# Step 2 16k Exp 202412 vs Step 3

> Step 3 is the stronger model overall, scoring 39.9 to 38.6 on the Noometry Index.

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

## Summary

- They share 12 benchmarks with published results for both. Step 2 16k Exp 202412 scores higher in 0 categories and Step 3 in 8 categories; 7 gaps are clear of the uncertainty.
- Step 3 has downloadable open weights; the other is API-only.

## Snapshot

| | Step 2 16k Exp 202412 | Step 3 |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | StepFun | StepFun |
| Noometry Index | 38.6 | 39.9 |
| Rank | 173 | 145 |
| Context | — | — |
| Input $/M | — | — |
| Output $/M | — | — |
| Weights | Proprietary | Open |

## Coding

- Step 2 16k Exp 202412: 37.9 (#170)
- Step 3: 39.5 (#144)

| Benchmark | Step 2 16k Exp 202412 | Step 3 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Coding | 1316 | 1367 |

## Reasoning

- Step 2 16k Exp 202412: 24.8 (#140)
- Step 3: 27.6 (#102)

| Benchmark | Step 2 16k Exp 202412 | Step 3 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Hard Prompts | 1299 | 1355 |
| Kagi LLM Benchmark | — | 62.3% |

## Math

- Step 2 16k Exp 202412: 33.6 (#171)
- Step 3: 34.9 (#148)

| Benchmark | Step 2 16k Exp 202412 | Step 3 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Math | 1305 | 1366 |

## Knowledge

- Step 2 16k Exp 202412: 34.6 (#187)
- Step 3: 36.2 (#161)

| Benchmark | Step 2 16k Exp 202412 | Step 3 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Expert | 1279 | 1333 |

## Multimodal

- Step 2 16k Exp 202412: —
- Step 3: 34.9 (#81)

| Benchmark | Step 2 16k Exp 202412 | Step 3 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Vision | — | 1176 |

## Multilingual

- Step 2 16k Exp 202412: 43.9 (#176)
- Step 3: 46.5 (#154)

| Benchmark | Step 2 16k Exp 202412 | Step 3 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Non-English | 1290 | 1327 |
| LMArena Chinese | 1331 | 1396 |
| LMArena Russian | 1324 | 1331 |
| LMArena German | — | 1371 |
| LMArena Korean | — | 1271 |
| LMArena Spanish | — | 1372 |

## Instruction Following

- Step 2 16k Exp 202412: 68.1 (#187)
- Step 3: 70.6 (#159)

| Benchmark | Step 2 16k Exp 202412 | Step 3 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Instruction Following | 1287 | 1332 |

## Long Context

- Step 2 16k Exp 202412: 39.7 (#165)
- Step 3: 40.3 (#152)

| Benchmark | Step 2 16k Exp 202412 | Step 3 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Longer Query | 1307 | 1326 |

## Writing & Preference

- Step 2 16k Exp 202412: 52.5 (#168)
- Step 3: 54.5 (#146)

| Benchmark | Step 2 16k Exp 202412 | Step 3 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Text | 1321 | 1351 |
| LMArena Creative Writing | 1328 | 1322 |
| LMArena Multi-Turn | 1292 | 1340 |

## FAQ

### Is Step 2 16k Exp 202412 better than Step 3?

Step 3 is the stronger model overall, scoring 39.9 to 38.6 on the Noometry Index.

### Is Step 2 16k Exp 202412 or Step 3 better for coding?

Step 3 scores higher on coding benchmarks: 39.5 versus 37.9 in the Noometry coding category.

### How many benchmarks do Step 2 16k Exp 202412 and Step 3 share?

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