{"id":31129,"date":"2026-07-09T18:23:05","date_gmt":"2026-07-09T16:23:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/chatbot-arena\/"},"modified":"2026-07-28T16:39:11","modified_gmt":"2026-07-28T14:39:11","slug":"chatbot-arena","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/chatbot-arena\/","title":{"rendered":"Chatbot Arena (LMArena): How the AI Leaderboard Works in 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>(function(){var s=document.createElement(\"style\");s.setAttribute(\"data-bn\",\"kit\");s.appendChild(document.createTextNode(\".bn-art{ --bn-cream:#faf8f2; --bn-card:#faf6ea; --bn-sand:#ebe3cb; --bn-sand-2:#f3ecd9; --bn-sand-zebra:#f6f0df; --bn-coral:#fe716b; --bn-coral-soft:#fdeeed; --bn-coral-line:#f6c9c6; --bn-blue:#5b7bfb; --bn-blue-soft:#eef1fe; --bn-blue-line:#c9d4fb; --bn-green:#7bbf66; --bn-green-soft:#eef6ea; --bn-ink:#3d351f; --bn-text:#414b56; --bn-muted:#6d6653; --bn-border:#e6dcc2; --bn-r:16px; --bn-r-sm:11px; --bn-sp:22px; --bn-sh:0 1px 2px rgba(61,53,31,.05),0 10px 26px rgba(61,53,31,.07); 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user-select:none; white-space:nowrap} .bn-lb .bn-lb-th:hover{color:#fbf7ec; opacity:.85} .bn-lb-rank{font-family:var(--bn-mono); font-weight:700; color:var(--bn-coral); text-align:center} .bn-lb-score{font-family:var(--bn-mono); font-weight:700; color:var(--bn-ink); text-align:right; white-space:nowrap} .lb-empty{padding:16px; text-align:center; color:var(--bn-muted); font-size:.95em} .bn-lb-foot{font-size:16px; color:var(--bn-muted); margin:14px 0 0; font-style:italic} @media(max-width:680px){ .bn-art{font-size:17px} .bn-stats,.bn-grid,.bn-cols,.bn-ex .bn-ba,.bns-grid,.bn-roi-fields,.bn-roi-out{grid-template-columns:1fr} .bn-roi-field:last-child{grid-column:auto} .bn-toc ol{columns:1} .bn-art h2{font-size:1.5em} .bn-bot-msg{max-width:90%} }\"));document.head.appendChild(s);})();<\/script><\/p>\n<div class=\"bn-art\">\n<div class=\"bn-tldr\">\n<p><strong>In short.<\/strong> <strong>Chatbot Arena<\/strong> (today <strong>LMArena<\/strong> \/ <strong>Arena<\/strong>) is the reference platform for ranking conversational AI models. The principle: people ask a question, get two <em>anonymous<\/em> answers, vote for the better one, and those millions of blind votes produce an Elo-style leaderboard. Born at UC Berkeley, it now holds more than <strong>7 million votes<\/strong> and <strong>360+ models<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>This guide covers how it works, how to read the 2026 leaderboard, how to use it yourself, its limits (the \u201c<em>Leaderboard Illusion<\/em>\u201d controversy), and above all what it does <strong>not<\/strong> tell you when you pick a model for your own chatbot.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Since 2023, the same question comes up with every new AI release: \u201cwhich one is the best?\u201d Academic benchmarks grade models on exams, but not on what actually matters day to day: how good a conversation <em>feels<\/em>. That is exactly the gap Chatbot Arena fills. French tech outlet Blog du Mod\u00e9rateur even nicknamed it \u201cthe TripAdvisor of AI\u201d: a leaderboard built by the crowd, out of real preferences. Here is how it works, without the jargon.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Summary<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #3d351f;color:#3d351f\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #3d351f;color:#3d351f\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 eztoc-toggle-hide-by-default' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/chatbot-arena\/#Chatbot_Arena_LMArena_Arena_AI_what_is_it\" >Chatbot Arena, LMArena, Arena AI: what is it?<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/chatbot-arena\/#From_research_project_to_billion-dollar_startup\" >From research project to billion-dollar startup<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/chatbot-arena\/#How_the_leaderboard_works_Elo_score_explained\" >How the leaderboard works (Elo score explained)<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/chatbot-arena\/#Elo_Bradley-Terry_where_does_the_score_come_from\" >Elo, Bradley-Terry: where does the score come from?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/chatbot-arena\/#The_Arena_leaderboard_in_2026_interactive_snapshot\" >The Arena leaderboard in 2026 (interactive snapshot)<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/chatbot-arena\/#Arena_leaderboard_explorer_text_models\" >Arena leaderboard explorer: text models<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/chatbot-arena\/#The_9_arenas_text_code_vision_video_and_more\" >The 9 arenas: text, code, vision, video, and more<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/chatbot-arena\/#How_to_use_Chatbot_Arena_yourself\" >How to use Chatbot Arena yourself<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-9\" href=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/chatbot-arena\/#The_limits_the_%E2%80%9CLeaderboard_Illusion%E2%80%9D_controversy\" >The limits: the \u201cLeaderboard Illusion\u201d controversy<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-10\" href=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/chatbot-arena\/#What_the_Arena_leaderboard_does_NOT_tell_you_about_your_chatbot\" >What the Arena leaderboard does NOT tell you about your chatbot<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-4' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-4'><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-4' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-4'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-11\" href=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/chatbot-arena\/#What_the_Arena_measures\" >What the Arena measures<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-4'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-12\" href=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/chatbot-arena\/#What_counts_for_YOUR_bot\" >What counts for YOUR bot<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-13\" href=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/chatbot-arena\/#Frequently_asked_questions_about_Chatbot_Arena\" >Frequently asked questions about Chatbot Arena<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-14\" href=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/chatbot-arena\/#Your_chatbot_deserves_better_than_a_bet_on_the_1_of_the_month\" >Your chatbot deserves better than a bet on the #1 of the month<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 id=\"quest-ce-que-la-chatbot-arena\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Chatbot_Arena_LMArena_Arena_AI_what_is_it\"><\/span>Chatbot Arena, LMArena, Arena AI: what is it?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><strong>Chatbot Arena<\/strong> is an open platform that evaluates large language models (LLMs) by <strong>human preference<\/strong>. It was launched in 2023 by the <strong>LMSYS<\/strong> research collective, which came out of the SkyLab at <strong>UC Berkeley<\/strong>. The founding idea, laid out in a paper cited more than 1,700 times (Chiang et al., 2024): instead of grading an AI on an exam, you make it <strong>face another AI<\/strong> on real user questions, and let the public decide.<\/p>\n<div class=\"bn-def\">\n<span class=\"bn-klabel\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\" stroke=\"currentColor\" stroke-width=\"2\"><circle cx=\"12\" cy=\"12\" r=\"9\"><\/circle><path d=\"M12 16v-4M12 8h.01\"><\/path><\/svg>Definition<\/span>\n<p><strong>Chatbot Arena \/ LMArena \/ Arena:<\/strong> a leaderboard for conversational AI built on anonymous \u201cbattles\u201d between two models, settled by the votes of millions of users. The same project has changed names three times: <strong>Chatbot Arena<\/strong> (the original), then <strong>LMArena<\/strong> when it spun out as an independent company, and now simply <strong>Arena<\/strong> since January 2026 (official address: <em>lmarena.ai<\/em>).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h3 id=\"de-lmsys-a-arena\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"From_research_project_to_billion-dollar_startup\"><\/span>From research project to billion-dollar startup<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>What started as a university demo turned into a business. Chatbot Arena split off from LMSYS to become a standalone company, took the name <strong>LMArena<\/strong>, then completed its rebrand to <strong>\u201cArena\u201d on January 28, 2026<\/strong>. The funding trajectory is spectacular: <strong>$100 million raised in May 2025<\/strong> (at a valuation of roughly $600 million), then a <strong>$150 million Series A in January 2026<\/strong>, pushing the valuation close to <strong>$1.7 billion<\/strong> (rounds led notably by Andreessen Horowitz, then Felicis and UC Investments). A sign that the \u201creferee\u201d of the AI race has become a coveted strategic asset.<\/p>\n<div class=\"bn-stats\">\n<div class=\"bn-stat\"><b>7.1M+<\/b><span>blind human votes cast to date (July 2026)<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"bn-stat\"><b>360+<\/b><span>AI models ranked<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"bn-stat\"><b>9<\/b><span>separate leaderboards (text, code, image, video, and more)<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 id=\"comment-fonctionne-le-classement\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_the_leaderboard_works_Elo_score_explained\"><\/span>How the leaderboard works (Elo score explained)<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>The mechanism is brutally simple, and that is exactly its strength. Everything rests on the <strong>blind battle<\/strong>: at no point does the voter know which models they are comparing, which neutralizes brand bias (nobody votes \u201cfor ChatGPT\u201d out of habit).<\/p>\n<ol class=\"bn-steps\">\n<li><b>You ask a question.<\/b> Any prompt, in any language, just like with a regular chatbot.<\/li>\n<li><b>Two AI models answer, anonymously.<\/b> The platform draws two models at random (labeled \u201cModel A\u201d and \u201cModel B\u201d) without revealing which ones.<\/li>\n<li><b>You vote.<\/b> You pick the better answer, call it a tie, or say both are bad.<\/li>\n<li><b>The identities are revealed.<\/b> Once your vote is recorded, you find out which models were competing.<\/li>\n<li><b>The leaderboard updates.<\/b> Every battle adjusts the score of both models involved.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h3 id=\"score-elo-bradley-terry\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Elo_Bradley-Terry_where_does_the_score_come_from\"><\/span>Elo, Bradley-Terry: where does the score come from?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>People usually say \u201cElo score\u201d, after the chess rating system. In practice, Arena has used a related but more robust statistical model since 2024, the <strong>Bradley-Terry<\/strong> model, fitted by maximum likelihood across all the votes. The idea stays the same: the more a model wins its duels against strong opponents, the higher its score climbs. A score gap translates into a <em>win probability<\/em>: a model ranked clearly higher will statistically beat a lower-ranked one more often.<\/p>\n<div class=\"bn-call bn-info\">\n<svg viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\" stroke=\"currentColor\" stroke-width=\"2\"><circle cx=\"12\" cy=\"12\" r=\"9\"><\/circle><path d=\"M12 16v-4M12 8h.01\"><\/path><\/svg>\n<div><span class=\"bn-klabel\">Style Control<\/span>\n<p>Voters tend to prefer answers that are <strong>long and nicely formatted<\/strong>, even when they are not any more accurate. To correct that bias, Arena applies a statistical filter called <strong>Style Control<\/strong>, which strips out the effect of length and formatting. The result: two leaderboards coexist, \u201craw\u201d and \u201cwith Style Control\u201d, and the order can shift slightly between them.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 id=\"classement-2026\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_Arena_leaderboard_in_2026_interactive_snapshot\"><\/span>The Arena leaderboard in 2026 (interactive snapshot)<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Here is a <strong>snapshot of the \u201ctext\u201d leaderboard<\/strong> as of July 1, 2026. Filter by provider, search for a model, or sort the columns. The scores are <strong>indicative<\/strong>: the ranking moves constantly, and the live version is on <a href=\"https:\/\/lmarena.ai\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">lmarena.ai<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"bn-lb\" id=\"bn-lb\">\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Arena_leaderboard_explorer_text_models\"><\/span>Arena leaderboard explorer: text models<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Indicative snapshot from July 1, 2026 \u00b7 ~7.1M votes \u00b7 369 models. Click a column header to sort.<\/p>\n<div class=\"bn-lb-ctrl\">\n    <input type=\"text\" class=\"bn-lb-search\" id=\"bn-lb-search\" placeholder=\"Search for a model or a provider...\" aria-label=\"Search for a model\">\n<div class=\"bn-lb-filters\" id=\"bn-lb-filters\">\n      <button type=\"button\" class=\"bn-lb-fbtn on\" data-f=\"all\">All<\/button><br>\n      <button type=\"button\" class=\"bn-lb-fbtn\" data-f=\"anthropic\">Anthropic<\/button><br>\n      <button type=\"button\" class=\"bn-lb-fbtn\" data-f=\"openai\">OpenAI<\/button><br>\n      <button type=\"button\" class=\"bn-lb-fbtn\" data-f=\"google\">Google<\/button><br>\n      <button type=\"button\" class=\"bn-lb-fbtn\" data-f=\"meta\">Meta<\/button>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"bn-tablewrap\">\n<table id=\"bn-lb-table\">\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th class=\"bn-lb-th\" data-sort=\"rank\" style=\"width:52px\">Rank<\/th>\n<th class=\"bn-lb-th\" data-sort=\"name\">Model<\/th>\n<th class=\"bn-lb-th\" data-sort=\"editor\">Provider<\/th>\n<th class=\"bn-lb-th\" data-sort=\"score\" style=\"text-align:right\">Score<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody id=\"bn-lb-body\">\n<tr data-name=\"claude fable 5 anthropic\" data-editor=\"anthropic\" data-rank=\"1\" data-score=\"1509\">\n<td class=\"bn-lb-rank\">1<\/td>\n<td>Claude Fable 5<\/td>\n<td>Anthropic<\/td>\n<td class=\"bn-lb-score\">1509<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr data-name=\"claude opus 4.6 thinking anthropic\" data-editor=\"anthropic\" data-rank=\"2\" data-score=\"1504\">\n<td class=\"bn-lb-rank\">2<\/td>\n<td>Claude Opus 4.6 (thinking)<\/td>\n<td>Anthropic<\/td>\n<td class=\"bn-lb-score\">1504<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr data-name=\"claude opus 4.7 thinking anthropic\" data-editor=\"anthropic\" data-rank=\"3\" data-score=\"1502\">\n<td class=\"bn-lb-rank\">3<\/td>\n<td>Claude Opus 4.7 (thinking)<\/td>\n<td>Anthropic<\/td>\n<td class=\"bn-lb-score\">1502<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr data-name=\"claude opus 4.6 anthropic\" data-editor=\"anthropic\" data-rank=\"4\" data-score=\"1499\">\n<td class=\"bn-lb-rank\">4<\/td>\n<td>Claude Opus 4.6<\/td>\n<td>Anthropic<\/td>\n<td class=\"bn-lb-score\">1499<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr data-name=\"claude opus 4.7 anthropic\" data-editor=\"anthropic\" data-rank=\"5\" data-score=\"1494\">\n<td class=\"bn-lb-rank\">5<\/td>\n<td>Claude Opus 4.7<\/td>\n<td>Anthropic<\/td>\n<td class=\"bn-lb-score\">1494<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr data-name=\"muse spark meta\" data-editor=\"meta\" data-rank=\"6\" data-score=\"1487\">\n<td class=\"bn-lb-rank\">6<\/td>\n<td>Muse Spark<\/td>\n<td>Meta<\/td>\n<td class=\"bn-lb-score\">1487<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr data-name=\"gemini 3.1 pro preview google\" data-editor=\"google\" data-rank=\"7\" data-score=\"1486\">\n<td class=\"bn-lb-rank\">7<\/td>\n<td>Gemini 3.1 Pro Preview<\/td>\n<td>Google<\/td>\n<td class=\"bn-lb-score\">1486<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr data-name=\"gemini 3 pro google\" data-editor=\"google\" data-rank=\"8\" data-score=\"1486\">\n<td class=\"bn-lb-rank\">8<\/td>\n<td>Gemini 3 Pro<\/td>\n<td>Google<\/td>\n<td class=\"bn-lb-score\">1486<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr data-name=\"claude opus 4.8 thinking anthropic\" data-editor=\"anthropic\" data-rank=\"9\" data-score=\"1484\">\n<td class=\"bn-lb-rank\">9<\/td>\n<td>Claude Opus 4.8 (thinking)<\/td>\n<td>Anthropic<\/td>\n<td class=\"bn-lb-score\">1484<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr data-name=\"gpt-5.5 high openai\" data-editor=\"openai\" data-rank=\"10\" data-score=\"1481\">\n<td class=\"bn-lb-rank\">10<\/td>\n<td>GPT-5.5 (high)<\/td>\n<td>OpenAI<\/td>\n<td class=\"bn-lb-score\">1481<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr data-name=\"gemini 3.5 flash google\" data-editor=\"google\" data-rank=\"11\" data-score=\"1479\">\n<td class=\"bn-lb-rank\">11<\/td>\n<td>Gemini 3.5 Flash<\/td>\n<td>Google<\/td>\n<td class=\"bn-lb-score\">1479<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr data-name=\"gpt-5.4 high openai\" data-editor=\"openai\" data-rank=\"12\" data-score=\"1478\">\n<td class=\"bn-lb-rank\">12<\/td>\n<td>GPT-5.4 (high)<\/td>\n<td>OpenAI<\/td>\n<td class=\"bn-lb-score\">1478<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table><\/div>\n<p class=\"lb-empty\" id=\"lb-empty\" style=\"display:none\">No model matches your search.<\/p>\n<p class=\"bn-lb-foot\">Source: snapshot of the Arena text leaderboard (lmarena.ai), July 1, 2026. Scores are rounded and indicative only. Check the site for the live ranking and the other categories.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"bn-fig\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/botnation-chatbot-arena-shot2.jpg\" alt=\"Screenshot of the Chatbot Arena text leaderboard on lmarena.ai, showing the Elo scores of each model\"><figcaption>Screenshot of lmarena.ai, July 2026. The official \u201ctext\u201d leaderboard (7.15M votes, 369 models) used as the basis for the snapshot above.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div class=\"bn-call bn-tip\">\n<svg viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\" stroke=\"currentColor\" stroke-width=\"2\"><path d=\"M12 3a6 6 0 0 0-4 10.5c.7.6 1 1 1 2.5h6c0-1.5.3-1.9 1-2.5A6 6 0 0 0 12 3z\"><\/path><path d=\"M9 21h6\"><\/path><\/svg>\n<div><span class=\"bn-klabel\">Key takeaway<\/span>\n<p>The best models sit within <strong>a few dozen points<\/strong> of each other. An AI ranked \u201c#4\u201d is not perceptibly \u201cworse\u201d than the \u201c#1\u201d: the gap is often inside the margin of error. The leaderboard separates very close champions, not a good model from a bad one.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 id=\"les-9-arenes\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_9_arenas_text_code_vision_video_and_more\"><\/span>The 9 arenas: text, code, vision, video, and more<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Arena is no longer a single leaderboard. The platform now runs public votes across <strong>nine categories<\/strong>, because \u201cthe best AI\u201d depends entirely on the task. A model that writes beautifully can be mediocre at coding an interface.<\/p>\n<div class=\"bn-tablewrap\">\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Arena<\/th>\n<th>What it measures<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>Text<\/td>\n<td>General conversation: writing, reasoning, answering questions.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Code<\/td>\n<td>Generating and fixing programming code.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>WebDev<\/td>\n<td>Building working web interfaces and mini apps.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Vision<\/td>\n<td>Understanding images supplied along with the question.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Image Edit \/ Multi-Image<\/td>\n<td>Generating and editing images from written instructions.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Search<\/td>\n<td>Answers grounded in a real-time web search.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Text-to-Video \/ Image-to-Video<\/td>\n<td>Generating video from text or from images.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"bn-fig\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/botnation-chatbot-arena-img1b.jpg\" alt=\"Illustration of a blind battle between two anonymous AI chatbots, one coral and one blue, with a vote in the middle\"><figcaption>The heart of the Arena: two anonymous answers go head to head, and the user votes for the better one.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2 id=\"comment-utiliser\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_to_use_Chatbot_Arena_yourself\"><\/span>How to use Chatbot Arena yourself<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Good news: it is <strong>free<\/strong> and needs no account. You can both feed the leaderboard and use it as a comparison tool.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Battle mode<\/strong>: ask a question, then vote blind between two answers. This is how you feed the collective ranking.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Side-by-side mode<\/strong>: pick two specific models yourself and compare their answers on <em>your<\/em> actual use case. Ideal for choosing between two AI models before you pay for one.<\/li>\n<li><strong>The leaderboard<\/strong>: browse the tables by category to spot the rising models and see where the race stands.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div class=\"bn-call bn-tip\">\n<svg viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\" stroke=\"currentColor\" stroke-width=\"2\"><path d=\"M12 3a6 6 0 0 0-4 10.5c.7.6 1 1 1 2.5h6c0-1.5.3-1.9 1-2.5A6 6 0 0 0 12 3z\"><\/path><path d=\"M9 21h6\"><\/path><\/svg>\n<div><span class=\"bn-klabel\">Tip<\/span>\n<p>Side-by-side mode is the most useful one in practice. Before paying for an AI subscription, run <strong>your real work questions<\/strong> through it: the ones from your job, in your own vocabulary. The global ranking matters less than performance on <em>your<\/em> actual use case, a habit that also heads off plenty of <a href=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/chatbot-mistakes\/\">classic chatbot-building mistakes<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 id=\"les-limites\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_limits_the_%E2%80%9CLeaderboard_Illusion%E2%80%9D_controversy\"><\/span>The limits: the \u201cLeaderboard Illusion\u201d controversy<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Chatbot Arena is the reference, but it is not perfect, and you should know that before trusting it blindly. In April 2025, a high-profile study titled <strong>\u201cThe Leaderboard Illusion\u201d<\/strong>, run by researchers at <strong>Cohere Labs<\/strong> with AI2, Princeton, Stanford, Waterloo and the University of Washington, flagged several structural biases.<\/p>\n<div class=\"bn-call bn-warn\">\n<svg viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\" stroke=\"currentColor\" stroke-width=\"2\"><path d=\"M12 3 2 20h20L12 3z\"><\/path><path d=\"M12 10v4M12 17h.01\"><\/path><\/svg>\n<div><span class=\"bn-klabel\">What the study found<\/span>\n<p>According to the authors, the big labs could test <strong>many variants privately<\/strong> of the same model and publish only the best one. Meta reportedly tested up to <strong>27 variants<\/strong> before releasing Llama 4. The study also estimates that Google and OpenAI each received roughly <strong>19 to 20% of the arena\u2019s data<\/strong>, against about 30% for 83 open models combined. Access to that preference data could inflate scores artificially, with gains estimated at up to <strong>+112%<\/strong> on the arena distribution.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Arena, for its part, <strong>responded publicly<\/strong> to the criticism: the platform says its testing policy is fair and that <em>any<\/em> lab can submit as many variants, public or private, as it has the capacity to run. The debate illustrates a classic problem (Goodhart\u2019s law): once a measure becomes a target, it stops being a good measure. French trade magazine L\u2019Usine Digitale summed up the risk bluntly, arguing that these testing practices mainly benefit Amazon, Google and Meta.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"bn-fig\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/botnation-chatbot-arena-img2b.jpg\" alt=\"Illustration of a podium and an AI ranking chart fed by a stream of votes from the crowd\"><figcaption>A leaderboard built by the crowd: its strength (millions of real votes) is also its weak spot (it can be gamed).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2 id=\"ce-que-larena-ne-dit-pas\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_the_Arena_leaderboard_does_NOT_tell_you_about_your_chatbot\"><\/span>What the Arena leaderboard does NOT tell you about your chatbot<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>This is the part that matters most for a business. Chatbot Arena measures one precise thing: the <strong>general preference of internet users<\/strong> for a conversational answer, in a lab setting. That is very useful for tracking the race between frontier models. But it does not answer <em>your<\/em> real question: \u201cwhich model is the right one <strong>for my company\u2019s chatbot<\/strong>?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Because for a professional chatbot, the raw model is only one ingredient among several. An assistant that answers perfectly on the Arena can be unusable for your customer support if it does not know your products, your pricing or your procedures. The right choice depends first on the <a href=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/type-of-chatbot\/\">type of chatbot<\/a> you are building, not on the top of a general-purpose leaderboard.<\/p>\n<div class=\"bn-cols\">\n<div class=\"bn-col biz\">\n<h4><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_the_Arena_measures\"><\/span><svg viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\" stroke=\"currentColor\" stroke-width=\"2\"><path d=\"M4 20V10M12 20V4M20 20v-6\"><\/path><\/svg>What the Arena measures<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Generic<\/strong> conversation quality, out of context.<\/li>\n<li>Voter preference on <strong>open-ended<\/strong> questions.<\/li>\n<li>A global ranking, at a single point in time.<\/li>\n<li>The \u201crace\u201d between the frontier models.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"bn-col cli\">\n<h4><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_counts_for_YOUR_bot\"><\/span><svg viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\" stroke=\"currentColor\" stroke-width=\"2\"><path d=\"M20 6 9 17l-5-5\"><\/path><\/svg>What counts for YOUR bot<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>That it knows <strong>your data<\/strong> (products, FAQ, procedures).<\/li>\n<li>The right balance of <strong>cost \/ speed \/ accuracy<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Guardrails<\/strong> and a tone that fits your brand.<\/li>\n<li>Deployment on your <strong>channels<\/strong> (website, WhatsApp, and more).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>In other words: the top model on the leaderboard is not necessarily the best choice for you. A high-performing business chatbot is a good model <strong>+ your data<\/strong> (through RAG, the technique that \u201cfeeds\u201d the AI your own documents) <strong>+ orchestration<\/strong> (scenarios, handoff to a human, connections to your tools). That is exactly what a platform like <strong>Botnation<\/strong> is for: you build your agent in no-code, plug it into your own content, and stay free to switch the underlying model, without betting on whichever model is #1 this month. To go further, see how to <a href=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/train-chatbot-own-data\/\">train a chatbot on your own data<\/a>, or browse <a href=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/chatbot-example\/\">real chatbot examples<\/a> built that way.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"bn-fig\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/botnation-chatbot-arena-img3b.jpg\" alt=\"A man seen from behind compares two AI answers side by side on his computer to pick a model\"><figcaption>The right move: compare models on YOUR use case, not just on the global leaderboard.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2 id=\"faq\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Frequently_asked_questions_about_Chatbot_Arena\"><\/span>Frequently asked questions about Chatbot Arena<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<details class=\"bn-faq\">\n<summary>What exactly is Arena AI?<\/summary>\n<div class=\"bn-faq-b\">\n<p>\u201cArena AI\u201d (at lmarena.ai) is the new name of Chatbot Arena, adopted in early 2026. It is the same platform for ranking AI models through blind human votes, now run by an independent company. The names \u201cChatbot Arena\u201d, \u201cLMArena\u201d and \u201cArena\u201d all refer to the same project at different stages of its history.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/details>\n<details class=\"bn-faq\">\n<summary>Is Chatbot Arena free?<\/summary>\n<div class=\"bn-faq-b\">\n<p>Yes. Using the arena (voting blind, comparing two models side by side) and browsing the leaderboards is entirely free and requires no account. That openness is what made it possible to gather several million votes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/details>\n<details class=\"bn-faq\">\n<summary>Which AI chatbot is the best in 2026 according to Arena?<\/summary>\n<div class=\"bn-faq-b\">\n<p>The top of the leaderboard changes very fast, and it is decided by a handful of points between the frontier models from Anthropic (Claude), Google (Gemini), OpenAI (GPT) and Meta. As of July 1, 2026, the Claude family held several of the very top spots on the text arena, but the gap to the models behind stayed minimal. For today\u2019s exact standings, check lmarena.ai, and above all, test your finalists on your own questions.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/details>\n<details class=\"bn-faq\">\n<summary>How is it different from classic benchmarks (MMLU, etc.)?<\/summary>\n<div class=\"bn-faq-b\">\n<p>Academic benchmarks (MMLU, GPQA and the like) grade models on exams with verifiable answers: they measure knowledge and reasoning under test conditions. Chatbot Arena measures <strong>human preference<\/strong> on open-ended conversations. The two are complementary: one tells you who knows the most, the other who people actually prefer to use. Neither is enough on its own.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/details>\n<details class=\"bn-faq\">\n<summary>Is the leaderboard enough to choose the model for my chatbot?<\/summary>\n<div class=\"bn-faq-b\">\n<p>No. The leaderboard helps you shortlist good models, but a high-performing business chatbot depends mostly on <strong>your data<\/strong>, your scenarios, cost, latency and the channels you target. The world #1 can be overkill, too expensive or useless if it knows nothing about your business. Always compare your finalists on your real use case before deciding.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/details>\n<details class=\"bn-faq\">\n<summary>Can you \u201cgame\u201d the Arena leaderboard?<\/summary>\n<div class=\"bn-faq-b\">\n<p>The study \u201cThe Leaderboard Illusion\u201d (2025) showed that large labs can optimize their position, notably by testing many private variants and by exploiting preference data. Arena disputes any unfairness and points out that its policy is open to everyone. The takeaway: the leaderboard is a solid indicator, not an absolute truth.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/details>\n<div class=\"bn-cta\">\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Your_chatbot_deserves_better_than_a_bet_on_the_1_of_the_month\"><\/span>Your chatbot deserves better than a bet on the #1 of the month<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>With Botnation, build an AI chatbot fed by your own data and deploy it on your website, WhatsApp or Messenger, in no-code, without depending on a single model. Try it for free.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"bn-cta-btn\" href=\"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/\">Build my chatbot for free<\/a>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p style=\"font-size:16px;color:#6d6653;font-style:italic;margin-top:26px\">Sources: Chiang et al., \u201cChatbot Arena: An Open Platform for Evaluating LLMs by Human Preference\u201d (2024); Singh et al., \u201cThe Leaderboard Illusion\u201d (Cohere Labs et al., 2025); Arena\u2019s official response; Blog du Mod\u00e9rateur, L\u2019Usine Digitale, InformatiqueNews (French tech press). Leaderboard snapshot: lmarena.ai, July 1, 2026 (indicative).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script>(function(){ var root=document.getElementById('bn-lb'); if(!root){return;} var body=document.getElementById('bn-lb-body'); var rows=Array.prototype.slice.call(body.querySelectorAll('tr')); var search=document.getElementById('bn-lb-search'); var empty=document.getElementById('lb-empty'); var filterBtns=Array.prototype.slice.call(root.querySelectorAll('#bn-lb-filters .bn-lb-fbtn')); var ths=Array.prototype.slice.call(root.querySelectorAll('.bn-lb-th')); var curFilter='all'; var curSort='rank'; var curDir=1; function apply(){ var q=(search.value||'').toLowerCase().replace(\/^\\s+|\\s+$\/g,''); var visible=0; rows.forEach(function(r){ var name=r.getAttribute('data-name')||''; var ed=r.getAttribute('data-editor')||''; var okF=(curFilter==='all')||(ed===curFilter); var okQ=(q==='')||(name.indexOf(q)!==-1); if(okF&&okQ){r.style.display='';visible++;}else{r.style.display='none';} }); empty.style.display=(visible===0)?'block':'none'; } function sortBy(key){ if(curSort===key){curDir=-curDir;}else{curSort=key;curDir=(key==='score')?-1:1;} var sorted=rows.slice().sort(function(a,b){ if(key==='score'||key==='rank'){ return (parseFloat(a.getAttribute('data-'+key))-parseFloat(b.getAttribute('data-'+key)))*curDir; } var va=(a.getAttribute('data-'+key)||'').toLowerCase(); var vb=(b.getAttribute('data-'+key)||'').toLowerCase(); if(va<vb){return -1*curDir;} if(va>vb){return 1*curDir;} return 0; }); sorted.forEach(function(r){body.appendChild(r);}); } if(search){search.addEventListener('input',apply);} filterBtns.forEach(function(btn){ btn.addEventListener('click',function(){ filterBtns.forEach(function(b){b.classList.remove('on');}); btn.classList.add('on'); curFilter=btn.getAttribute('data-f'); apply(); }); }); ths.forEach(function(th){ th.addEventListener('click',function(){sortBy(th.getAttribute('data-sort'));}); }); })();<\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In short. Chatbot Arena (today LMArena \/ Arena) is the reference platform for ranking conversational AI models. The principle: people ask a question, get two anonymous answers, vote for the better one, and those millions of blind votes produce an Elo-style leaderboard. Born at UC Berkeley, it now holds more than 7 million votes and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":30770,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[362],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31129","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chatbot-en"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31129","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31129"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31129\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31130,"href":"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31129\/revisions\/31130"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30770"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31129"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31129"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/botnation.ai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31129"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}