Gemini OCR Model Comparison Test

Evaluating OCR accuracy across different Gemini AI models with multilingual text samples

🎮 Background

I have tested both OCR quality and translation quality across four Gemini models. While this report shows only 3 OCR examples, the pattern was consistent throughout extensive testing: the 2.0 models were significantly better and more consistent at recognizing text in images.

Regarding translation quality: while the 2.5 models performed good to very good most of the time, the 2.0 models were still superior overall. Their translations felt more idiomatic and native-like, with better terminology, word order, and style.

🔬 Test Methodology

Prompt: "Transcribe the text from the image exactly as it appears. Do not correct, rephrase, or alter the words in any way. Provide a literal and verbatim transcription of all text in the image without line breaks. Don't return anything else."

Media Resolution: Medium

Models Tested: Gemini 2.0 Flash, Gemini 2.0 Flash-Lite, Gemini 2.5 Flash, Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite

🇵🇱 Test 1: Polish Text (0162.png)
Polish text sample from video game
Polish subtitle text from The Witcher game
Model Transcription Result Status
Gemini 2.0 Flash
Bo tobie też zalazł za skórę. Nazywa się Olgierd von Everec.
 ✅ Perfect, no errors
Gemini 2.0 Flash-Lite
Bo tobie też zalazł za skórę. Nazywa się Olgierd von Everec.
 ✅ Perfect, no errors
Gemini 2.5 Flash
Bo tobie też załazi za skórę. Nazywa się Olgierd von Everec.
 ❌ "zalazł" → "załazi"
Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite
Bo tobie też zalaź za skórę. Nazywa się Olgierd von Everec.
 ❌ "zalazł" → "zalaź"
🇪🇸 Test 2: Spanish Text (original_20250709_225151.png)
Spanish text sample from video game
Spanish dialogue text from the Alan Wake game
Model Transcription Result Status
Gemini 2.0 Flash
No fingiré que no reconozco a un escritor tan famoso como usted, Sr. Wake. Es un placer. De hecho, soy un gran lector suyo.
 ✅ Perfect, no errors
Gemini 2.0 Flash-Lite
No fingiré que no reconozco a un escritor tan famoso como usted, Sr. Wake. Es un placer. De hecho, soy un gran lector suyo.
 ✅ Perfect, no errors
Gemini 2.5 Flash
No finjí que no reconozco a un escritor tan famoso como usted, Sr. Walker. Es un placer. De hecho, soy un gran lector suyo.
 ❌ "fingiré" → "finjí", "Sr. Wake" → "Sr. Walker"
Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite
No fingiré que no reconozco a un escritor tan famoso como usted. Sr. Wake. De hecho, soy un gran lector suyo.
 ❌ Missing "Es un placer.", punctuation errors
🇨🇿 Test 3: Czech Text (Czech4.png)
Czech text sample
Czech text from Kingdom Come: Deliverance
Model Transcription Result Status
Gemini 2.0 Flash
Mladej pan Oldřich, syn váženýho šlechtice z nedaleký tvrze Semína, si bude brát dceru místního rychtáře Drozda, Anežku.
 ✅ Perfect, no errors
Gemini 2.0 Flash-Lite
Mladej pan Oldřich, syn váženýho šlechtice z nedaleký tvrze Semína, si bude brát dceru místního rychtáře Drozda, Anežku.
 ✅ Perfect, no errors
Gemini 2.5 Flash
Mladěj pan Oldřich, syn váženého šlechtice z nedaleký tvrze Semína, si bude brát dceru místního rychtáře Drozda, Anežku.
 ❌ "Mladej" → "Mladěj", "váženýho" → "váženého"
Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite
Mladej pan Oldřich, syn váženého šlechtice z nedaleký tvrze Semína, si bude brát dceru místního rychtáře Drozeda, Anežku.
 ❌ "váženýho" → "váženého", "Drozda" → "Drozeda"

💡 Recommendation

For OCR applications requiring high accuracy and most idiomatic translations, especially with multilingual content, Gemini 2.0 Flash is strongly recommended. Its price is the same as that of Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite.