Gemini 2.5 Pro vs Nova 2.0 Lite
Wins 5 of 7 areas
Coding · Agents · Reasoning · Images and charts · Long documents
Wins 1 of 7 areas
Following instructions
Gemini 2.5 Pro is the stronger all-rounder.Nova 2.0 Lite is cheaper and better at following instructions.
Scores updated · 22 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.
- CodingWriting and fixing software30Gemini 2.5 Pro3 of 3 tests
- ReasoningHard problems that need careful thinking30Gemini 2.5 Pro3 of 3 tests
- AgentsCarrying out multi-step tasks on its own10Gemini 2.5 Pro1 of 2 tests · 1 tie
- Images and chartsUnderstanding pictures, charts and video10Gemini 2.5 Pro1 of 1 test
- Long documentsFinding answers in very long texts10Gemini 2.5 Pro1 of 1 test
- Following instructionsDoing exactly what it is asked01Nova 2.0 Lite1 of 1 test
- FactsGetting facts right instead of making them up11Even1 each · 1 tie
Images and charts, 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.
Nova 2.0 Lite costs 75% 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 Pro pulls ahead
- Answers hard knowledge questions correctlyAA-Omniscience · Accuracy+20.1points ahead
- Command-line tasks in a real terminalTerminal-Bench 2.1+12.4points ahead
- Harder college exam questions with imagesMMMU-Pro+11.1points ahead
Where Nova 2.0 Lite pulls ahead
- Follows unfamiliar, precisely checkable instructionsIFBench+22points ahead
Every test, side by side
All 22 tests both models report. The winning score is in its model's colour; marks a score checked independently.
CodingGemini 2.5 Pro
- Terminal-Bench 2.1Gemini 2.5 Pro by 12.428.516.1+12.4
- Terminal-Bench HardGemini 2.5 Pro by 9.826.516.7+9.8
- SciCodeGemini 2.5 Pro by 9.446.336.9+9.4
AgentsGemini 2.5 Pro
- τ-Bench V3 · BankingGemini 2.5 Pro by 2.99.76.8+2.9
- GDPValtie00tie
ReasoningGemini 2.5 Pro
- Humanity's Last ExamGemini 2.5 Pro by 6.41811.6+6.4
- GPQA DiamondGemini 2.5 Pro by 2.583.681.1+2.5
- CritPtGemini 2.5 Pro by 2.32.60.3+2.3
FactsEven
- AA-Omniscience · AccuracyGemini 2.5 Pro by 20.13919+20.1
- Vectara HHEM hallucination ratelower is betterNova 2.0 Lite by 1.975.1+1.9
- AA-Omniscience · Non-hallucinationtie9.18.6tie
Images and chartsGemini 2.5 Pro
- MMMU-ProGemini 2.5 Pro by 11.174.963.8+11.1
Following instructionsNova 2.0 Lite
- IFBenchNova 2.0 Lite by 2248.770.7+22
Other results8 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 Pro by 38.7-16.4-55+38.7
- Artificial Analysis Coding IndexGemini 2.5 Pro by 23.746.723+23.7
- τ²-Bench Telecom (AA run)Nova 2.0 Lite by 18.754.172.8+18.7
- vectara_factual_consistencyNova 2.0 Lite by 1.99394.9+1.9
- AA IntelligenceGemini 2.5 Pro by 1.61513.4+1.6
- vectara_avg_summary_lengthGemini 2.5 Pro by 12.3 rating points106.494.1+12.3 rating
- vectara_answer_ratetie99.199.6tie
- AA Agentic Indextie3.53.1tie
Questions people ask
Which is better, Gemini 2.5 Pro or Nova 2.0 Lite?
Gemini 2.5 Pro wins five of the seven areas where both have results: coding, agents, reasoning, images and charts and long documents. Nova 2.0 Lite wins following instructions, and costs 75% less. They are level on facts.
Which is better for coding?
Gemini 2.5 Pro. It wins 3 of the 3 coding tests both models report; Nova 2.0 Lite wins none.
Which is cheaper?
Gemini 2.5 Pro costs $1.25 per million input tokens and $10.00 per million output tokens; Nova 2.0 Lite costs $0.30 and $2.50. That makes Nova 2.0 Lite about 75% cheaper for the same work.
How do you compare the two?
We use the 22 benchmark tests both models have published scores on. The verdict counts the 14 tests in the eight capability areas, and a gap under one point (ten on rating-style scales) counts as a tie. The other 8 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.