# Gemma 2 9B ![Organization](https://img.shields.io/badge/Org-Google-4285F4) ![Parameters](https://img.shields.io/badge/Params-9B-1f6feb) ![Context](https://img.shields.io/badge/Context-8K%20tokens-1f6feb) ![License](https://img.shields.io/badge/License-Gemma%20ToU-d29922) ![Weights](https://img.shields.io/badge/Weights-Open-2da44e) ![Released](https://img.shields.io/badge/Released-Jul%202024-555) > **Quick answer:** Gemma 2 9B is Google's July 2024 mid-size open-weight model, scoring 88.0% on ARC-E, 68.6% on GSM8K, and 81.9% on HellaSwag. It was designed for efficient deployment at 9B scale, but has since been superseded by Gemma 3 12B with a much larger 128K context window. ## At a Glance **Where Gemma 2 9B leads** - 88.0% ARC-E — competitive scientific reasoning at 9B scale - Lower inference cost than 27B variant - Open weights on Hugging Face - Efficient architecture **Where it lags** - 8K context window — very restrictive for production use - Superseded by Gemma 3 12B: 128K context, multimodal, better benchmarks - Gemma Terms of Use (not Apache 2.0) - Below Llama 3.1 8B (Apache 2.0, 128K) on most metrics **Best for:** Existing Gemma 2 9B integrations; legacy support. ## What Gemma 2 9B Is Gemma 2 9B (released July 31, 2024) was Google's mid-tier Gemma 2 model, positioned between the 2B and 27B variants. Like Gemma 2 27B, its primary limitation is the 8K context window. For new deployments at the 9-12B scale, Gemma 3 12B is the recommended replacement: 128K context, multimodal vision capability, better benchmarks, and same Gemma Terms of Use license. Llama 3.1 8B (Apache 2.0, 128K context) is also preferred if a fully permissive license is needed. ## Specifications | Field | Value | |---|---| | Organization | Google | | Parameters | 9B (dense) | | Context window | 8,192 tokens | | License | Gemma Terms of Use | | HuggingFace | [google/gemma-2-9b-it](https://huggingface.co/google/gemma-2-9b-it) | | Release date | July 31, 2024 | | Knowledge cutoff | June 2024 | | Modality | Text only | ## Pricing Open weights under Gemma Terms of Use — free to self-host. ## Public Benchmark Scores | Benchmark | Score | Source | Date | |---|---|---|---| | [ARC-E](/benchmarks/ai2-reasoning-challenge) | 88.0% | Benchgen evaluation | 2025-07 | | [GSM8K](/benchmarks/gsm8k) | 68.6% | Benchgen evaluation | 2025-07 | | [HellaSwag](/benchmarks/hellaswag) | 81.9% | Benchgen evaluation | 2025-07 | ## Gemma 2 9B vs Alternatives | Model | Context | GSM8K | Vision | License | |---|---|---|---|---| | **Gemma 2 9B** | 8K | 68.6% | No | Gemma ToU | | [Gemma 3 12B](/models/google/gemma-3-12b) | 128K | — | Yes | Gemma ToU | | [Llama 3.1 8B Instruct](/models/meta/llama-3-1-8b-instruct) | 128K | 84.5% | No | Apache 2.0 | For new deployments: Gemma 3 12B (128K, vision, same license) or Llama 3.1 8B (Apache 2.0, 128K, higher GSM8K). ## Related Models & Benchmarks - Compare: [Gemma 2 27B](/models/google/gemma-2-27b) · [Gemma 3 12B](/models/google/gemma-3-12b) · [Llama 3.1 8B Instruct](/models/meta/llama-3-1-8b-instruct) - Benchmarks: [HellaSwag](/benchmarks/hellaswag) · [GSM8K](/benchmarks/gsm8k) ## Frequently Asked Questions

What is Gemma 2 9B?

Gemma 2 9B is Google's July 2024 open-weight 9B model scoring 88.0% ARC-E, 68.6% GSM8K, and 81.9% HellaSwag with an 8K context window.

Should I use Gemma 2 9B or Gemma 3 12B?

Gemma 3 12B for new deployments: 128K context (vs 8K), multimodal vision, better benchmarks, same license.

--- *Specs from Google's official Gemma 2 release (July 2024) and Benchgen evaluations. Last updated 2026-07-24.*

Gemma 2 9B — Evaluations

Evaluations