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Python 3.12 averages roughly 4–5% faster than Python 3.11.

The Claim

Python 3.12 runs about 20% faster than Python 3.11 on the official Python benchmark suite.

Verified by Lenz ·

The Short Version

Official benchmarks do not support a 20% speedup. Python 3.12 was reported as roughly 4–5% faster overall than Python 3.11, with results varying by workload and platform. The larger figure appears to confuse this comparison with Python 3.11’s performance gain over Python 3.10.

Caveats

  • Benchmark performance varies by workload, hardware, operating system, and build configuration.
  • The 20% figure likely conflates Python 3.12’s results with Python 3.11’s larger gain over Python 3.10.
  • An overall benchmark average does not mean every program runs faster.

The Receipts

  1. Python Release Python 3.12.0rc3 | Python.org

    python.org

  2. [Python-announce] Python 3.12.0 (final) now available.

    mail-archive.com

  3. What's New In Python 3.11 — Python 3.14.7 documentation

    docs.python.org

  4. Python 3.12: error messages, perf support, and more [LWN.net]

    lwn.net

  5. faster-cpython/benchmarking-public

    github.com

  6. Python 3.12: what didn't make the headlines - Bite code!

    bitecode.dev

  7. Is Python Really That Slow?

    blog.miguelgrinberg.com

  8. Usage — Python Performance Benchmark Suite 1.14.0 documentation

    pyperformance.readthedocs.io

  9. Meta contributes new features to Python 3.12 - Engineering at Meta

    engineering.fb.com

  10. Python 3.11 vs Python 3.12 – performance testing – Lewoniewski.info

    en.lewoniewski.info

+ 1 more sources — see the full list on Lenz

Filed Under

PyperformancePython

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