MiniMax-M3 vs MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview
Too close to call on our weighted score (MiniMax-M3 66, MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview 66). The right pick depends on what you value most.
MiniMaxMiniMax-M3
66/100- ECI147.0
- Price$0.30 / $1.20
- Context1.05M
- MiniMax
MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview
66/100- ECI—
- Price—
- Context1M
Add a model
Make it a three-way comparison.
Too close to call
It is close. Our weighted score puts them within a point (MiniMax-M3 66/100, MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview 66/100), so choose by what matters most for your work: MiniMax-M3 on price and MiniMax-M3 for long inputs. 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 priceMiniMax-M3MiniMax-M3 $0.525 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend) · MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview unpriced
- Longest contextMiniMax-M3MiniMax-M3 1,048,576 · MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview 1,000,000 tokens
- Widest inputsSame inputsMiniMax-M3: Text, Images, Video · MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview: Text, Images, Video
- Self-hostingMiniMax-M3Publishes downloadable weights
| Measure | Weight | MiniMax-M3 | MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inputs & features | 60% | 70 | 70 |
| Context window | 40% | 61 | 60 |
| Overall | 100% | 66/100 | 66/100 |
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-M3MiniMax | MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-PreviewMiniMax |
|---|---|---|
| Capability | ||
| Capabilities Index (ECI) | 147.0 | — |
| ECI rank | #62 of 148 | — |
| GPQA DiamondGraduate-level science questions | 90.9% | — |
| OTIS Mock AIME 2024–2025Competition mathematics | 71.1% | — |
| Price per million tokens | ||
| Input | $0.30 | — |
| Output | $1.20 | — |
| Cached input | $0.06 | — |
| Blended (3:1) | $0.525 | — |
| Long-context rate | Over 512K: $0.60 / $2.40 | — |
| Price source | Official MiniMax (minimax.io) API | — |
| Limits | ||
| Context window | 1,048,576 tokens (best) | 1,000,000 tokens |
| Max output | 512,000 tokens | 512,000 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 | No |
| Availability | ||
| Weights | Open | Proprietary |
| API model ID | MiniMax-M3 | — |
| API providers | 42 | — |
| Released | Jun 1, 2026 | Sep 27, 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$5.40
- MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview—
Which should you choose?
Which is better: MiniMax-M3 or MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview?
It is close. Our weighted score puts them within a point (MiniMax-M3 66/100, MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview 66/100), so choose by what matters most for your work: MiniMax-M3 on price and MiniMax-M3 for long inputs. 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 or MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview?
MiniMax-M3 is cheaper at $0.30 input / $1.20 output per million tokens (official MiniMax (minimax.io) API price). . At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $0.525 per million tokens for MiniMax-M3 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 has an ECI of 147.0 and MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview has not been scored yet.
Which is better for coding?
There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for MiniMax-M3 and MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview 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 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 up to 512,000, MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview up to 512,000 tokens.
Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?
MiniMax-M3 accepts text, images and video; MiniMax-M3.1-Flash-Preview accepts text, images and video. They handle the same number of input types.
Are any of these open source?
MiniMax-M3 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. MiniMax-M3 came out Jun 1, 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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