AI model comparison
Gemma 4 26B A4B vs Step 3.5 Flash
Pricing, context window, benchmarks, and features compared side by side. Or skip the guesswork and send one prompt to both.
Gemma 4 26B A4B
Gemma 4 26B A4B IT is an instruction-tuned Mixture-of-Experts (MoE) model from Google DeepMind.
- Input / 1M
- $0.09
- Output / 1M
- $0.30
- Context
- 262K
StepFun
Step 3.5 Flash
Step 3.5 Flash is StepFun's most capable open-source foundation model.
- Input / 1M
- $0.10
- Output / 1M
- $0.30
- Context
- 262K
At a glance
Quick verdict
How the two models stack up on the things people ask about most.
Lower price
Gemma 4 26B A4B
1.1x cheaper for a typical chat
Higher intelligence score
Step 3.5 Flash
17 vs 16.7 on Artificial Analysis
Larger context window
Tie
262K vs 262K tokens
Newer release
Gemma 4 26B A4B
Released April 3, 2026
Benchmarks
Benchmark scores
Independent scores from Artificial Analysis. Higher is better.
Intelligence index
Gemma 4 26B A4B16.7Coding index
Gemma 4 26B A4B39.3Agentic index
Gemma 4 26B A4B2.9Pricing
Gemma 4 26B A4B vs Step 3.5 Flash API pricing
Per-token API rates. Cheaper option highlighted.
| Metric | Gemma 4 26B A4B | |
|---|---|---|
| Input tokensPer 1M tokens | $0.09 | $0.10 |
| Output tokensPer 1M tokens | $0.30 | $0.30 |
| Cached input (read)Per 1M tokens | $0.05 | Not available |
| Cache writePer 1M tokens | Not available | Not available |
What it costs in practice
Estimated cost per 1,000 requests at standard rates. Coding and long-document figures also show the cost when the input is already cached.
Chat message
2K in, 500 out
Gemma 4 26B A4B$0.33Coding task
30K in, 4K out
Gemma 4 26B A4B$3.90$2.70 cachedLong document summary
150K in, 2K out
Gemma 4 26B A4B$14.10$8.10 cachedSpecs
Context window and capabilities
How much each model can read, how much it can write, and what it accepts as input.
| Metric | Gemma 4 26B A4B | |
|---|---|---|
| Context window | 262K tokens | 262K tokens |
| Max output | 236K tokens | 66K tokens |
| Input types | Image, Text, Video | Text |
| Output types | Text | Text |
| Reasoning effort levels | Not available | Not available |
| Default reasoning effort | Not available | Not available |
| Release date | April 3, 2026 | January 29, 2026 |
Features
Supported features
API features available for each model.
| Metric | Gemma 4 26B A4B | |
|---|---|---|
| Tool calling | Supported | Supported |
| Structured outputs | Supported | Not supported |
| JSON mode | Supported | Not supported |
| Reasoning | Supported | Supported |
| Temperature | Supported | Supported |
| Stop sequences | Supported | Not supported |
| Deterministic seed | Supported | Not supported |
| Verbosity control | Not supported | Not supported |
Keep exploring
More on these models
Other head-to-heads, the full model page, and the alternatives list for each model.
Gemma 4 26B A4BView full model details- Gemma 4 26B A4B vs Hy3
- Gemma 4 26B A4B vs Muse Spark 1.3 Contributor
- Gemma 4 26B A4B vs Gemini 2.5 Flash Lite
- Gemma 4 26B A4B vs Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite
- Gemma 4 26B A4B vs Gemini 2.5 Flash
- Gemma 4 26B A4B vs Gemma 4 31B
- Gemma 4 26B A4B vs DeepSeek V3.2
- Gemma 4 26B A4B vs GPT-5 Nano
- Gemma 4 26B A4B vs Ling 3.0 Flash
- Gemma 4 26B A4B vs Ling 3.0 Flash Fin
- Gemma 4 26B A4B vs GLM 4.7 Flash
- Gemma 4 26B A4B vs DeepSeek V3.2 Exp
- Step 3.5 Flash vs Hy3
- Step 3.5 Flash vs DeepSeek V3.2
- Step 3.5 Flash vs Ling 3.0 Flash
- Step 3.5 Flash vs Step 3.7 Flash
- Step 3.5 Flash vs Qwen3.6 35B A3B
- Step 3.5 Flash vs DeepSeek V3.2 Exp
- Step 3.5 Flash vs Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite
- Step 3.5 Flash vs GLM 4.7 Flash
- Step 3.5 Flash vs Gemma 4 31B
- Step 3.5 Flash vs GPT-5 Nano
Our take
Gemma 4 26B A4B is 1.1x cheaper for a typical chat. Step 3.5 Flash scores higher on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index (17 vs 16.7). The right pick depends on your workload, so the quickest way to settle it is to send the same prompt to both and compare.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Is Gemma 4 26B A4B or Step 3.5 Flash cheaper?
Gemma 4 26B A4B is cheaper for a typical chat (2K input tokens and 500 output tokens). Gemma 4 26B A4B costs $0.09 per 1M input tokens and $0.30 per 1M output tokens, while Step 3.5 Flash costs $0.10 per 1M input tokens and $0.30 per 1M output tokens.
Which has a bigger context window, Gemma 4 26B A4B or Step 3.5 Flash?
Gemma 4 26B A4B supports up to 262K tokens of context, compared with 262K for Step 3.5 Flash.
Is Gemma 4 26B A4B smarter than Step 3.5 Flash?
On the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index, Gemma 4 26B A4B scores 16.7 and Step 3.5 Flash scores 17, putting Step 3.5 Flash ahead. Benchmarks don't capture everything, so the best test is running your own prompts through both.
Can I use Gemma 4 26B A4B and Step 3.5 Flash at the same time?
Yes. Shortcut Chat sends one prompt to multiple models at once, so you can see Gemma 4 26B A4B and Step 3.5 Flash answer side by side and keep the better response.
Why choose? Ask both.
Send one prompt to Gemma 4 26B A4B and Step 3.5 Flash at the same time. Compare the answers side by side and keep the best one.