Gemma 3 12B IT vs Gemma 3n E2B IT vs o3-deep-research
o3-deep-research comes out ahead, 49 to 40 and 21 on our weighted score, though Gemma 3 12B IT is 210× cheaper per token.
GoogleGemma 3 12B IT
40/100- ECI123.5
- Price$0.05 / $0.15
- Context131K
- Google
Gemma 3n E2B IT
21/100- ECI—
- Price—
- Context33K
- Our pick
OpenAIo3-deep-research
49/100- ECI—
- Price$9.00 / $36.00
- Context200K
o3-deep-research is our pick
o3-deep-research is the better all-round choice, scoring 49/100 against Gemma 3 12B IT (40) and Gemma 3n E2B IT (21). It leads on inputs & features and context window. The score weighs inputs & features 60%, context window 40%. 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 priceGemma 3 12B ITGemma 3 12B IT $0.075 · o3-deep-research $15.75 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend) · Gemma 3n E2B IT unpriced
- Longest contexto3-deep-researcho3-deep-research 200,000 · Gemma 3 12B IT 131,072 · Gemma 3n E2B IT 32,768 tokens
- Widest inputsGemma 3n E2B ITGemma 3 12B IT: Text, Images · Gemma 3n E2B IT: Text, Images, Audio · o3-deep-research: Text, Images
- Self-hostingGemma 3 12B IT and Gemma 3n E2B ITPublishes downloadable weights (Gemma Terms of Use)
| Measure | Weight | Gemma 3 12B IT | Gemma 3n E2B IT | o3-deep-research |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inputs & features | 60% | 50 | 35 | 60 |
| Context window | 40% | 25 | 0 | 32 |
| Overall | 100% | 40/100 | 21/100 | 49/100 |
Left out because at least one model lacks the data: capability and price. The remaining weights were rescaled.
Every spec in one table
Highlighted cells lead their row. Dashes mean the data is not published.
| Specification | Gemma 3 12B ITGoogle | Gemma 3n E2B ITGoogle | o3-deep-researchOpenAI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capability | |||
| Capabilities Index (ECI) | 123.5 | — | — |
| ECI rank | #151 of 165 | — | — |
| GPQA DiamondGraduate-level science questions | 39.5% | — | — |
| OTIS Mock AIME 2024–2025Competition mathematics | 16.7% | — | — |
| Price per million tokens | |||
| Input | $0.05 (best) | — | $9.00 |
| Output | $0.15 (best) | — | $36.00 |
| Cached input | — | — | — |
| Blended (3:1) | $0.075 (best) | — | $15.75 |
| Long-context rate | Same rate | — | Same rate |
| Price source | Median of 12 providers | — | Median of 1 providers |
| Limits | |||
| Context window | 131,072 tokens | 32,768 tokens | 200,000 tokens (best) |
| Max output | 131,072 tokens (best) | 32,768 tokens | 100,000 tokens |
| Inputs and features | |||
| Text | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Images | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| PDFs | No | No | No |
| Audio | No | Yes | No |
| Video | No | No | No |
| Reasoning | No | No | Yes |
| Tool calling | Yes | No | Yes |
| Structured output | No | No | No |
| Availability | |||
| Weights | Open | OpenGemma Terms of Use | Proprietary |
| API model ID | — | — | — |
| API providers | 13 (best) | — | 1 |
| Released | Mar 12, 2025 | Jun 26, 2025 | Jun 26, 2025 |
| Knowledge cutoff | Aug 2024 | Jun 2024 | May 2024 |
What would a month cost?
Enter your expected volume in millions of tokens. List prices only; caching and batch discounts would lower these.
- Gemma 3 12B IT$0.80
- Gemma 3n E2B IT—
- o3-deep-research$162.00
Which should you choose?
Which is better: Gemma 3 12B IT, Gemma 3n E2B IT or o3-deep-research?
o3-deep-research is the better all-round choice, scoring 49/100 against Gemma 3 12B IT (40) and Gemma 3n E2B IT (21). It leads on inputs & features and context window. The score weighs inputs & features 60%, context window 40%. None of the shared benchmarks cover every model here yet, so capability is left out of this verdict.
Which is cheaper, Gemma 3 12B IT, Gemma 3n E2B IT or o3-deep-research?
Gemma 3 12B IT is cheaper at $0.05 input / $0.15 output per million tokens (median across 12 API providers). o3-deep-research costs $9.00 input / $36.00 output per million tokens (median across 1 API provider). At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $0.075 per million tokens for Gemma 3 12B IT versus $15.75 for o3-deep-research (210× as much). Gemma 3n E2B IT has no published per-token price.
Which scores higher on benchmarks?
There is no independent benchmark that covers all three models yet. Gemma 3 12B IT has an ECI of 123.5, Gemma 3n E2B IT has not been scored yet and o3-deep-research has not been scored yet.
Which is better for coding?
There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for Gemma 3 12B IT, Gemma 3n E2B IT and o3-deep-research yet, so there is no like-for-like coding score. Test both on a sample of your own tasks. Note that Gemma 3n E2B IT does not support tool calling, which most coding agents need.
Which has the bigger context window?
o3-deep-research has the largest context window at 200,000 tokens, against 131,072 for Gemma 3 12B IT and 32,768 for Gemma 3n E2B IT. Maximum output per response: Gemma 3 12B IT up to 131,072, Gemma 3n E2B IT up to 32,768, o3-deep-research up to 100,000 tokens.
Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?
Gemma 3 12B IT accepts text and images; Gemma 3n E2B IT accepts text, images and audio; o3-deep-research accepts text and images. Gemma 3n E2B IT handles the widest range of inputs.
Are any of these open source?
Gemma 3 12B IT and Gemma 3n E2B IT publishes its weights (Gemma Terms of Use) and can be self-hosted; o3-deep-research is proprietary.
Which is newer?
Gemma 3n E2B IT is the newest, released Jun 26, 2025. o3-deep-research came out Jun 26, 2025; Gemma 3 12B IT came out Mar 12, 2025. Knowledge cutoff: Gemma 3 12B IT Aug 2024, Gemma 3n E2B IT Jun 2024, o3-deep-research May 2024.
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 Nov 2, 2026.
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