High-volume, cost-sensitive work
Either one
Both cost $1.50 per million tokens on a typical mix of three input tokens for every output token.
Gemini 3.6 Flash vs Gemini 3.8 Flash: price, context and capabilities
Choose Gemini 3.8 Flash for the hardest reasoning tasks and the latest release; on the other points the two are level or the data is missing.
In short
- Both cost the same at the headline price ($1.50 / 1M tokens).
- Both accept 1.05M tokens per request.
- Gemini 3.8 Flash is the newer model (September 2026, against July 2026).
Which should you choose?
Each answer below comes straight from the published prices, specifications and independent benchmark results.
Hardest reasoning tasks
Choose Gemini 3.8 Flash
Gemini 3.8 Flash scores 40.9 on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index, against 34 for Gemini 3.6 Flash.
Reasoning over long documents
Either one
They are practically level on Long-context reasoning (AA-LCR) (80% and 81.3%).
Latest release
Choose Gemini 3.8 Flash
Gemini 3.8 Flash is the newer release (September 2026, against July 2026 for Gemini 3.6 Flash).
Monthly cost at three volumes
| Volume | Gemini 3.6 Flash | Gemini 3.8 Flash | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prototype: 1M input, 250K output tokens | $1.69 | $1.69 | = |
| Production: 20M input, 5M output tokens | $33.75 | $33.75 | = |
| Scale: 500M input, 100M output tokens | $750.00 | $750.00 | = |
Standard rates, without caching or batch discounts. Volumes are per month.
Specifications side by side
| Gemini 3.6 Flash | Gemini 3.8 Flash | |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | ||
| Category | Language models | Language models |
| Status | Legacy | Generally available |
| Headline price | $1.50 / 1M tokens | $1.50 / 1M tokens |
| Input | $0.75 / 1M tokens | $0.75 / 1M tokens |
| Output | $3.75 / 1M tokens | $3.75 / 1M tokens |
| Cached input | $0.075 / 1M tokens | $0.075 / 1M tokens |
| Context window | 1.05M | 1.05M |
| Max output | 66k | 66k |
| Released | July 2026 | September 2026 |
| Knowledge cutoff | No data | No data |
| Licence | Proprietary | Proprietary |
| Capabilities | Vision, Reasoning, Tool calling, Structured output, Prompt caching, Batch API | Vision, Reasoning, Tool calling, Structured output, Prompt caching, Batch API |
| API model id | gemini-3.6-flash | gemini-3.8-flash |
Benchmarks side by side
Leader in bold.
| Benchmark | Gemini 3.6 Flash | Gemini 3.8 Flash |
|---|---|---|
| Intelligence Index | 34 | 40.9 |
| SciCode | 53.4% | 56.6% |
| GPQA Diamond | 92.8% | 95.3% |
| Humanity's Last Exam | 40.8% | 47.8% |
| MMMU-Pro (visual reasoning) | 83.2% | 85.6% |
| Long-context reasoning (AA-LCR) | 80% | 81.3% |
Independent evaluations by Artificial Analysis, run the same way for every model, at the reasoning setting shown. Percentages unless marked as an index.
Frequently asked questions
Should I choose Gemini 3.6 Flash or Gemini 3.8 Flash?
Choose Gemini 3.8 Flash for the hardest reasoning tasks and the latest release; on the other points the two are level or the data is missing.
Which is cheaper, Gemini 3.6 Flash or Gemini 3.8 Flash?
Both cost the same at the headline price ($1.50 / 1M tokens).
Which has the larger context window, Gemini 3.6 Flash or Gemini 3.8 Flash?
Both accept 1.05M tokens per request.
What is the difference between Gemini 3.6 Flash and Gemini 3.8 Flash?
Gemini 3.6 Flash is made by Google and Gemini 3.8 Flash by Google. Both cost the same at the headline price ($1.50 / 1M tokens). Both accept 1.05M tokens per request. Gemini 3.8 Flash is the newer model (September 2026, against July 2026).
How much do Gemini 3.6 Flash and Gemini 3.8 Flash cost per month?
At 20 million input and 5 million output tokens a month, Gemini 3.6 Flash costs $33.75 and Gemini 3.8 Flash costs $33.75, at standard rates.
Which is newer, Gemini 3.6 Flash or Gemini 3.8 Flash?
Gemini 3.8 Flash was released on September 2026 and Gemini 3.6 Flash on July 2026.