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Comparison · 2 models · Updated Nov 2, 2026

Phi-4-multimodal-instruct vs Nova Lite

Nova Lite comes out ahead, 75 to 72 on our weighted score, though Phi-4-multimodal-instruct is 24% cheaper per token.

  1. Microsoft

    Phi-4-multimodal-instruct

    Released Feb 26, 2025

    72/100
    • ECI—
    • Price$0.07 / $0.11
    • Context131K
    Full specs Remove Phi-4-multimodal-instruct
  2. Our pick

    Amazon

    Nova Lite

    Released Dec 3, 2024

    75/100
    • ECI—
    • Price$0.06 / $0.24
    • Context300K
    Full specs Remove Nova Lite

  3. Add a model

    Make it a three-way comparison.

01 — Verdict

Nova Lite is our pick

Nova Lite is the better all-round choice, scoring 75/100 against Phi-4-multimodal-instruct (72). It leads on inputs & features and context window. Phi-4-multimodal-instruct wins 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 pricePhi-4-multimodal-instructPhi-4-multimodal-instruct $0.08 · Nova Lite $0.105 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
  • Longest contextNova LiteNova Lite 300,000 · Phi-4-multimodal-instruct 131,072 tokens
  • Widest inputsNova LitePhi-4-multimodal-instruct: Text, Images, Audio · Nova Lite: Text, Images, PDFs, Video
  • Self-hostingPhi-4-multimodal-instructPublishes downloadable weights (MIT)
How the score is built
MeasureWeightPhi-4-multimodal-instructNova Lite
Price50%9892
Inputs & features30%6070
Context window20%2539
Overall100%72/10075/100

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.

Phi-4-multimodal-instruct vs Nova Lite specifications side by side
SpecificationPhi-4-multimodal-instructMicrosoftNova LiteAmazon
Capability
Capabilities Index (ECI)——
ECI rank——
Price per million tokens
Input$0.07$0.06 (best)
Output$0.11 (best)$0.24
Cached input—$0.015
Blended (3:1)$0.08 (best)$0.105
Long-context rateSame rateSame rate
Price sourceMedian of 1 providersOfficial Amazon Bedrock API
Limits
Context window131,072 tokens300,000 tokens (best)
Max output131,072 tokens (best)10,000 tokens
Inputs and features
TextYesYes
ImagesYesYes
PDFsNoYes
AudioYesNo
VideoNoYes
ReasoningNoNo
Tool callingYesYes
Structured outputNoNo
Availability
WeightsOpenMITProprietary
API model ID—amazon.nova-lite-v1:0
API providers18 (best)
ReleasedFeb 26, 2025Dec 3, 2024
Knowledge cutoffJun 2024Oct 2024
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.

  • Phi-4-multimodal-instruct$0.92
  • Nova Lite$1.08
04 — Questions

Which should you choose?

Which is better: Phi-4-multimodal-instruct or Nova Lite?

Nova Lite is the better all-round choice, scoring 75/100 against Phi-4-multimodal-instruct (72). It leads on inputs & features and context window. Phi-4-multimodal-instruct wins 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, Phi-4-multimodal-instruct or Nova Lite?

Phi-4-multimodal-instruct is cheaper at $0.07 input / $0.11 output per million tokens (median across 1 API provider). Nova Lite costs $0.06 input / $0.24 output per million tokens (official Amazon Bedrock API price). At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $0.08 per million tokens for Phi-4-multimodal-instruct versus $0.105 for Nova Lite (1.3× as much).

Which scores higher on benchmarks?

There is no independent benchmark that covers both models yet. Phi-4-multimodal-instruct has not been scored yet and Nova Lite has not been scored yet.

Which is better for coding?

There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for Phi-4-multimodal-instruct and Nova Lite 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?

Nova Lite has the largest context window at 300,000 tokens, against 131,072 for Phi-4-multimodal-instruct. Maximum output per response: Phi-4-multimodal-instruct up to 131,072, Nova Lite up to 10,000 tokens.

Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?

Phi-4-multimodal-instruct accepts text, images and audio; Nova Lite accepts text, images, PDFs and video. Nova Lite handles the widest range of inputs.

Are any of these open source?

Phi-4-multimodal-instruct publishes its weights (MIT) and can be self-hosted; Nova Lite is proprietary.

Which is newer?

Phi-4-multimodal-instruct is the newest, released Feb 26, 2025. Nova Lite came out Dec 3, 2024. Knowledge cutoff: Phi-4-multimodal-instruct Jun 2024, Nova Lite Oct 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.

05 — Keep comparing

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