Step 5 Preview vs North Mini Code vs LongCat-2.5-Preview
North Mini Code comes out ahead, 71 to 57 and 52 on our weighted score, and it is the cheaper option too.
StepFunStep 5 Preview
57/100- ECI—
- Price$1.00 / $2.70
- Context1M
- Our pick
CohereNorth Mini Code
71/100- ECI—
- PriceFree / Free
- Context256K
Meituan (LongCat)LongCat-2.5-Preview
52/100- ECI—
- Price$0.75 / $2.95
- Context1M
North Mini Code is our pick
North Mini Code is the better all-round choice, scoring 71/100 against Step 5 Preview (57) and LongCat-2.5-Preview (52). It leads on price. Step 5 Preview wins on inputs & features. 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 priceNorth Mini CodeNorth Mini Code Free · LongCat-2.5-Preview $1.30 · Step 5 Preview $1.43 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
- Longest contextStep 5 Preview and LongCat-2.5-PreviewStep 5 Preview 1,000,000 · LongCat-2.5-Preview 1,000,000 · North Mini Code 256,000 tokens
- Widest inputsStep 5 PreviewStep 5 Preview: Text, Images, Video · North Mini Code: Text · LongCat-2.5-Preview: Text, Images
- Self-hostingNorth Mini CodePublishes downloadable weights
| Measure | Weight | Step 5 Preview | North Mini Code | LongCat-2.5-Preview |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | 50% | 43 | 100 | 44 |
| Inputs & features | 30% | 80 | 45 | 60 |
| Context window | 20% | 60 | 36 | 60 |
| Overall | 100% | 57/100 | 71/100 | 52/100 |
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 | Step 5 PreviewStepFun | North Mini CodeCohere | LongCat-2.5-PreviewMeituan (LongCat) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capability | |||
| Capabilities Index (ECI) | — | — | — |
| ECI rank | — | — | — |
| Price per million tokens | |||
| Input | $1.00 | Free (best) | $0.75 |
| Output | $2.70 | Free (best) | $2.95 |
| Cached input | $0.05 | — | — |
| Blended (3:1) | $1.43 | Free (best) | $1.30 |
| Long-context rate | Same rate | Same rate | Same rate |
| Price source | Official StepFun (Global) API | Official Cohere API | Median of 1 providers |
| Limits | |||
| Context window | 1,000,000 tokens (best) | 256,000 tokens | 1,000,000 tokens (best) |
| Max output | 1,000,000 tokens (best) | 64,000 tokens | 131,072 tokens |
| Inputs and features | |||
| Text | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Images | Yes | No | Yes |
| PDFs | No | No | No |
| Audio | No | No | No |
| Video | Yes | No | No |
| Reasoning | Yeslow · medium · high | Yeshigh | Yes |
| Tool calling | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Structured output | Yes | Yes | No |
| Availability | |||
| Weights | Proprietary | Open | Proprietary |
| API model ID | step-5-preview | north-mini-code-1-0 | — |
| API providers | 7 (best) | 2 | 2 |
| Released | Sep 16, 2026 | Jun 9, 2026 | Sep 25, 2026 |
| Knowledge cutoff | — | Sep 23, 2025 | — |
What would a month cost?
Enter your expected volume in millions of tokens. List prices only; caching and batch discounts would lower these.
- Step 5 Preview$15.40
- North Mini CodeFree
- LongCat-2.5-Preview$13.40
Which should you choose?
Which is better: Step 5 Preview, North Mini Code or LongCat-2.5-Preview?
North Mini Code is the better all-round choice, scoring 71/100 against Step 5 Preview (57) and LongCat-2.5-Preview (52). It leads on price. Step 5 Preview wins on inputs & features. 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, Step 5 Preview, North Mini Code or LongCat-2.5-Preview?
North Mini Code is cheaper at Free input / Free output per million tokens (official Cohere API price). LongCat-2.5-Preview costs $0.75 input / $2.95 output per million tokens (median across 1 API provider); Step 5 Preview costs $1.00 input / $2.70 output per million tokens (official StepFun (Global) API price). North Mini Code is listed as free.
Which scores higher on benchmarks?
There is no independent benchmark that covers all three models yet. Step 5 Preview has not been scored yet, North Mini Code has not been scored yet and LongCat-2.5-Preview has not been scored yet.
Which is better for coding?
There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for Step 5 Preview, North Mini Code and LongCat-2.5-Preview 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?
Step 5 Preview and LongCat-2.5-Preview have the largest context windows (1,000,000 and 1,000,000 tokens), against 256,000 for North Mini Code. Maximum output per response: Step 5 Preview up to 1,000,000, North Mini Code up to 64,000, LongCat-2.5-Preview up to 131,072 tokens.
Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?
Step 5 Preview accepts text, images and video; North Mini Code accepts text; LongCat-2.5-Preview accepts text and images. Step 5 Preview handles the widest range of inputs.
Are any of these open source?
North Mini Code publishes its weights and can be self-hosted; Step 5 Preview and LongCat-2.5-Preview is proprietary.
Which is newer?
LongCat-2.5-Preview is the newest, released Sep 25, 2026. Step 5 Preview came out Sep 16, 2026; North Mini Code came out Jun 9, 2026. Knowledge cutoff: North Mini Code Sep 23, 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.
