Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) vs Llama 3.1 405B Instruct
Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) (2025) and Llama 3.1 405B Instruct (2024) are compact production models from Google DeepMind and AI at Meta. Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) ships a 66K-token context window, while Llama 3.1 405B Instruct ships a 128K-token context window. On pricing, Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) costs $2/1M input tokens versus $2.4/1M for the alternative. This comparison covers specs, pricing, capabilities, benchmarks, provider availability, and production fit.
Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) is safer overall; choose Llama 3.1 405B Instruct when long-context analysis matters.
Decision scorecard
Local evidence first| Signal | Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) | Llama 3.1 405B Instruct |
|---|---|---|
| Decision fit | General | RAG, Long context, and Classification |
| Context window | 66K | 128K |
| Cheapest output | $120/1M tokens | $2.4/1M tokens |
| Provider routes | 3 tracked | 11 tracked |
| Shared benchmarks | 0 rows | 0 rows |
Decision tradeoffs
- Use Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) when your own prompt tests beat the comparison signals; the local data does not show a decisive standalone advantage yet.
- Llama 3.1 405B Instruct has the larger context window for long prompts, retrieval packs, or transcript analysis.
- Llama 3.1 405B Instruct has the lower cheapest tracked output price at $2.4/1M tokens.
- Llama 3.1 405B Instruct has broader tracked provider coverage for fallback and procurement flexibility.
- Llama 3.1 405B Instruct uniquely exposes Structured outputs in local model data.
- Local decision data tags Llama 3.1 405B Instruct for RAG, Long context, and Classification.
Monthly cost at traffic
Estimate token spend from the cheapest tracked input and output prices on this page.
Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview)
$31,600
Cheapest tracked route: Google AI Studio
Llama 3.1 405B Instruct
$2,520
Cheapest tracked route: AWS Bedrock
Estimated monthly gap: $29,080. Batch, cache, and negotiated pricing are excluded from this local estimate.
Switch friction
- Provider overlap exists on GCP Vertex AI; start route-level A/B tests there.
- Llama 3.1 405B Instruct is $118/1M tokens lower on cheapest tracked output pricing before cache, batch, or negotiated discounts.
- Llama 3.1 405B Instruct adds Structured outputs in local capability data.
- Provider overlap exists on GCP Vertex AI; start route-level A/B tests there.
- Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) is $118/1M tokens higher on cheapest tracked output pricing, so quality gains need to justify the spend.
- Check replacement coverage for Structured outputs before moving production traffic.
Specs
| Specification | ||
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2025-09-01 | 2024-07-23 |
| Context window | 66K | 128K |
| Parameters | — | 405B |
| Architecture | decoder only | decoder only |
| License | Unknown | Open Source |
| Knowledge cutoff | - | - |
Pricing and availability
| Pricing attribute | Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) | Llama 3.1 405B Instruct |
|---|---|---|
| Input price | $2/1M tokens | $2.4/1M tokens |
| Output price | $120/1M tokens | $2.4/1M tokens |
| Providers |
Capabilities
| Capability | Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) | Llama 3.1 405B Instruct |
|---|---|---|
| Vision | No | No |
| Multimodal | No | No |
| Reasoning | No | No |
| Function calling | No | No |
| Tool use | No | No |
| Structured outputs | No | Yes |
| Code execution | No | No |
Benchmarks
No shared benchmark rows are currently sourced for this pair.
Deep dive
The capability footprint differs most on structured outputs: Llama 3.1 405B Instruct. Both models share the core language-model surface, so the practical split is not just feature count. Use those differences to decide whether the page is about raw model quality, agentic coding support, multimodal ingestion, or predictable structured API behavior.
For cost, Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) lists $2/1M input and $120/1M output tokens, while Llama 3.1 405B Instruct lists $2.4/1M input and $2.4/1M output tokens on the cheapest tracked provider. A 70/30 input-output blend puts Llama 3.1 405B Instruct lower by about $35 per million blended tokens. Availability is 3 providers versus 11, so concentration risk also matters.
Choose Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) when provider fit and lower input-token cost are central to the workload. Choose Llama 3.1 405B Instruct when long-context analysis, larger context windows, and broader provider choice are more important. For production, rerun your own prompts through the exact provider, region, and tool stack you plan to ship. This keeps the decision grounded in measurable tradeoffs instead of brand-level assumptions.
FAQ
Which has a larger context window, Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) or Llama 3.1 405B Instruct?
Llama 3.1 405B Instruct supports 128K tokens, while Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) supports 66K tokens. That gap matters most for long documents, large codebases, retrieval-heavy agents, and conversations where earlier context must remain visible.
Which is cheaper, Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) or Llama 3.1 405B Instruct?
Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) is cheaper on tracked token pricing. Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) costs $2/1M input and $120/1M output tokens. Llama 3.1 405B Instruct costs $2.4/1M input and $2.4/1M output tokens. Provider discounts or batch pricing can still change the final bill.
Is Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) or Llama 3.1 405B Instruct open source?
Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) is listed under Unknown. Llama 3.1 405B Instruct is listed under Open Source. 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 structured outputs, Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) or Llama 3.1 405B Instruct?
Llama 3.1 405B Instruct has the clearer documented structured outputs signal in this comparison. If structured outputs is mission-critical, validate it against the provider endpoint because model-level support and API-level exposure can differ.
Where can I run Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) and Llama 3.1 405B Instruct?
Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) is available on Google AI Studio, GCP Vertex AI, and OpenRouter. Llama 3.1 405B Instruct is available on OctoAI API (Deprecated), Together AI, Fireworks AI, IBM watsonx, and Scale AI GenAI Platform. Provider coverage can affect latency, region availability, compliance posture, and fallback options.
When should I pick Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) over Llama 3.1 405B Instruct?
Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview) is safer overall; choose Llama 3.1 405B Instruct when long-context analysis matters. If your workload also depends on provider fit, start with Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image Preview); if it depends on long-context analysis, run the same evaluation with Llama 3.1 405B Instruct.
Continue comparing
Last reviewed: 2026-05-11. Data sourced from public model cards and provider documentation.