Granite 4.2 8B vs Sonar Pro
Granite 4.2 8B leads Sonar Pro on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index, 11.1 to 7.6, and Granite 4.2 8B costs 75.0x less per output token ($0.20 vs $15.00 per million). Updated October 21, 2026; 3 benchmarks have a result for both.
Granite 4.2 8B or Sonar Pro: which to pick
Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding.
Pick Granite 4.2 8B for output tokens 75.0x cheaper ($0.20 vs $15.00 per million).
- Shared results
- 3
- Granite 4.2 8B only
- 24
- Sonar Pro only
- 2
- Like-for-like categories
- 2 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
Granite 4.2 8B
Granite 4.2 8B leads, 11.1 against 7.6.
Same board, both measured
Agentic work
AA Agentic Index
No call
Only Granite 4.2 8B has a AA Agentic Index result, 1.3.
Directional only
Long documents
Listed context window
Sonar Pro
Sonar Pro takes 200K tokens against 131K.
Listed by OpenRouter
Everyday cost
1K input + 500 output tokens
Granite 4.2 8B
Granite 4.2 8B $0.0002, Sonar Pro $0.011 per turn.
List prices
At a glance
- Coding index
- Granite 4.2 8B not benchmarked, Sonar Pro not benchmarked.
- Widest category
- Reasoning, 4.2 points apart on average over 2 shared benchmarks.
- Widest single gap
- GPQA Diamond (Artificial Analysis run): Granite 4.2 8B 63.1% against Sonar Pro 57.8%, 5.3 points apart on a 0 to 100 scale.
- Output price
- Granite 4.2 8B $0.20 against Sonar Pro $15.00 per million output tokens, 75.0x apart.
- Context window
- Granite 4.2 8B takes 131K tokens, Sonar Pro 200K.
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 | Sonar Pro | Ties |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Intelligence | 1 | 0 | ||
| Reasoning | 2 | 0 | ||
| All shared boards | 3 | 0 |
CodingDirectional onlySix of these boards feed the Vibe Coding Index5 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Sonar Pro | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA Coding Index | 22.4 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LiveCodeBench (Artificial Analysis run) | Not measured | 27.5% | Only Sonar Pro measured |
| SciCode | 31.5% | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: coding | 1378 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: software and IT | 1367 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 34 boards here | |||
IntelligenceLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index10
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Sonar Pro | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA Intelligence Index | 11.1 | 7.6 | Granite 4.2 8B |
| Neither model has a result on the other 1 board here | |||
Agentic workDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index1 board, none shared
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Sonar Pro | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA Agentic Index | 1.3 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 40 boards here | |||
ReasoningLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index20
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Sonar Pro | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| GPQA Diamond (Artificial Analysis run) | 63.1% | 57.8% | Granite 4.2 8B |
| Humanity's Last Exam (Artificial Analysis run) | 9.7% | 6.6% | Granite 4.2 8B |
| 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 | 1345 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 17 boards here | |||
MathNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Sonar Pro | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 13 boards here | |||
KnowledgeDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index5 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Sonar Pro | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| MMLU Pro (Artificial Analysis run) | Not measured | 75.5% | Only Sonar Pro measured |
| LMArena Text: science | 1336 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: medicine and healthcare | 1336 | 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 13 boards here | |||
Web designNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Sonar Pro | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 9 boards here | |||
GeneralDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index12 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Sonar Pro | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Long context reasoning (AA-LCR) | 45.0% | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text | 1319 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: instruction following | 1300 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: creative writing | 1236 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: English | 1337 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: non-English | 1301 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: Chinese | 1367 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: Russian | 1282 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: multi-turn | 1301 | Not measured | Only Granite 4.2 8B measured |
| LMArena Text: longer queries | 1325 | 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 34 boards here | |||
Image generationNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Granite 4.2 8B | Sonar Pro | 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
Granite 4.2 8B costs less
Repository review
50K input + 3K output tokens
Granite 4.2 8B costs less
Agent loop
200K input + 10K output tokens
Granite 4.2 8B 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 | Perplexity Sonar Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Maker | IBM Granite | Perplexity |
| Weights | Open weights | No public weights listed |
| Released | August 31, 2026 | March 7, 2025 |
| Context window | 131K | 200K |
| Input $/Mtok | $0.08 | $3.00 |
| Output $/Mtok | $0.20 | $15.00 |
| 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 Sonar Pro for coding?
Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding. Pick Granite 4.2 8B for output tokens 75.0x cheaper ($0.20 vs $15.00 per million).
Which is cheaper, Granite 4.2 8B or Sonar Pro?
Granite 4.2 8B costs $0.08 per million input tokens and $0.20 per million output tokens; Sonar Pro costs $3.00 and $15.00. Cost per solved task is known for neither of them.
Which has the bigger context window, Granite 4.2 8B or Sonar Pro?
Sonar Pro, with 200K tokens against 131K.
How many benchmarks is the Granite 4.2 8B vs Sonar Pro comparison based on?
3 benchmarks have a result for both models as of October 21, 2026. Granite 4.2 8B's coding index rests on 0 independent benchmarks and Sonar Pro's on 0. Where only one model has a result, the page says so instead of naming a winner.