Model comparison
Granite 4.2 8B vs Step 3.5 Flash
Step 3.5 Flash is the stronger model overall, scoring 42.3 to 40.5 on the Noometry Index.
Last verified . 11 shared benchmarks.
StepFunSummary
- They share 11 benchmarks with published results for both. Granite 4.2 8B scores higher in 1 category and Step 3.5 Flash in 6 categories; 7 gaps are clear of the uncertainty.
- The widest gap is in writing & preference, where Step 3.5 Flash leads 58.8 to 49.6.
- Granite 4.2 8B is cheaper at $0.06 / $0.25 per million input/output tokens, against $0.10 / $0.30 for Step 3.5 Flash.
- Step 3.5 Flash accepts more context: 256K tokens versus 131K.
Side by side
| Granite 4.2 8B | Step 3.5 Flash | |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | IBM | StepFun |
| Noometry Index | 40.5 | 42.3 |
| Released | — | 2026-01-29 |
| Weights | Open | Open |
| Context window | 131K | 256K |
| Max output | 118K | 256K |
| Input $ / M tokens | $0.06 | $0.10 |
| Output $ / M tokens | $0.25 | $0.30 |
| Results tracked | 11 | 19 |
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Category by category
Coding Step 3.5 Flash leads
Granite 4.2 8B: 40.5 (#137), Step 3.5 Flash: 42.4 (#105)
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Coding | 1380 | 1436 |
Reasoning Granite 4.2 8B leads
Granite 4.2 8B: 26.6 (#131), Step 3.5 Flash: 22.2 (#202)
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Hard Prompts | 1329 | 1411 |
| NYT Connections (extended) | — | 28.4% |
Math Not comparable
Granite 4.2 8B: —, Step 3.5 Flash: 42.6 (#84)
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| MathArena Final-Answer Competitions | — | 66.8% |
| LMArena Math | — | 1408 |
Knowledge Step 3.5 Flash leads
Granite 4.2 8B: 38.4 (#145), Step 3.5 Flash: 39.6 (#132)
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Expert | 1384 | 1421 |
Multilingual Step 3.5 Flash leads
Granite 4.2 8B: 44.5 (#178), Step 3.5 Flash: 50.5 (#119)
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Non-English | 1302 | 1385 |
| LMArena Chinese | 1366 | 1447 |
| LMArena Russian | 1285 | 1385 |
| LMArena French | — | 1421 |
| LMArena German | — | 1405 |
| LMArena Japanese | — | 1354 |
| LMArena Korean | — | 1352 |
| LMArena Spanish | — | 1419 |
Instruction Following Step 3.5 Flash leads
Granite 4.2 8B: 68.7 (#184), Step 3.5 Flash: 73.1 (#124)
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Instruction Following | 1301 | 1385 |
Long Context Step 3.5 Flash leads
Granite 4.2 8B: 40.3 (#159), Step 3.5 Flash: 42.8 (#117)
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Longer Query | 1324 | 1402 |
Writing & Preference Step 3.5 Flash leads
Granite 4.2 8B: 49.6 (#189), Step 3.5 Flash: 58.8 (#113)
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Step 3.5 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Text | 1320 | 1403 |
| LMArena Creative Writing | 1236 | 1357 |
| LMArena Multi-Turn | 1301 | 1405 |
Frequently asked questions
Is Granite 4.2 8B better than Step 3.5 Flash?
Step 3.5 Flash is the stronger model overall, scoring 42.3 to 40.5 on the Noometry Index.
Which is cheaper, Granite 4.2 8B or Step 3.5 Flash?
Granite 4.2 8B is cheaper. It lists at $0.06 per million input tokens and $0.25 per million output tokens; Step 3.5 Flash lists at $0.10 and $0.30.
Is Granite 4.2 8B or Step 3.5 Flash better for coding?
Step 3.5 Flash scores higher on coding benchmarks: 42.4 versus 40.5 in the Noometry coding category.
Which has the bigger context window?
Step 3.5 Flash does, with 256K tokens against 131K.
How many benchmarks do Granite 4.2 8B and Step 3.5 Flash share?
11 benchmarks have published results for both models. Granite 4.2 8B has 11 scored results on Noometry and Step 3.5 Flash has 19.