Comparing 2 models
Gemini 3.8 Flash vs GLM 5.3
Benchmarks through
Verdict
Gemini 3.8 Flash and GLM 5.3 split the 4 tasks where both are ranked, 2 each. GLM 5.3 costs 10.4x less per input token. Only GLM 5.3 has open weights for self-hosting.
- Choose Gemini 3.8 Flash for Fast Summaries (#1), Value LLM (#2).
- Choose GLM 5.3 for Cheap LLM for High Volume (#2), Cheapest Capable LLM (#2), you need to self-host.
Built from the published task rankings below; ranks come from each task's own weighted benchmarks, so a win on one task says nothing about another.
Measured head to head
Benchmarks both models were run on
| Evaluation | Gemini 3.8 Flash | GLM 5.3 | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Design Arena Coding | 1306 Elo | 1307 Elo | source · 2026-10-16 |
| Design Arena UI | 1319 Elo | 1314 Elo | source · 2026-10-16 |
| Design Arena Website | 1303 Elo | 1298 Elo | source · 2026-10-16 |
| FrontierMath Tiers 1-3 (Epoch AI) | 68.4% ± 2.8 | 68.8% ± 2.7 | source · 2026-09-02 |
| GPQA Diamond (Epoch AI) | 95.4% ± 1.4 | 90.9% ± 1.6 | source · 2026-09-02 |
| LiveBench Agentic Coding | 54.2% | 60.9% | source · 2026-10-16 |
| LiveBench Coding | 72.5% | 79.0% | source · 2026-10-16 |
| LiveBench Data Analysis | 54.0% | 70.2% | source · 2026-10-16 |
| LiveBench Instruction Following | 81.4% | 69.3% | source · 2026-10-16 |
| LiveBench Language | 87.8% | 79.9% | source · 2026-10-16 |
| LiveBench Math | 91.6% | 87.9% | source · 2026-10-16 |
| LiveBench Reasoning | 89.3% | 85.8% | source · 2026-10-16 |
| LMArena Agent | 4 | 2 | source · 2026-10-14 |
| LMArena Agent Bash Recovery | -0.7 | -0.1 | source · 2026-10-08 |
| LMArena Agent Steerability | 2.1 | 0.4 | source · 2026-10-14 |
| LMArena Agent Task Outcome | 5.1 | 3.8 | source · 2026-10-14 |
| LMArena Agent Tool Hallucination | 0.5 | 0.6 | source · 2026-10-14 |
| LMArena Creative Writing | 1492 Elo | 1456 Elo | source · 2026-10-15 |
| LMArena Instruction Following | 1491 Elo | 1476 Elo | source · 2026-10-15 |
| LMArena Long Query | 1507 Elo | 1481 Elo | source · 2026-10-15 |
| LMArena Math | 1527 Elo | 1491 Elo | source · 2026-10-15 |
| LMArena Text | 1496 Elo | 1479 Elo | source · 2026-10-15 |
| LMArena Text Factuality | 1474 Elo | 1466 Elo | source · 2026-10-15 |
| LMArena WebDev | 1585 Elo | 1621 Elo | source · 2026-10-13 |
| OTIS Mock AIME (Epoch AI) | 98.9% ± 0.9 | 91.1% ± 3.5 | source · 2026-09-02 |
| SimpleQA Verified (Epoch AI) | 69.7% ± 1.5 | 41% ± 1.6 | source · 2026-09-02 |
| Terminal-Bench (4.0) | 19.1% | 41.8% | source · 2026-10-16 |
Values are as published by each evaluator, in its own units; rows from different evaluators are not on a common scale.
task evidence
How they place when the question changes
Lower ranks are better. “Best” marks the strongest option in this shortlist for that task.