Nova Lite vs o3
Side-by-side benchmark comparison across coding, math, reasoning, speed, and pricing.
o3 by OpenAI wins on 9 of 14 benchmarks against Nova Lite by Amazon, which leads on 5. 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, o3 scores 1380 on Chatbot Arena ELO compared to Nova Lite's 1110, while o3 scores 84.0% on MMLU-Pro compared to Nova Lite's 45.0%.
Coding: In coding, o3 scores 90.0% on HumanEval+ compared to Nova Lite's 55.0%, while o3 scores 69.1% on SWE-bench Verified compared to Nova Lite's 10.0%, while o3 scores 70.0% on LiveCodeBench compared to Nova Lite's 14.0%.
Math: In math, o3 scores 96.0% on MATH compared to Nova Lite's 40.0%, while o3 scores 98.5% on GSM8K compared to Nova Lite's 68.0%.
Reasoning: In reasoning, o3 scores 83.3% on GPQA Diamond compared to Nova Lite's 20.0%, while o3 scores 75.7% on ARC-AGI compared to Nova Lite's 3.0%.
Context: In context, Nova Lite scores 300K on Context Length compared to o3's 200K.
Pricing Comparison
Nova Lite costs $0.06/1M input tokens and $0.24/1M output tokens, while o3 costs $2.0/1M input and $8.0/1M output. Nova Lite is the more affordable option for API usage.
Speed Comparison
Nova Lite generates output at 150 tok/s compared to o3's 40 tok/s, and the time to first token is 150 ms for Nova Lite versus 800 ms for o3. Nova Lite delivers faster throughput.
Verdict
For developers prioritizing affordability and speed, Nova Lite has the edge. For those who value coding and general intelligence and math, o3 is the stronger choice.
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Nova Lite vs o3 — FAQ
Which is better, Nova Lite or o3?
o3 wins on more benchmarks overall (9 vs 5). However, the best choice depends on your specific needs — each model excels in different areas.
How does Nova Lite compare to o3 for coding?
o3 is better for coding, scoring 69.1% on SWE-bench Verified compared to 10.0%. SWE-bench tests real-world software engineering by resolving actual GitHub issues.
Is Nova Lite cheaper than o3?
Yes, Nova Lite is cheaper. Nova Lite costs $0.06/1M input and $0.24/1M output tokens. o3 costs $2.0/1M input and $8.0/1M output tokens.
Which is faster, Nova Lite or o3?
Nova Lite is faster, generating output at 150 tok/s compared to 40 tok/s. Faster output speed means shorter wait times for API responses.
What benchmarks does the Nova Lite vs o3 comparison cover?
This comparison covers 14 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.