Grok 3 Mini
Proprietary CommercialDeveloped by xAI · Released 2025-02-17
What are the token costs and operational benchmarks for Grok 3 Mini?
Architectural Overview
Frontier foundation model developed by xAI featuring Compact Reasoning Model architecture.
Optimal Production Use Cases
High-speed reasoning model providing rapid answers and code generation with chain-of-thought capabilities at edge pricing.
Interactive Monthly Token Economics & ROI Forecaster
Model your expected production workload across prompt (input) and completion (output) tokens with prompt caching economics.
Estimated Monthly Spend
$0.30/1M in · $1.20/1M out
Prompt Cache: $0.080/1M read · $0.30/1M write
$0.10/1M in · $0.35/1M out
Prompt Cache: $0.020/1M read · $0.10/1M write
Head-to-Head Comparisons Involving Grok 3 Mini
Grok 3 Mini vs Claude 3.5 Haiku
Grok 3 Mini is 62.5% cheaper for input tokens ($0.30 vs. $0.80 per 1M tokens) and $1.20 vs. $4.00 for output tokens (2.7x cost difference). In terms of operational performance, Grok 3 Mini delivers faster response latency with 150ms TTFT (40ms faster than Claude 3.5 Haiku). Grok 3 Mini leads coding benchmarks at 54.0% SWE-bench vs. 40.6% for Claude 3.5 Haiku.
Grok 3 Mini vs Claude 3.5 Sonnet
Grok 3 Mini is 90.0% cheaper for input tokens ($0.30 vs. $3.00 per 1M tokens) and $1.20 vs. $15.00 for output tokens (10.0x cost difference). In terms of operational performance, Grok 3 Mini delivers faster response latency with 150ms TTFT (160ms faster than Claude 3.5 Sonnet). Grok 3 Mini leads coding benchmarks at 54.0% SWE-bench vs. 49.0% for Claude 3.5 Sonnet.
Grok 3 Mini vs Claude 3.7 Sonnet
Grok 3 Mini is 90.0% cheaper for input tokens ($0.30 vs. $3.00 per 1M tokens) and $1.20 vs. $15.00 for output tokens (10.0x cost difference). In terms of operational performance, Grok 3 Mini delivers faster response latency with 150ms TTFT (500ms faster than Claude 3.7 Sonnet). Claude 3.7 Sonnet leads coding benchmarks at 70.3% SWE-bench vs. 54.0% for Grok 3 Mini.
Grok 3 Mini vs DeepSeek R1
Grok 3 Mini is 45.5% cheaper for input tokens ($0.30 vs. $0.55 per 1M tokens) and $1.20 vs. $2.19 for output tokens (1.8x cost difference). In terms of operational performance, Grok 3 Mini delivers faster response latency with 150ms TTFT (1650ms faster than DeepSeek-R1). Grok 3 Mini leads coding benchmarks at 54.0% SWE-bench vs. 49.2% for DeepSeek-R1.
Grok 3 Mini vs DeepSeek V3
**DeepSeek V3 offers superior cost efficiency, whereas Grok 3 Mini delivers higher performance and speed.** DeepSeek V3 is 53.3% cheaper for inputs ($0.14 vs. $0.30 per 1M) and costs $0.28 vs. $1.20 for outputs. Conversely, Grok 3 Mini achieves a 150ms TTFT (260ms faster) and leads coding benchmarks at 54.0% vs. 42.0% SWE-bench.
Grok 3 Mini vs DeepSeek-V4 Flash Vision Exp
DeepSeek-V4 Flash Vision Exp is 53.3% cheaper for input tokens ($0.14 vs. $0.30 per 1M tokens) and $0.56 vs. $1.20 for output tokens (2.1x cost difference). In terms of operational performance, DeepSeek-V4 Flash Vision Exp delivers faster response latency with 140ms TTFT (10ms faster than Grok 3 Mini). DeepSeek-V4 Flash Vision Exp leads coding benchmarks at 64.2% SWE-bench vs. 54.0% for Grok 3 Mini.
Grok 3 Mini vs Gemini 2.0 Flash
Gemini 2.0 Flash is 66.7% cheaper for input tokens ($0.10 vs. $0.30 per 1M tokens) and $0.40 vs. $1.20 for output tokens (3.0x cost difference). In terms of operational performance, Grok 3 Mini delivers faster response latency with 150ms TTFT (70ms faster than Gemini 2.0 Flash). Grok 3 Mini leads coding benchmarks at 54.0% SWE-bench vs. 28.0% for Gemini 2.0 Flash.
Grok 3 Mini vs Gemini 2.5 Flash
Both models share identical input pricing at $0.30 per 1M tokens. In terms of operational performance, Gemini 2.5 Flash delivers faster response latency with 110ms TTFT (40ms faster than Grok 3 Mini). Gemini 2.5 Flash leads coding benchmarks at 58.0% SWE-bench vs. 54.0% for Grok 3 Mini.
Grok 3 Mini vs Gemini 2.5 Pro
Grok 3 Mini is 76.0% cheaper for input tokens ($0.30 vs. $1.25 per 1M tokens) and $1.20 vs. $10.00 for output tokens (4.2x cost difference). In terms of operational performance, Grok 3 Mini delivers faster response latency with 150ms TTFT (200ms faster than Gemini 2.5 Pro). Gemini 2.5 Pro leads coding benchmarks at 65.0% SWE-bench vs. 54.0% for Grok 3 Mini.
Grok 3 Mini vs GLM-5.3-Flash
GLM-5.3-Flash is 60.0% cheaper for input tokens ($0.12 vs. $0.30 per 1M tokens) and $0.40 vs. $1.20 for output tokens (2.5x cost difference). In terms of operational performance, GLM-5.3-Flash delivers faster response latency with 90ms TTFT (60ms faster than Grok 3 Mini). Grok 3 Mini leads coding benchmarks at 54.0% SWE-bench vs. 52.8% for GLM-5.3-Flash.
Grok 3 Mini vs GLM-5.3
Grok 3 Mini is 14.3% cheaper for input tokens ($0.30 vs. $0.35 per 1M tokens) and $1.20 vs. $1.00 for output tokens (1.2x cost difference). In terms of operational performance, Grok 3 Mini delivers faster response latency with 150ms TTFT (10ms faster than GLM-5.3). GLM-5.3 leads coding benchmarks at 56.0% SWE-bench vs. 54.0% for Grok 3 Mini.
Grok 3 Mini vs GPT-4.5
**Grok 3 Mini delivers massive cost disruption while beating GPT-4.5 in performance and speed.** Priced at $0.30 input and $1.20 output per 1M tokens, Grok 3 Mini is 99.6% cheaper (a 250.0x cost difference). It also achieves superior coding results at 54.0% SWE-bench versus 38.0%, with a 150ms TTFT that is 700ms faster.
Grok 3 Mini vs GPT-4o Mini
GPT-4o Mini is 50.0% cheaper for input tokens ($0.15 vs. $0.30 per 1M tokens) and $0.60 vs. $1.20 for output tokens (2.0x cost difference). In terms of operational performance, Grok 3 Mini delivers faster response latency with 150ms TTFT (70ms faster than GPT-4o Mini). Grok 3 Mini leads coding benchmarks at 54.0% SWE-bench vs. 41.0% for GPT-4o Mini.
Grok 3 Mini vs GPT-4o
Grok 3 Mini is 88.0% cheaper for input tokens ($0.30 vs. $2.50 per 1M tokens) and $1.20 vs. $10.00 for output tokens (8.3x cost difference). In terms of operational performance, Grok 3 Mini delivers faster response latency with 150ms TTFT (130ms faster than GPT-4o). Grok 3 Mini leads coding benchmarks at 54.0% SWE-bench vs. 48.0% for GPT-4o.
Grok 3 Mini vs Llama 3.3 70B Instruct
**Grok 3 Mini delivers superior performance and lower latency, while Llama 3.3 70B Instruct maximizes cost-efficiency.** Grok 3 Mini leads coding at 54.0% SWE-bench versus 42.5% and cuts latency with a 150ms TTFT (300ms faster). However, Llama 3.3 70B is 60.0% cheaper on inputs ($0.12 vs. $0.30/1M) and outputs ($0.30 vs. $1.20/1M).
Grok 3 Mini vs Mistral Large 2
**Grok 3 Mini dominates Mistral Large 2 with superior coding capability and drastically lower costs.** It is 85.0% cheaper for input tokens ($0.30 vs. $2.00 per 1M) and $1.20 vs. $6.00 for output. Additionally, Grok 3 Mini achieves a faster 150ms TTFT (370ms advantage) while outperforming on SWE-bench at 54.0% compared to Mistral Large 2's 40.0%.
Grok 3 Mini vs Mistral Large 2 (2411)
Grok 3 Mini is 85.0% cheaper for input tokens ($0.30 vs. $2.00 per 1M tokens) and $1.20 vs. $6.00 for output tokens (6.7x cost difference). In terms of operational performance, Grok 3 Mini delivers faster response latency with 150ms TTFT (300ms faster than Mistral Large 2411). Grok 3 Mini leads coding benchmarks at 54.0% SWE-bench vs. 35.7% for Mistral Large 2411.
Grok 3 Mini vs o1
**Grok 3 Mini delivers superior coding intelligence at a fraction of o1’s cost.** It is 98.0% cheaper, charging $0.30 versus $15.00 for inputs and $1.20 versus $60.00 for outputs per 1M tokens. Grok 3 Mini outperforms o1 on SWE-bench (54.0% vs. 48.9%) with a 150ms TTFT, responding 2450ms faster.
Grok 3 Mini vs OpenAI o3-mini
**Grok 3 Mini outperforms OpenAI o3-mini across cost, speed, and coding capability.** It is 72.7% cheaper, pricing input tokens at $0.30 vs. $1.10 and outputs at $1.20 vs. $4.40 per million. Grok 3 Mini also delivers a faster 150ms TTFT (1050ms edge) and leads SWE-bench at 54.0% versus o3-mini's 49.3%.
Grok 3 Mini vs Qwen 3.8 27B
Qwen 3.8 27B is 33.3% cheaper for input tokens ($0.20 vs. $0.30 per 1M tokens) and $0.60 vs. $1.20 for output tokens (1.5x cost difference). In terms of operational performance, Qwen 3.8 27B delivers faster response latency with 120ms TTFT (30ms faster than Grok 3 Mini). Qwen 3.8 27B leads coding benchmarks at 58.4% SWE-bench vs. 54.0% for Grok 3 Mini.
Grok 3 Mini vs Qwen 3.8 Flash Next
Qwen 3.8 Flash Next is 66.7% cheaper for input tokens ($0.10 vs. $0.30 per 1M tokens) and $0.35 vs. $1.20 for output tokens (3.0x cost difference). In terms of operational performance, Qwen 3.8 Flash Next delivers faster response latency with 95ms TTFT (55ms faster than Grok 3 Mini). Qwen 3.8 Flash Next leads coding benchmarks at 61.0% SWE-bench vs. 54.0% for Grok 3 Mini.
Grok 3 Mini vs Grok 3
Grok 3 Mini is 90.0% cheaper for input tokens ($0.30 vs. $3.00 per 1M tokens) and $1.20 vs. $15.00 for output tokens (10.0x cost difference). In terms of operational performance, Grok 3 Mini delivers faster response latency with 150ms TTFT (550ms faster than Grok 3). Grok 3 leads coding benchmarks at 65.4% SWE-bench vs. 54.0% for Grok 3 Mini.
Frequently Asked Questions & Query Fan-Out
How much does Grok 3 Mini cost per 1M tokens?
Grok 3 Mini costs $0.30 per million prompt (input) tokens and $1.20 per million completion (output) tokens.
What is the context window for Grok 3 Mini?
Grok 3 Mini supports a maximum context window of 131,072 tokens, with a maximum single-generation output of 16,384 tokens.
What are the primary use cases for Grok 3 Mini?
High-speed reasoning model providing rapid answers and code generation with chain-of-thought capabilities at edge pricing.