the Noometry Index.

### Is Granite 4.2 3b or Palm 2 better for coding?

Granite 4.2 3b scores higher on coding benchmarks: 40.0 versus 29.0 in the Noometry coding category.

### How many benchmarks do Granite 4.2 3b and Palm 2 share?

9 benchmarks have published results for both models. Granite 4.2 3b has 11 scored results on Noometry and Palm 2 has 10.