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Comparison · 2 models · Updated Oct 4, 2026

Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite vs Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview

Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite comes out ahead, 85 to 73 on our weighted score, and it is the cheaper option too.

  1. Our pick

    Google

    Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite

    Released Jun 17, 2025

    85/100
    • ECI133.9
    • Price$0.10 / $0.40
    • Context1.05M
    Full specs Remove Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite

  2. Google

    Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview

    Released Mar 3, 2026Deprecated

    73/100
    • ECI—
    • Price$0.25 / $1.50
    • Context1.05M
    Full specs Remove Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview

  3. Add a model

    Make it a three-way comparison.

01 — Verdict

Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite is our pick

Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite is the better all-round choice, scoring 85/100 against Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview (73). It leads on price. The score weighs price 50%, inputs & features 30%, context window 20%. None of the shared benchmarks cover every model here yet, so capability is left out of this verdict.

  • CapabilityNot enough dataNo independent benchmark covers every model here yet
  • Lowest priceGemini 2.5 Flash-LiteGemini 2.5 Flash-Lite $0.175 · Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview $0.563 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
  • Longest contextAbout the sameGemini 2.5 Flash-Lite 1,048,576 · Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview 1,048,576 tokens
  • Widest inputsSame inputsGemini 2.5 Flash-Lite: Text, Images, PDFs, Audio, Video · Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview: Text, Images, PDFs, Audio, Video
  • Self-hostingNo open weightsBoth are available only through APIs
How the score is built
MeasureWeightGemini 2.5 Flash-LiteGemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview
Price50%8662
Inputs & features30%100100
Context window20%6161
Overall100%85/10073/100

Left out because at least one model lacks the data: capability. The remaining weights were rescaled.

02 — Side by side

Every spec in one table

Highlighted cells lead their row. Dashes mean the data is not published.

Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite vs Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview specifications side by side
SpecificationGemini 2.5 Flash-LiteGoogleGemini 3.1 Flash Lite PreviewGoogle
Capability
Capabilities Index (ECI)133.9—
ECI rank#118 of 148—
Price per million tokens
Input$0.10 (best)$0.25
Output$0.40 (best)$1.50
Cached input$0.01 (best)$0.025
Blended (3:1)$0.175 (best)$0.563
Long-context rateSame rateSame rate
Price sourceOfficial Google APIOfficial Google API
Limits
Context window1,048,576 tokens1,048,576 tokens
Max output65,536 tokens65,536 tokens
Inputs and features
TextYesYes
ImagesYesYes
PDFsYesYes
AudioYesYes
VideoYesYes
ReasoningYesYesminimal · low · medium · high
Tool callingYesYes
Structured outputYesYes
Availability
WeightsProprietaryProprietary
API model IDgemini-2.5-flash-litegemini-3.1-flash-lite-preview
API providers20 (best)10
ReleasedJun 17, 2025Mar 3, 2026
Knowledge cutoffJan 2025Jan 2025
03 — Cost

What would a month cost?

Enter your expected volume in millions of tokens. List prices only; caching and batch discounts would lower these.

  • Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite$1.80
  • Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview$5.50
04 — Questions

Which should you choose?

Which is better: Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite or Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview?

Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite is the better all-round choice, scoring 85/100 against Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview (73). It leads on price. The score weighs price 50%, inputs & features 30%, context window 20%. None of the shared benchmarks cover every model here yet, so capability is left out of this verdict.

Which is cheaper, Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite or Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview?

Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite is cheaper at $0.10 input / $0.40 output per million tokens (official Google API price). Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview costs $0.25 input / $1.50 output per million tokens (official Google API price). At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $0.175 per million tokens for Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite versus $0.563 for Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview (3.2× as much).

Which scores higher on benchmarks?

There is no independent benchmark that covers both models yet. Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite has an ECI of 133.9 and Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview has not been scored yet.

Which is better for coding?

There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite and Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview yet, so there is no like-for-like coding score. Test both on a sample of your own tasks. Both support tool calling for agent workflows.

Which has the bigger context window?

Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite and Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview share the same 1,048,576-token context window. Maximum output per response: Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite up to 65,536, Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview up to 65,536 tokens.

Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?

Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite accepts text, images, PDFs, audio and video; Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview accepts text, images, PDFs, audio and video. They handle the same number of input types.

Are any of these open source?

No. Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite and Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview are proprietary and only available through APIs and apps.

Which is newer?

Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview is the newest, released Mar 3, 2026. Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite came out Jun 17, 2025. Knowledge cutoff: Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite Jan 2025, Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Preview Jan 2025.

How do you decide the winner?

Each model gets a 0–100 score on capability (50%, independent benchmark results); price (25%, blended price per million tokens (3 input : 1 output), log scale); inputs & features (15%, image, PDF, audio and video input, tool calling, structured output and reasoning); context window (10%, maximum tokens per request, log scale). Dimensions missing for any model are dropped and the remaining weights rescaled, so every model is judged on the same evidence. Specs and prices come from public model listings and the labs’ own API pages; capability scores come from independent benchmark runs. Data updated Oct 4, 2026.

05 — Keep comparing

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