Apertus 8B Instruct vs Magistral Small 1
Wins 0 of 5 areas
—
Wins 4 of 5 areas
Coding · Reasoning · Facts · Following instructions
Magistral Small 1 is the stronger all-rounder.
Scores updated · 12 tests both models report · How we compare
Where each one wins
Tests won in each of the five areas where both have results. Each piece is one test, so a longer bar means more evidence; grey means the two scored within a point of each other.
- ReasoningHard problems that need careful thinking02Magistral Small 12 of 3 tests · 1 tie
- CodingWriting and fixing software02Magistral Small 12 of 2 tests
- FactsGetting facts right instead of making them up02Magistral Small 12 of 2 tests
- Following instructionsDoing exactly what it is asked01Magistral Small 11 of 1 test
- Long documentsFinding answers in very long texts00Even0 each · 1 tie
Long documents and following instructions rest on a single test each.
What it costs
Prices per million tokens, roughly 750,000 words. The bars show the cost of a million tokens read plus a million written.
The biggest differences
The tests each model wins by the widest margin, up to three each. Scores are out of 100.
Where Magistral Small 1 pulls ahead
- Graduate-level biology, physics and chemistry questionsGPQA Diamond+38.5points ahead
- Code for real scientific research problemsSciCode+20points ahead
- Avoids making up answers it doesn't knowAA-Omniscience · Non-hallucination+20points ahead
Where Apertus 8B Instruct pulls ahead
No clear win on a test scored out of 100.
Every test, side by side
All 12 tests both models report. The winning score is in its model's colour; marks a score checked independently.
CodingMagistral Small 1
- SciCodeMagistral Small 1 by 204.124.1+20
- Terminal-Bench HardMagistral Small 1 by 4.504.5+4.5
ReasoningMagistral Small 1
- GPQA DiamondMagistral Small 1 by 38.525.664.1+38.5
- Humanity's Last ExamMagistral Small 1 by 2.657.6+2.6
- CritPttie00tie
FactsMagistral Small 1
- AA-Omniscience · Non-hallucinationMagistral Small 1 by 203.923.9+20
- AA-Omniscience · AccuracyMagistral Small 1 by 8.39.718+8.3
Following instructionsMagistral Small 1
- IFBenchMagistral Small 1 by 2.422.424.8+2.4
Other results3 tests, not counted
Tests outside the eight areas. They are not counted above: several are summary scores built from other tests, or the same test under another name.
- AA-OmniscienceMagistral Small 1 by 32.8-77.2-44.4+32.8
- τ²-Bench Telecom (AA run)Magistral Small 1 by 15.211.426.6+15.2
- AA IntelligenceMagistral Small 1 by 3.44.88.2+3.4
Questions people ask
Which is better, Apertus 8B Instruct or Magistral Small 1?
Magistral Small 1 wins four of the five areas where both have results: coding, reasoning, facts and following instructions. Apertus 8B Instruct wins none. They are level on long documents.
Which is better for coding?
Magistral Small 1. It wins 2 of the 2 coding tests both models report; Apertus 8B Instruct wins none.
How do you compare the two?
We use the 12 benchmark tests both models have published scores on. The verdict counts the 9 tests in the eight capability areas, and a gap under one point (ten on rating-style scales) counts as a tie. The other 3 are listed but not counted, because several are summary scores or repeat a test. Each score is the one shown on the model's own page.