Grok 4.1 Fast vs Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL vs Nemotron Nano 9B v2
Grok 4.1 Fast comes out ahead, 71 to 64 and 63 on our weighted score, though Nemotron Nano 9B v2 is 2.7× cheaper per token.
- Our pick
xAIGrok 4.1 Fast
71/100- ECI—
- Price$0.20 / $0.50
- Context2M
NVIDIANemotron Nano 12B v2 VL
63/100- ECI—
- Price$0.20 / $0.60
- Context128K
- NVIDIA
Nemotron Nano 9B v2
64/100- ECI—
- Price$0.06 / $0.23
- Context131K
Grok 4.1 Fast is our pick
Grok 4.1 Fast is the better all-round choice, scoring 71/100 against Nemotron Nano 9B v2 (64) and Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL (63). It leads on context window. Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL wins on inputs & features. Nemotron Nano 9B v2 wins on price. The score weighs price 50%, inputs & features 30%, context window 20%. None of the shared benchmarks cover every model here yet, so capability is left out of this verdict.
- CapabilityNot enough dataNo independent benchmark covers every model here yet
- Lowest priceNemotron Nano 9B v2Nemotron Nano 9B v2 $0.102 · Grok 4.1 Fast $0.275 · Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL $0.30 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
- Longest contextGrok 4.1 FastGrok 4.1 Fast 2,000,000 · Nemotron Nano 9B v2 131,072 · Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL 128,000 tokens
- Widest inputsNemotron Nano 12B v2 VLGrok 4.1 Fast: Text, Images · Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL: Text, Images, Video · Nemotron Nano 9B v2: Text
- Self-hostingNemotron Nano 12B v2 VL and Nemotron Nano 9B v2Publishes downloadable weights
| Measure | Weight | Grok 4.1 Fast | Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL | Nemotron Nano 9B v2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | 50% | 76 | 75 | 97 |
| Inputs & features | 30% | 60 | 70 | 35 |
| Context window | 20% | 72 | 24 | 24 |
| Overall | 100% | 71/100 | 63/100 | 64/100 |
Left out because at least one model lacks the data: capability. The remaining weights were rescaled.
Every spec in one table
Highlighted cells lead their row. Dashes mean the data is not published.
| Specification | Grok 4.1 FastxAI | Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VLNVIDIA | Nemotron Nano 9B v2NVIDIA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capability | |||
| Capabilities Index (ECI) | — | — | — |
| ECI rank | — | — | — |
| Price per million tokens | |||
| Input | $0.20 | $0.20 | $0.06 (best) |
| Output | $0.50 | $0.60 | $0.23 (best) |
| Cached input | — | — | — |
| Blended (3:1) | $0.275 | $0.30 | $0.102 (best) |
| Long-context rate | Same rate | Same rate | Same rate |
| Price source | Median of 2 providers | Median of 3 providers | Median of 3 providers |
| Limits | |||
| Context window | 2,000,000 tokens (best) | 128,000 tokens | 131,072 tokens |
| Max output | 30,000 tokens | 128,000 tokens | 131,072 tokens (best) |
| Inputs and features | |||
| Text | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Images | Yes | Yes | No |
| PDFs | No | No | No |
| Audio | No | No | No |
| Video | No | Yes | No |
| Reasoning | No | Yes | Yes |
| Tool calling | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Structured output | Yes | No | No |
| Availability | |||
| Weights | Proprietary | Open | Open |
| API model ID | — | nvidia/nemotron-nano-12b-v2-vl | nvidia/nvidia-nemotron-nano-9b-v2 |
| API providers | 2 | 4 (best) | 4 (best) |
| Released | Nov 19, 2025 | Oct 28, 2025 | Aug 18, 2025 |
| Knowledge cutoff | — | — | — |
What would a month cost?
Enter your expected volume in millions of tokens. List prices only; caching and batch discounts would lower these.
- Grok 4.1 Fast$3.00
- Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL$3.20
- Nemotron Nano 9B v2$1.06
Which should you choose?
Which is better: Grok 4.1 Fast, Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL or Nemotron Nano 9B v2?
Grok 4.1 Fast is the better all-round choice, scoring 71/100 against Nemotron Nano 9B v2 (64) and Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL (63). It leads on context window. Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL wins on inputs & features. Nemotron Nano 9B v2 wins on price. The score weighs price 50%, inputs & features 30%, context window 20%. None of the shared benchmarks cover every model here yet, so capability is left out of this verdict.
Which is cheaper, Grok 4.1 Fast, Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL or Nemotron Nano 9B v2?
Nemotron Nano 9B v2 is cheaper at $0.06 input / $0.23 output per million tokens (median across 3 API providers; free on Nvidia). Grok 4.1 Fast costs $0.20 input / $0.50 output per million tokens (median across 2 API providers); Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL costs $0.20 input / $0.60 output per million tokens (median across 3 API providers; free on Nvidia). At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $0.102 per million tokens for Nemotron Nano 9B v2 versus $0.275 for Grok 4.1 Fast (2.7× as much) and $0.30 for Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL (2.9× as much).
Which scores higher on benchmarks?
There is no independent benchmark that covers all three models yet. Grok 4.1 Fast has not been scored yet, Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL has not been scored yet and Nemotron Nano 9B v2 has not been scored yet.
Which is better for coding?
There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for Grok 4.1 Fast, Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL and Nemotron Nano 9B v2 yet, so there is no like-for-like coding score. Test both on a sample of your own tasks. All three support tool calling for agent workflows.
Which has the bigger context window?
Grok 4.1 Fast has the largest context window at 2,000,000 tokens, against 131,072 for Nemotron Nano 9B v2 and 128,000 for Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL. Maximum output per response: Grok 4.1 Fast up to 30,000, Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL up to 128,000, Nemotron Nano 9B v2 up to 131,072 tokens.
Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?
Grok 4.1 Fast accepts text and images; Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL accepts text, images and video; Nemotron Nano 9B v2 accepts text. Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL handles the widest range of inputs.
Are any of these open source?
Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL and Nemotron Nano 9B v2 publishes its weights and can be self-hosted; Grok 4.1 Fast is proprietary.
Which is newer?
Grok 4.1 Fast is the newest, released Nov 19, 2025. Nemotron Nano 12B v2 VL came out Oct 28, 2025; Nemotron Nano 9B v2 came out Aug 18, 2025.
How do you decide the winner?
Each model gets a 0–100 score on capability (50%, independent benchmark results); price (25%, blended price per million tokens (3 input : 1 output), log scale); inputs & features (15%, image, PDF, audio and video input, tool calling, structured output and reasoning); context window (10%, maximum tokens per request, log scale). Dimensions missing for any model are dropped and the remaining weights rescaled, so every model is judged on the same evidence. Specs and prices come from public model listings and the labs’ own API pages; capability scores come from independent benchmark runs. Data updated Oct 4, 2026.
