# Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct vs Step 2 16k Exp 202412

> Step 2 16k Exp 202412 is the stronger model overall, scoring 38.6 to 32.4 on the Noometry Index.

- Canonical page: https://noometry.com/compare/phi-3-medium-4k-instruct-vs-step-2-16k-exp-202412
- Last updated: 2026-10-10
- Shared benchmarks: 12

## Summary

- They share 12 benchmarks with published results for both. Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct scores higher in 0 categories and Step 2 16k Exp 202412 in 8 categories; 8 gaps are clear of the uncertainty.
- The widest gap is in writing & preference, where Step 2 16k Exp 202412 leads 52.5 to 34.3.
- Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct has downloadable open weights; the other is API-only.

## Snapshot

| | Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct | Step 2 16k Exp 202412 |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | Microsoft | StepFun |
| Noometry Index | 32.4 | 38.6 |
| Rank | 246 | 173 |
| Context | — | — |
| Input $/M | — | — |
| Output $/M | — | — |
| Weights | Open | Proprietary |

## Coding

- Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct: 32.3 (#263)
- Step 2 16k Exp 202412: 37.9 (#170)

| Benchmark | Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct | Step 2 16k Exp 202412 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Coding | 1130 | 1316 |

## Reasoning

- Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct: 20.8 (#214)
- Step 2 16k Exp 202412: 24.8 (#140)

| Benchmark | Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct | Step 2 16k Exp 202412 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Hard Prompts | 1127 | 1299 |

## Math

- Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct: 30.9 (#202)
- Step 2 16k Exp 202412: 33.6 (#171)

| Benchmark | Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct | Step 2 16k Exp 202412 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Math | 1173 | 1305 |

## Knowledge

- Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct: 29.6 (#226)
- Step 2 16k Exp 202412: 34.6 (#187)

| Benchmark | Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct | Step 2 16k Exp 202412 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Expert | 1108 | 1279 |

## Multilingual

- Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct: 30.8 (#258)
- Step 2 16k Exp 202412: 43.9 (#176)

| Benchmark | Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct | Step 2 16k Exp 202412 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Non-English | 1094 | 1290 |
| LMArena Chinese | 1108 | 1331 |
| LMArena Russian | 1145 | 1324 |
| LMArena French | 1109 | — |
| LMArena German | 1101 | — |
| LMArena Japanese | 1042 | — |
| LMArena Korean | 954 | — |
| LMArena Spanish | 1095 | — |

## Instruction Following

- Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct: 57.8 (#263)
- Step 2 16k Exp 202412: 68.1 (#187)

| Benchmark | Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct | Step 2 16k Exp 202412 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Instruction Following | 1114 | 1287 |

## Long Context

- Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct: 33.9 (#250)
- Step 2 16k Exp 202412: 39.7 (#165)

| Benchmark | Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct | Step 2 16k Exp 202412 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Longer Query | 1120 | 1307 |

## Writing & Preference

- Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct: 34.3 (#267)
- Step 2 16k Exp 202412: 52.5 (#168)

| Benchmark | Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct | Step 2 16k Exp 202412 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Text | 1138 | 1321 |
| LMArena Creative Writing | 1106 | 1328 |
| LMArena Multi-Turn | 1088 | 1292 |

## FAQ

### Is Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct better than Step 2 16k Exp 202412?

Step 2 16k Exp 202412 is the stronger model overall, scoring 38.6 to 32.4 on the Noometry Index.

### Is Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct or Step 2 16k Exp 202412 better for coding?

Step 2 16k Exp 202412 scores higher on coding benchmarks: 37.9 versus 32.3 in the Noometry coding category.

### How many benchmarks do Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct and Step 2 16k Exp 202412 share?

12 benchmarks have published results for both models. Phi 3 Medium 4k Instruct has 17 scored results on Noometry and Step 2 16k Exp 202412 has 12.