Gemini 2.5 Flash vs Gemini 2.5 Flash Lite Preview 09-2025
Wins 3 of 7 areas
Reasoning · Facts · Images and charts
Wins 2 of 7 areas
Agents · Following instructions
Gemini 2.5 Flash wins more areas, narrowly.Gemini 2.5 Flash Lite Preview 09-2025 is cheaper and better at agents.
Scores updated · 17 tests both models report · How we compare
Where each one wins
Tests won in each of the seven 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 thinking30Gemini 2.5 Flash3 of 3 tests
- FactsGetting facts right instead of making them up20Gemini 2.5 Flash2 of 2 tests
- Images and chartsUnderstanding pictures, charts and video20Gemini 2.5 Flash2 of 2 tests
- AgentsCarrying out multi-step tasks on its own01Gemini 2.5 Flash Lite Preview 09-20251 of 1 test
- Following instructionsDoing exactly what it is asked01Gemini 2.5 Flash Lite Preview 09-20251 of 1 test
- CodingWriting and fixing software00Even0 each · 2 ties
- Long documentsFinding answers in very long texts00Even0 each · 1 tie
Agents, 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.
Gemini 2.5 Flash Lite Preview 09-2025 costs 82% less for the same work.
The biggest differences
The tests each model wins by the widest margin, up to three each. Scores are out of 100.
Where Gemini 2.5 Flash pulls ahead
- Avoids making up answers it doesn't knowAA-Omniscience · Non-hallucination+12.5points ahead
- Graduate-level biology, physics and chemistry questionsGPQA Diamond+8.1points ahead
- Answers hard knowledge questions correctlyAA-Omniscience · Accuracy+8points ahead
Every test, side by side
All 17 tests both models report. The winning score is in its model's colour; marks a score checked independently.
AgentsGemini 2.5 Flash Lite Preview 09-2025
- GDPValGemini 2.5 Flash Lite Preview 09-2025 by 7.79.917.6+7.7
ReasoningGemini 2.5 Flash
- GPQA DiamondGemini 2.5 Flash by 8.17970.9+8.1
- Humanity's Last ExamGemini 2.5 Flash by 5.112.17+5.1
- CritPtGemini 2.5 Flash by 1.11.10+1.1
FactsGemini 2.5 Flash
- AA-Omniscience · Non-hallucinationGemini 2.5 Flash by 12.524.712.2+12.5
- AA-Omniscience · AccuracyGemini 2.5 Flash by 825.918+8
Images and chartsGemini 2.5 Flash
- MMMU-ProGemini 2.5 Flash by 4.169.165+4.1
- LMArena · VisionGemini 2.5 Flash by 37 rating points12351198+37 rating
Following instructionsGemini 2.5 Flash Lite Preview 09-2025
- IFBenchGemini 2.5 Flash Lite Preview 09-2025 by 2.350.352.6+2.3
Other results5 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-OmniscienceGemini 2.5 Flash by 24.2-29.8-54+24.2
- AA Agentic IndexGemini 2.5 Flash Lite Preview 09-2025 by 4.218.823+4.2
- AA IntelligenceGemini 2.5 Flash by 2.713.110.4+2.7
- τ²-Bench Telecom (AA run)tie31.630.7tie
- Artificial Analysis Coding Indextie22.222.1tie
Questions people ask
Which is better, Gemini 2.5 Flash or Gemini 2.5 Flash Lite Preview 09-2025?
Gemini 2.5 Flash wins three of the seven areas where both have results: reasoning, facts and images and charts. Gemini 2.5 Flash Lite Preview 09-2025 wins agents and following instructions, and costs 82% less. They are level on coding and long documents.
Which is better for coding?
Neither. All 2 coding tests both models report are ties.
Which is cheaper?
Gemini 2.5 Flash costs $0.30 per million input tokens and $2.50 per million output tokens; Gemini 2.5 Flash Lite Preview 09-2025 costs $0.10 and $0.40. That makes Gemini 2.5 Flash Lite Preview 09-2025 about 82% cheaper for the same work.
How do you compare the two?
We use the 17 benchmark tests both models have published scores on. The verdict counts the 12 tests in the eight capability areas, and a gap under one point (ten on rating-style scales) counts as a tie. The other 5 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.