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Comparison · 2 models · Updated Oct 4, 2026

Step 3.5 Flash vs Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite

Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite comes out ahead, 85 to 62 on our weighted score, though Step 3.5 Flash is 14% cheaper per token.

  1. StepFun

    Step 3.5 Flash

    Released Jan 29, 2026

    62/100
    • ECI—
    • Price$0.10 / $0.30
    • Context256K
    Full specs Remove Step 3.5 Flash
  2. 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

  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 Step 3.5 Flash (62). It leads on inputs & features and context window. Step 3.5 Flash 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 priceStep 3.5 FlashStep 3.5 Flash $0.15 · Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite $0.175 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
  • Longest contextGemini 2.5 Flash-LiteGemini 2.5 Flash-Lite 1,048,576 · Step 3.5 Flash 256,000 tokens
  • Widest inputsGemini 2.5 Flash-LiteStep 3.5 Flash: Text · Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite: Text, Images, PDFs, Audio, Video
  • Self-hostingStep 3.5 FlashPublishes downloadable weights
How the score is built
MeasureWeightStep 3.5 FlashGemini 2.5 Flash-Lite
Price50%8986
Inputs & features30%35100
Context window20%3661
Overall100%62/10085/100

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.

Step 3.5 Flash vs Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite specifications side by side
SpecificationStep 3.5 FlashStepFunGemini 2.5 Flash-LiteGoogle
Capability
Capabilities Index (ECI)—133.9
ECI rank—#118 of 148
Price per million tokens
Input$0.10$0.10
Output$0.30 (best)$0.40
Cached input$0.02$0.01 (best)
Blended (3:1)$0.15 (best)$0.175
Long-context rateSame rateSame rate
Price sourceOfficial StepFun (Global) APIOfficial Google API
Limits
Context window256,000 tokens1,048,576 tokens (best)
Max output256,000 tokens (best)65,536 tokens
Inputs and features
TextYesYes
ImagesNoYes
PDFsNoYes
AudioNoYes
VideoNoYes
ReasoningYeslow · highYes
Tool callingYesYes
Structured outputNoYes
Availability
WeightsOpenProprietary
API model IDstep-3.5-flashgemini-2.5-flash-lite
API providers820 (best)
ReleasedJan 29, 2026Jun 17, 2025
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.

  • Step 3.5 Flash$1.60
  • Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite$1.80
04 — Questions

Which should you choose?

Which is better: Step 3.5 Flash or Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite?

Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite is the better all-round choice, scoring 85/100 against Step 3.5 Flash (62). It leads on inputs & features and context window. Step 3.5 Flash 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, Step 3.5 Flash or Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite?

Step 3.5 Flash is cheaper at $0.10 input / $0.30 output per million tokens (official StepFun (Global) API price). Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite costs $0.10 input / $0.40 output per million tokens (official Google API price). At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $0.15 per million tokens for Step 3.5 Flash versus $0.175 for Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite (1.2× as much).

Which scores higher on benchmarks?

There is no independent benchmark that covers both models yet. Step 3.5 Flash has not been scored yet and Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite has an ECI of 133.9.

Which is better for coding?

There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for Step 3.5 Flash and Gemini 2.5 Flash-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?

Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite has the largest context window at 1,048,576 tokens, against 256,000 for Step 3.5 Flash. Maximum output per response: Step 3.5 Flash up to 256,000, Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite up to 65,536 tokens.

Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?

Step 3.5 Flash accepts text; Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite accepts text, images, PDFs, audio and video. Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite handles the widest range of inputs.

Are any of these open source?

Step 3.5 Flash publishes its weights and can be self-hosted; Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite is proprietary.

Which is newer?

Step 3.5 Flash is the newest, released Jan 29, 2026. Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite came out Jun 17, 2025. Knowledge cutoff: Step 3.5 Flash Jan 2025, Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite 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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