Gemma 3 4B IT vs Gemma 3 27B IT
Gemma 3 27B IT comes out ahead, 60 to 53 on our weighted score, though Gemma 3 4B IT is 43% cheaper per token.
GoogleGemma 3 4B IT
53/100- ECI116.1
- Price$0.05 / $0.10
- Context131K
- Our pickGoogle
Gemma 3 27B IT
60/100- ECI130.0
- Price$0.08 / $0.20
- Context131K
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Gemma 3 27B IT is our pick
Gemma 3 27B IT is the better all-round choice, scoring 60/100 against Gemma 3 4B IT (53). It leads on capability. Gemma 3 4B IT wins on price. The score weighs capability 50%, price 25%, inputs & features 15%, context window 10%.
- CapabilityGemma 3 27B ITCapabilities Index (ECI): Gemma 3 27B IT 130.0 · Gemma 3 4B IT 116.1
- Lowest priceGemma 3 4B ITGemma 3 4B IT $0.063 · Gemma 3 27B IT $0.11 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
- Longest contextAbout the sameGemma 3 4B IT 131,072 · Gemma 3 27B IT 131,072 tokens
- Widest inputsSame inputsGemma 3 4B IT: Text, Images · Gemma 3 27B IT: Text, Images
- Self-hostingAll open weightsEvery model here can be downloaded and run on your own hardware
| Measure | Weight | Gemma 3 4B IT | Gemma 3 27B IT |
|---|---|---|---|
| CapabilityCapabilities Index (ECI) | 50% | 35 | 53 |
| Price | 25% | 100 | 95 |
| Inputs & features | 15% | 50 | 50 |
| Context window | 10% | 24 | 24 |
| Overall | 100% | 53/100 | 60/100 |
Every spec in one table
Highlighted cells lead their row. Dashes mean the data is not published.
| Specification | Gemma 3 4B ITGoogle | Gemma 3 27B ITGoogle |
|---|---|---|
| Capability | ||
| Capabilities Index (ECI) | 116.1 | 130.0 (best) |
| ECI rank | #146 of 148 | #125 of 148 (best) |
| GPQA DiamondGraduate-level science questions | 23.2% | 47.7% (best) |
| OTIS Mock AIME 2024–2025Competition mathematics | 7.5% | 22.5% (best) |
| Price per million tokens | ||
| Input | $0.05 (best) | $0.08 |
| Output | $0.10 (best) | $0.20 |
| Cached input | — | — |
| Blended (3:1) | $0.063 (best) | $0.11 |
| Long-context rate | Same rate | Same rate |
| Price source | Median of 7 providers | Median of 9 providers |
| Limits | ||
| Context window | 131,072 tokens | 131,072 tokens |
| Max output | 131,072 tokens | 131,072 tokens |
| Inputs and features | ||
| Text | Yes | Yes |
| Images | Yes | Yes |
| PDFs | No | No |
| Audio | No | No |
| Video | No | No |
| Reasoning | No | No |
| Tool calling | Yes | Yes |
| Structured output | No | No |
| Availability | ||
| Weights | Open | Open |
| API model ID | — | — |
| API providers | 7 | 10 (best) |
| Released | Mar 12, 2025 | Mar 12, 2025 |
| Knowledge cutoff | Aug 2024 | Aug 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 4B IT$0.70
- Gemma 3 27B IT$1.20
Which should you choose?
Which is better: Gemma 3 4B IT or Gemma 3 27B IT?
Gemma 3 27B IT is the better all-round choice, scoring 60/100 against Gemma 3 4B IT (53). It leads on capability. Gemma 3 4B IT wins on price. The score weighs capability 50%, price 25%, inputs & features 15%, context window 10%.
Which is cheaper, Gemma 3 4B IT or Gemma 3 27B IT?
Gemma 3 4B IT is cheaper at $0.05 input / $0.10 output per million tokens (median across 7 API providers). Gemma 3 27B IT costs $0.08 input / $0.20 output per million tokens (median across 9 API providers). At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $0.063 per million tokens for Gemma 3 4B IT versus $0.11 for Gemma 3 27B IT (1.8× as much).
Which scores higher on benchmarks?
Gemma 3 27B IT scores higher on the Capabilities Index (ECI): Gemma 3 27B IT 130.0 (#125 of 148) and Gemma 3 4B IT 116.1 (#146 of 148). The confidence ranges of the top two overlap (124.1–132.2 vs 97.7–124.3), so treat the gap as small. On individual benchmarks: GPQA Diamond — Gemma 3 27B IT 47.7%, Gemma 3 4B IT 23.2%; OTIS Mock AIME 2024–2025 — Gemma 3 27B IT 22.5%, Gemma 3 4B IT 7.5%.
Which is better for coding?
There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for Gemma 3 4B IT and Gemma 3 27B IT yet, so there is no like-for-like coding score. On overall capability, Gemma 3 27B IT leads, which tends to carry over to coding, but test on your own codebase. Both support tool calling for agent workflows.
Which has the bigger context window?
Gemma 3 4B IT and Gemma 3 27B IT share the same 131,072-token context window. Maximum output per response: Gemma 3 4B IT up to 131,072, Gemma 3 27B IT up to 131,072 tokens.
Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?
Gemma 3 4B IT accepts text and images; Gemma 3 27B IT accepts text and images. They handle the same number of input types.
Are any of these open source?
Yes, both publish their weights, so you can self-host them.
Which is newer?
Gemma 3 4B IT is the newest, released Mar 12, 2025. Gemma 3 27B IT came out Mar 12, 2025. Knowledge cutoff: Gemma 3 4B IT Aug 2024, Gemma 3 27B IT Aug 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 Oct 4, 2026.
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