Claude Sonnet 4.6 vs Gemini 2.5 Flash
Side-by-side benchmark comparison across coding, math, reasoning, speed, and pricing.
Claude Sonnet 4.6 by Anthropic wins on 9 of 15 benchmarks against Gemini 2.5 Flash by Google, which leads on 6. This head-to-head comparison covers coding, math, reasoning, speed, and pricing metrics from our benchmark data.
Category-by-Category Breakdown
General Intelligence: In general intelligence, Claude Sonnet 4.6 scores 1395 on Chatbot Arena ELO compared to Gemini 2.5 Flash's 1320, while Claude Sonnet 4.6 scores 84.0% on MMLU-Pro compared to Gemini 2.5 Flash's 73.0%.
Coding: In coding, Claude Sonnet 4.6 scores 91.0% on HumanEval+ compared to Gemini 2.5 Flash's 82.0%, while Claude Sonnet 4.6 scores 79.6% on SWE-bench Verified compared to Gemini 2.5 Flash's 38.0%, while Claude Sonnet 4.6 scores 65.0% on LiveCodeBench compared to Gemini 2.5 Flash's 42.0%.
Math: In math, Claude Sonnet 4.6 scores 88.0% on MATH compared to Gemini 2.5 Flash's 76.0%, while Claude Sonnet 4.6 scores 96.0% on GSM8K compared to Gemini 2.5 Flash's 91.0%.
Reasoning: In reasoning, Claude Sonnet 4.6 scores 74.1% on GPQA Diamond compared to Gemini 2.5 Flash's 48.0%, while Claude Sonnet 4.6 scores 48.0% on ARC-AGI compared to Gemini 2.5 Flash's 25.0%.
Context: In context, Gemini 2.5 Flash scores 1.0M on Context Length compared to Claude Sonnet 4.6's 1.0M.
Pricing Comparison
Claude Sonnet 4.6 costs $3.0/1M input tokens and $15.0/1M output tokens, while Gemini 2.5 Flash costs $0.30/1M input and $2.5/1M output. Gemini 2.5 Flash is the more affordable option for API usage.
Speed Comparison
Claude Sonnet 4.6 generates output at 57 tok/s compared to Gemini 2.5 Flash's 251 tok/s, and the time to first token is 790 ms for Claude Sonnet 4.6 versus 410 ms for Gemini 2.5 Flash. Gemini 2.5 Flash delivers faster throughput.
Verdict
For developers prioritizing coding and general intelligence and math, Claude Sonnet 4.6 has the edge. For those who value affordability and speed, Gemini 2.5 Flash is the stronger choice.
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Claude Sonnet 4.6 vs Gemini 2.5 Flash — FAQ
Which is better, Claude Sonnet 4.6 or Gemini 2.5 Flash?
Claude Sonnet 4.6 wins on more benchmarks overall (9 vs 6). However, the best choice depends on your specific needs — each model excels in different areas.
How does Claude Sonnet 4.6 compare to Gemini 2.5 Flash for coding?
Claude Sonnet 4.6 is better for coding, scoring 79.6% on SWE-bench Verified compared to 38.0%. SWE-bench tests real-world software engineering by resolving actual GitHub issues.
Is Claude Sonnet 4.6 cheaper than Gemini 2.5 Flash?
Yes, Gemini 2.5 Flash is cheaper. Claude Sonnet 4.6 costs $3.0/1M input and $15.0/1M output tokens. Gemini 2.5 Flash costs $0.30/1M input and $2.5/1M output tokens.
Which is faster, Claude Sonnet 4.6 or Gemini 2.5 Flash?
Gemini 2.5 Flash is faster, generating output at 251 tok/s compared to 57 tok/s. Faster output speed means shorter wait times for API responses.
What benchmarks does the Claude Sonnet 4.6 vs Gemini 2.5 Flash comparison cover?
This comparison covers 15 benchmarks including Chatbot Arena ELO, MMLU-Pro, HumanEval+, MATH, GPQA Diamond, SWE-bench Verified, Output Speed, LiveCodeBench, and more. Metrics span general intelligence, coding, math, reasoning, speed, and cost categories.