Granite 4.2 8B vs Ling 3.0 Flash VL
Ling 3.0 Flash VL leads Granite 4.2 8B on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index, 24.6 to 11.1, at about the same output price ($0.18 vs $0.20 per million). Updated October 23, 2026; 7 benchmarks have a result for both.
Granite 4.2 8B or Ling 3.0 Flash VL: which to pick
Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding.
Pick Granite 4.2 8B for work measured by AA Coding Index or SciCode, where it leads.
- Shared results
- 7
- Granite 4.2 8B only
- 20
- Ling 3.0 Flash VL only
- 0
- Like-for-like categories
- 5 of 9
Only benchmarks that tested both models count toward a pick; a result only one model has is shown but not compared.
Which one for your work
Each card is decided by one number both models carry. Where only one has it, the card says so and makes no call.
Coding
Vibe Coding Index, six public coding benchmarks
No call
Neither has a coding score yet.
One side not measured
Intelligence
AA Intelligence Index
Ling 3.0 Flash VL
Ling 3.0 Flash VL leads, 24.6 against 11.1.
Same board, both measured
Agentic work
AA Agentic Index
Ling 3.0 Flash VL
Ling 3.0 Flash VL leads, 28.7 against 1.3.
Same board, both measured
Long documents
Listed context window
No call
Both take 131K tokens.
Listed by OpenRouter
Everyday cost
1K input + 500 output tokens
Ling 3.0 Flash VL
Granite 4.2 8B $0.0002, Ling 3.0 Flash VL $0.0001 per turn.
List prices
At a glance
- Coding index
- Granite 4.2 8B not benchmarked, Ling 3.0 Flash VL not benchmarked.
- Widest category
- General, 33.3 points apart on average over 1 shared benchmark.
- Widest single gap
- AA Coding Index: Granite 4.2 8B 22.4 against Ling 3.0 Flash VL 57.0, 34.6 points apart on a 0 to 100 scale.
- Output price
- Granite 4.2 8B $0.20 against Ling 3.0 Flash VL $0.18 per million output tokens, 1.1x apart.
- Context window
- Both take 131K tokens.
Benchmark by benchmark
First the score: boards each model leads, per category, where both have a result. Then every board, a category to a fold; bars are each result on a 0 to 100 scale, so compare the two in a row, not one row with another.
| Category | Granite 4.2 8B | Bars | Ling 3.0 Flash VL | Ties |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coding | 0 | 2 | ||
| Intelligence | 0 | 1 | ||
| Agentic work | 0 | 1 | ||
| Reasoning | 0 | 2 | ||
| General | 0 | 1 | ||
| All shared boards | 0 | 7 |
CodingLike-for-likeSix of these boards feed the Vibe Coding Index02
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Ling 3.0 Flash VL | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA Coding Index | 22.4 | 57.0 | Ling 3.0 Flash VL |
| SciCode | 31.5% | 44.2% | Ling 3.0 Flash VL |
| LMArena Text: coding | 1378 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: software and IT | 1366 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 39 boards here | |||
IntelligenceLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index01
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Ling 3.0 Flash VL | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA Intelligence Index | 11.1 | 24.6 | Ling 3.0 Flash VL |
| Neither model has a result on the other 1 board here | |||
Agentic workLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index01
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Ling 3.0 Flash VL | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA Agentic Index | 1.3 | 28.7 | Ling 3.0 Flash VL |
| Neither model has a result on the other 41 boards here | |||
ReasoningLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index02
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Ling 3.0 Flash VL | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| GPQA Diamond (Artificial Analysis run) | 63.1% | 86.2% | Ling 3.0 Flash VL |
| Humanity's Last Exam (Artificial Analysis run) | 9.7% | 22.0% | Ling 3.0 Flash VL |
| LMArena Text: hard prompts | 1327 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: expert | 1386 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: hard prompts in English | 1344 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 18 boards here | |||
MathNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Ling 3.0 Flash VL | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 14 boards here | |||
KnowledgeDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index4 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Ling 3.0 Flash VL | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| LMArena Text: science | 1335 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: medicine and healthcare | 1332 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: legal and government | 1327 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: business and finance | 1322 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 16 boards here | |||
Web designNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Ling 3.0 Flash VL | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 9 boards here | |||
GeneralLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index01
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Ling 3.0 Flash VL | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Long context reasoning (AA-LCR) | 45.0% | 78.3% | Ling 3.0 Flash VL |
| LMArena Text | 1319 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: instruction following | 1301 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: creative writing | 1235 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: English | 1337 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: non-English | 1300 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: Chinese | 1365 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: Russian | 1280 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: multi-turn | 1300 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: longer queries | 1324 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: writing and language | 1269 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: entertainment and media | 1271 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 36 boards here | |||
Image generationNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Ling 3.0 Flash VL | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 5 boards here | |||
What each workload costs
Three fixed token mixes at each model's listed price, so per-token rates become a bill.
Chat turn
1K input + 500 output tokens
Ling 3.0 Flash VL costs less
Repository review
50K input + 3K output tokens
Ling 3.0 Flash VL costs less
Agent loop
200K input + 10K output tokens
Ling 3.0 Flash VL costs less
Listed OpenRouter rates, without cache or batch discounts. A workload that does not fit a model's context window would need splitting.
Specification differences
The leading value in a row is marked; a row with a missing value names no leader. Our two rows are marked in red.
| Specification | IBM Granite 4.2 8B | inclusionAI Ling 3.0 Flash VL |
|---|---|---|
| Maker | IBM Granite | inclusionAI |
| Weights | Open weights | Open weights |
| Released | August 31, 2026 | September 10, 2026 |
| Context window | 131K | 131K |
| Input $/Mtok | $0.08 | $0.06 |
| Output $/Mtok | $0.20 | $0.18 |
| Coding index | Not benchmarked | Not benchmarked |
| Independent measurements behind it | 0 | 0 |
| Cost per solved task | Not computable | Not computable |
| Source | OpenRouter listing | OpenRouter listing |
Questions
Is Granite 4.2 8B better than Ling 3.0 Flash VL for coding?
Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding. Pick Granite 4.2 8B for work measured by AA Coding Index or SciCode, where it leads.
Which is cheaper, Granite 4.2 8B or Ling 3.0 Flash VL?
Granite 4.2 8B costs $0.08 per million input tokens and $0.20 per million output tokens; Ling 3.0 Flash VL costs $0.06 and $0.18. Cost per solved task is known for neither of them.
Which has the bigger context window, Granite 4.2 8B or Ling 3.0 Flash VL?
Neither: both take 131K tokens.
How many benchmarks is the Granite 4.2 8B vs Ling 3.0 Flash VL comparison based on?
7 benchmarks have a result for both models as of October 23, 2026. Granite 4.2 8B's coding index rests on 0 independent benchmarks and Ling 3.0 Flash VL's on 0. Where only one model has a result, the page says so instead of naming a winner.