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Comparison · 2 models · Updated Oct 4, 2026

MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview vs Laguna S 2.1

MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview comes out ahead, 66 to 45 on our weighted score.

  1. Our pick

    MiniMax

    MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview

    Released Sep 27, 2026

    66/100
    • ECI—
    • Price—
    • Context1M
    Full specs Remove MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview

  2. Poolside

    Laguna S 2.1

    Released Jul 21, 2026

    45/100
    • ECI—
    • Price$0.10 / $0.20
    • Context1.05M
    Full specs Remove Laguna S 2.1

  3. Add a model

    Make it a three-way comparison.

01 — Verdict

MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview is our pick

MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview is the better all-round choice, scoring 66/100 against Laguna S 2.1 (45). It leads on inputs & features. The score weighs inputs & features 60%, context window 40%. 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 priceLaguna S 2.1Laguna S 2.1 $0.125 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend) · MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview unpriced
  • Longest contextLaguna S 2.1Laguna S 2.1 1,048,576 · MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview 1,000,000 tokens
  • Widest inputsMiniMax-M3.1-Flash-PreviewMiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview: Text, Images, Video · Laguna S 2.1: Text
  • Self-hostingLaguna S 2.1Publishes downloadable weights
How the score is built
MeasureWeightMiniMax-M3.1-Flash-PreviewLaguna S 2.1
Inputs & features60%7035
Context window40%6061
Overall100%66/10045/100

Left out because at least one model lacks the data: capability and price. The remaining weights were rescaled.

02 — Side by side

Every spec in one table

Highlighted cells lead their row. Dashes mean the data is not published.

MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview vs Laguna S 2.1 specifications side by side
SpecificationMiniMax-M3.1-Flash-PreviewMiniMaxLaguna S 2.1Poolside
Capability
Capabilities Index (ECI)——
ECI rank——
Price per million tokens
Input—$0.10
Output—$0.20
Cached input——
Blended (3:1)—$0.125
Long-context rate—Same rate
Price source—Median of 4 providers
Limits
Context window1,000,000 tokens1,048,576 tokens (best)
Max output512,000 tokens (best)32,768 tokens
Inputs and features
TextYesYes
ImagesYesNo
PDFsNoNo
AudioNoNo
VideoYesNo
ReasoningYesYes
Tool callingYesYes
Structured outputNoNo
Availability
WeightsProprietaryOpen
API model ID—poolside/laguna-s-2.1
API providers—6
ReleasedSep 27, 2026Jul 21, 2026
Knowledge cutoff——
03 — Cost

What would a month cost?

Enter your expected volume in millions of tokens. List prices only; caching and batch discounts would lower these.

  • MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview—
  • Laguna S 2.1$1.40
04 — Questions

Which should you choose?

Which is better: MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview or Laguna S 2.1?

MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview is the better all-round choice, scoring 66/100 against Laguna S 2.1 (45). It leads on inputs & features. The score weighs inputs & features 60%, context window 40%. None of the shared benchmarks cover every model here yet, so capability is left out of this verdict.

Which is cheaper, MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview or Laguna S 2.1?

Laguna S 2.1 is cheaper at $0.10 input / $0.20 output per million tokens (median across 4 API providers; free on Poolside). . At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $0.125 per million tokens for Laguna S 2.1 versus . MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview has no published per-token price.

Which scores higher on benchmarks?

There is no independent benchmark that covers both models yet. MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview has not been scored yet and Laguna S 2.1 has not been scored yet.

Which is better for coding?

There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview and Laguna S 2.1 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?

Laguna S 2.1 has the largest context window at 1,048,576 tokens, against 1,000,000 for MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview. Maximum output per response: MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview up to 512,000, Laguna S 2.1 up to 32,768 tokens.

Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?

MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview accepts text, images and video; Laguna S 2.1 accepts text. MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview handles the widest range of inputs.

Are any of these open source?

Laguna S 2.1 publishes its weights and can be self-hosted; MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview is proprietary.

Which is newer?

MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview is the newest, released Sep 27, 2026. Laguna S 2.1 came out Jul 21, 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 Oct 4, 2026.

05 — Keep comparing

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