# Molmo 2 8b vs Step 3.5 Flash

> Step 3.5 Flash is the stronger model overall, scoring 42.3 to 39.1 on the Noometry Index.

- Canonical page: https://noometry.com/compare/molmo-2-8b-vs-step-3-5-flash
- Last updated: 2026-10-11
- Shared benchmarks: 4

## Summary

- They share 4 benchmarks with published results for both. Molmo 2 8b scores higher in 1 category and Step 3.5 Flash in 3 categories; 4 gaps are clear of the uncertainty.
- The widest gap is in writing & preference, where Step 3.5 Flash leads 58.8 to 49.4.

## Snapshot

| | Molmo 2 8b | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | Allen Institute for AI (Ai2) | StepFun |
| Noometry Index | 39.1 | 42.3 |
| Rank | 174 | 116 |
| Context | — | 256K |
| Input $/M | — | $0.10 |
| Output $/M | — | $0.30 |
| Weights | Open | Open |

## Coding

- Molmo 2 8b: —
- Step 3.5 Flash: 42.4 (#105)

| Benchmark | Molmo 2 8b | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Coding | — | 1436 |

## Reasoning

- Molmo 2 8b: 25.6 (#146)
- Step 3.5 Flash: 22.2 (#202)

| Benchmark | Molmo 2 8b | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Hard Prompts | 1287 | 1411 |
| NYT Connections (extended) | — | 28.4% |

## Math

- Molmo 2 8b: —
- Step 3.5 Flash: 42.6 (#84)

| Benchmark | Molmo 2 8b | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| MathArena Final-Answer Competitions | — | 66.8% |
| LMArena Math | — | 1408 |

## Knowledge

- Molmo 2 8b: —
- Step 3.5 Flash: 39.6 (#132)

| Benchmark | Molmo 2 8b | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Expert | — | 1421 |

## Multimodal

- Molmo 2 8b: 30.2 (#112)
- Step 3.5 Flash: —

| Benchmark | Molmo 2 8b | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Vision | 1081 | — |

## Multilingual

- Molmo 2 8b: 42.7 (#190)
- Step 3.5 Flash: 50.5 (#119)

| Benchmark | Molmo 2 8b | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Non-English | 1276 | 1385 |
| LMArena Chinese | — | 1447 |
| LMArena French | — | 1421 |
| LMArena German | — | 1405 |
| LMArena Japanese | — | 1354 |
| LMArena Korean | — | 1352 |
| LMArena Russian | — | 1385 |
| LMArena Spanish | — | 1419 |

## Instruction Following

- Molmo 2 8b: 67.0 (#201)
- Step 3.5 Flash: 73.1 (#124)

| Benchmark | Molmo 2 8b | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Instruction Following | 1270 | 1385 |

## Long Context

- Molmo 2 8b: —
- Step 3.5 Flash: 42.8 (#117)

| Benchmark | Molmo 2 8b | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Longer Query | — | 1402 |

## Writing & Preference

- Molmo 2 8b: 49.4 (#191)
- Step 3.5 Flash: 58.8 (#113)

| Benchmark | Molmo 2 8b | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Text | 1288 | 1403 |
| LMArena Creative Writing | — | 1357 |
| LMArena Multi-Turn | — | 1405 |

## FAQ

### Is Molmo 2 8b better than Step 3.5 Flash?

Step 3.5 Flash is the stronger model overall, scoring 42.3 to 39.1 on the Noometry Index.

### How many benchmarks do Molmo 2 8b and Step 3.5 Flash share?

4 benchmarks have published results for both models. Molmo 2 8b has 5 scored results on Noometry and Step 3.5 Flash has 19.