Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 vs Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct
Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 (2025) and Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct (2025) are general-purpose language models from Google DeepMind and AI at Meta. Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 ships a 1m-token context window, while Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct ships a 10m-token context window. On Massive Multi-discipline Multimodal Understanding, Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 leads by 10.2 pts. This comparison covers specs, pricing, API access, capabilities, benchmarks, input and output token costs, and production fit for coding and agent workloads.
Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct is ~1462% cheaper at $0.08/1M; pay for Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 only for vision-heavy evaluation.
Decision scorecard
Local evidence first| Signal | Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 | Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | multimodal apps and long-context analysis | multimodal apps, long-context analysis, and provider-routed production |
| Decision fit | RAG, Long context, and Vision | Coding, RAG, and Agents |
| Context window | 1m | 10m |
| Cheapest output | $10/1M tokens | $0.30/1M tokens |
| Provider routes | 1 tracked | 12 tracked |
| Shared benchmarks | Massive Multi-discipline Multimodal Understanding leader | 1 shared |
Decision tradeoffs
- Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 holds a shared-benchmark lead on Massive Multi-discipline Multimodal Understanding, ahead by 10.2 points.
- Local decision data tags Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 for RAG, Long context, and Vision.
- Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct has the larger context window for long prompts, retrieval packs, or transcript analysis.
- Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct has the lower cheapest tracked output price at $0.30/1M tokens.
- Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct has broader tracked provider coverage for fallback and procurement flexibility.
- Local decision data tags Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct for Coding, RAG, and Agents.
Monthly cost at traffic
Estimate token spend from the cheapest tracked input and output route or tier on this page.
Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06
$3,500
Cheapest tracked route/tier: OpenRouter
Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct
$139
Cheapest tracked route/tier: OpenRouter
Estimated monthly gap: $3,361. Batch, cache, alternate speed tiers, and negotiated pricing are excluded from this local estimate.
Switch friction
- Provider overlap exists on OpenRouter; start route-level A/B tests there.
- Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct is $9.70/1M tokens lower on cheapest tracked output pricing before cache, batch, or negotiated discounts.
- Provider overlap exists on OpenRouter; start route-level A/B tests there.
- Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 is $9.70/1M tokens higher on cheapest tracked output pricing, so quality gains need to justify the spend.
Specs
| Specification | ||
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2025-05-06 | 2025-04-05 |
| Context window | 1m | 10m |
| Parameters | — | 109B (17B active) |
| Architecture | Decoder Only | Mixture of Experts |
| License | Proprietary | Llama 4 Community |
| Openness | Proprietary | Open weights |
| Commercial use | Commercial use: conditional | Commercial use: conditional |
| Knowledge cutoff | 2025-01 | 2024-08 |
Pricing and availability
| Pricing attribute | Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 | Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct |
|---|---|---|
| Input price | $1.25/1M tokens | $0.08/1M tokens |
| Output price | $10/1M tokens | $0.30/1M tokens |
| Providers |
Capabilities
| Capability | Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 | Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct |
|---|---|---|
| Vision | Yes | Yes |
| Multimodal | Yes | Yes |
| Reasoning | No | No |
| Function calling | No | No |
| Tool use | No | No |
| Structured outputs | Yes | Yes |
| Code execution | No | No |
| IDE integration | No | No |
| Computer use | No | No |
| Parallel agents | No | No |
Benchmarks
| Benchmark | Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 | Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct |
|---|---|---|
| Massive Multi-discipline Multimodal Understanding | 79.6 | 69.4 |
Deep dive
On shared benchmark coverage, Massive Multi-discipline Multimodal Understanding has Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 at 79.6 and Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct at 69.4, with Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 ahead by 10.2 points. The largest visible gap is 10.2 points on Massive Multi-discipline Multimodal Understanding, which matters most when that benchmark mirrors your workload. Treat isolated benchmark wins as directional, because provider routing, prompt style, and tool access can move real application results.
The capability footprint is close: both models cover vision, multimodal input, and structured outputs. That makes context budget, benchmark fit, and provider maturity more important than a simple checklist. If your application depends on one integration detail, verify it against the provider route you plan to use, not just the base model listing.
For cost, Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 lists $1.25/1M input and $10/1M output tokens on the cheapest tracked provider, while Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct lists $0.08/1M input and $0.30/1M output tokens on the cheapest tracked provider. A 70/30 input-output blend puts Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct lower by about $3.73 per million blended tokens. Availability is 1 providers versus 12, so concentration risk also matters.
Choose Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 when vision-heavy evaluation are central to the workload. Choose Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct when long-context analysis, larger context windows, and lower input-token cost are more important. For production, rerun your own prompts through the exact provider, region, and tool stack you plan to ship.
FAQ
Which has a larger context window, Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 or Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct?
Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct supports 10m tokens, while Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 supports 1m tokens. That gap matters most for long documents, large codebases, retrieval-heavy agents, and conversations where earlier context must remain visible.
Which is cheaper, Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 or Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct?
Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct is cheaper on tracked token pricing. Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 costs $1.25/1M input and $10/1M output tokens. Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct costs $0.08/1M input and $0.30/1M output tokens. Provider discounts or batch pricing can still change the final bill.
Is Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 or Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct open source?
Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 is listed under Proprietary. Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct is listed under Llama 4 Community. License labels affect whether you can self-host, redistribute weights, or rely only on hosted APIs, so confirm the upstream license before deployment.
Which is better for vision, Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 or Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct?
Both Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 and Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct expose vision. The better choice depends on benchmark fit, context budget, pricing, and whether your provider route exposes the same capability surface.
Which is better for multimodal input, Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 or Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct?
Both Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 and Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct expose multimodal input. The better choice depends on benchmark fit, context budget, pricing, and whether your provider route exposes the same capability surface.
Where can I run Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 and Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct?
Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 05-06 is available on OpenRouter. Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct is available on Cloudflare Workers AI, OpenRouter, Together AI, Fireworks AI, and DeepInfra. Provider coverage can affect latency, region availability, compliance posture, and fallback options.
Continue comparing
Last reviewed: 2026-06-15. Data sourced from public model cards and provider documentation.