Kimi K3 vs Pareto
Kimi K3 comes out ahead, 42 to 33 on our weighted score, though Pareto is 36% cheaper per token.
Kimi K3 is our pick
Kimi K3 is the better all-round choice, scoring 42/100 against Pareto (33). It leads on inputs & features and context window. Pareto 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 priceParetoPareto $3.86 · Kimi K3 $6.00 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
- Longest contextKimi K3Kimi K3 1,048,576 · Pareto 262,144 tokens
- Widest inputsKimi K3Kimi K3: Text, Images, Video · Pareto: Text, Images
- Self-hostingKimi K3Publishes downloadable weights
| Measure | Weight | Kimi K3 | Pareto |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | 50% | 12 | 21 |
| Inputs & features | 30% | 80 | 50 |
| Context window | 20% | 61 | 37 |
| Overall | 100% | 42/100 | 33/100 |
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 |  Kimi K3Moonshot AI | ParetoUnbiased |
|---|---|---|
| Capability | ||
| Capabilities Index (ECI) | 158.3 | — |
| ECI rank | #20 of 165 | — |
| GPQA DiamondGraduate-level science questions | 93.1% | — |
| FrontierMath Tiers 1–3Research-level mathematics | 72.2% | — |
| OTIS Mock AIME 2024–2025Competition mathematics | 97.2% | — |
| SimpleQA VerifiedShort factual questions | 50.6% | — |
| Price per million tokens | ||
| Input | $3.00 | $2.57 (best) |
| Output | $15.00 | $7.72 (best) |
| Cached input | $0.30 | — |
| Blended (3:1) | $6.00 | $3.86 (best) |
| Long-context rate | Same rate | Same rate |
| Price source | Official Moonshot AI API | Median of 2 providers |
| Limits | ||
| Context window | 1,048,576 tokens (best) | 262,144 tokens |
| Max output | 131,072 tokens | 131,072 tokens |
| Inputs and features | ||
| Text | Yes | Yes |
| Images | Yes | Yes |
| PDFs | No | No |
| Audio | No | No |
| Video | Yes | No |
| Reasoning | Yeslow · high · max | No |
| Tool calling | Yes | Yes |
| Structured output | Yes | No |
| Availability | ||
| Weights | Open | Proprietary |
| API model ID | kimi-k3 | — |
| API providers | 76 (best) | 2 |
| Released | Jul 16, 2026 | Sep 17, 2026 |
| 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.
- Kimi K3$60.00
- Pareto$41.16
Which should you choose?
Which is better: Kimi K3 or Pareto?
Kimi K3 is the better all-round choice, scoring 42/100 against Pareto (33). It leads on inputs & features and context window. Pareto 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, Kimi K3 or Pareto?
Pareto is cheaper at $2.57 input / $7.72 output per million tokens (median across 2 API providers). Kimi K3 costs $3.00 input / $15.00 output per million tokens (official Moonshot AI API price). At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $3.86 per million tokens for Pareto versus $6.00 for Kimi K3 (1.6× as much).
Which scores higher on benchmarks?
There is no independent benchmark that covers both models yet. Kimi K3 has an ECI of 158.3 and Pareto has not been scored yet.
Which is better for coding?
There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for Kimi K3 and Pareto yet, so there is no like-for-like coding score. Test both on a sample of your own tasks. Both support tool calling for agent workflows.
Which has the bigger context window?
Kimi K3 has the largest context window at 1,048,576 tokens, against 262,144 for Pareto. Maximum output per response: Kimi K3 up to 131,072, Pareto up to 131,072 tokens.
Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?
Kimi K3 accepts text, images and video; Pareto accepts text and images. Kimi K3 handles the widest range of inputs.
Are any of these open source?
Kimi K3 publishes its weights and can be self-hosted; Pareto is proprietary.
Which is newer?
Pareto is the newest, released Sep 17, 2026. Kimi K3 came out Jul 16, 2026.
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 Nov 2, 2026.
