MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview vs Qwen 3.8 Max Prime
Qwen 3.8 Max Prime comes out ahead, 72 to 66 on our weighted score, and it is the cheaper option too.
MiniMaxMiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview
66/100- ECI—
- Price—
- Context1M
- Our pick
Alibaba (Qwen)Qwen 3.8 Max Prime
72/100- ECI—
- Price$4.00 / $12.00
- Context1M
Add a model
Make it a three-way comparison.
Qwen 3.8 Max Prime is our pick
Qwen 3.8 Max Prime is the better all-round choice, scoring 72/100 against MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview (66). 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 priceQwen 3.8 Max PrimeQwen 3.8 Max Prime $6.00 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend) · MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview unpriced
- Longest contextAbout the sameMiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview 1,000,000 · Qwen 3.8 Max Prime 1,000,000 tokens
- Widest inputsSame inputsMiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview: Text, Images, Video · Qwen 3.8 Max Prime: Text, Images, Video
- Self-hostingNo open weightsBoth are available only through APIs
| Measure | Weight | MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview | Qwen 3.8 Max Prime |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inputs & features | 60% | 70 | 80 |
| Context window | 40% | 60 | 60 |
| Overall | 100% | 66/100 | 72/100 |
Left out because at least one model lacks the data: capability and price. The remaining weights were rescaled.
Every spec in one table
Highlighted cells lead their row. Dashes mean the data is not published.
| Specification | MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-PreviewMiniMax | Qwen 3.8 Max PrimeAlibaba (Qwen) |
|---|---|---|
| Capability | ||
| Capabilities Index (ECI) | — | — |
| ECI rank | — | — |
| Price per million tokens | ||
| Input | — | $4.00 |
| Output | — | $12.00 |
| Cached input | — | — |
| Blended (3:1) | — | $6.00 |
| Long-context rate | — | Same rate |
| Price source | — | Median of 4 providers |
| Limits | ||
| Context window | 1,000,000 tokens | 1,000,000 tokens |
| Max output | 512,000 tokens (best) | 131,072 tokens |
| Inputs and features | ||
| Text | Yes | Yes |
| Images | Yes | Yes |
| PDFs | No | No |
| Audio | No | No |
| Video | Yes | Yes |
| Reasoning | Yes | Yes |
| Tool calling | Yes | Yes |
| Structured output | No | Yes |
| Availability | ||
| Weights | Proprietary | Proprietary |
| API model ID | — | — |
| API providers | — | 4 |
| Released | Sep 27, 2026 | Sep 23, 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.
- MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview—
- Qwen 3.8 Max Prime$64.00
Which should you choose?
Which is better: MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview or Qwen 3.8 Max Prime?
Qwen 3.8 Max Prime is the better all-round choice, scoring 72/100 against MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview (66). 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 Qwen 3.8 Max Prime?
Qwen 3.8 Max Prime is cheaper at $4.00 input / $12.00 output per million tokens (median across 4 API providers). . At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $6.00 per million tokens for Qwen 3.8 Max Prime 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 Qwen 3.8 Max Prime 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 Qwen 3.8 Max Prime 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?
MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview and Qwen 3.8 Max Prime share the same 1,000,000-token context window. Maximum output per response: MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview up to 512,000, Qwen 3.8 Max Prime up to 131,072 tokens.
Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?
MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview accepts text, images and video; Qwen 3.8 Max Prime accepts text, images and video. They handle the same number of input types.
Are any of these open source?
No. MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview and Qwen 3.8 Max Prime are proprietary and only available through APIs and apps.
Which is newer?
MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview is the newest, released Sep 27, 2026. Qwen 3.8 Max Prime came out Sep 23, 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.
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