Claude 3 Sonnet vs Llama 4 Scout
Llama 4 Scout significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Llama 4 Scout is 44.4x cheaper per token.
Anthropic · Meta · Updated for 2026
Which is better?
Claude 3 Sonnet outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Llama 4 Scout is better at 5 benchmarks (GPQA, MATH, MGSM, MMLU, MMLU-Pro). Llama 4 Scout significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
On price, Llama 4 Scout is roughly 44.4x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
Llama 4 Scout also accepts a larger context window (10,000,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.
Based on current benchmark, pricing, and model metadata for 2026.
Choose Claude 3 Sonnet
- you want predictable pricing at $3.00/M input and $15.00/M output
Choose Llama 4 Scout
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 5 of 5 shared benchmarks
- cost matters — it's about 44.4x cheaper per token
- you process long inputs — it offers a 10,000,000 token context window
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Apr 2025
- you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune
At a glance
The differences that matter most.
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
Claude 3 Sonnet outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Llama 4 Scout is better at 5 benchmarks (GPQA, MATH, MGSM, MMLU, MMLU-Pro).
Llama 4 Scout significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Playground indexes and blind preference scores
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, Claude 3 Sonnet ($3.00/1M tokens) is 37.5x more expensive than Llama 4 Scout ($0.08/1M tokens).
For output processing, Claude 3 Sonnet ($15.00/1M tokens) is 50.0x more expensive than Llama 4 Scout ($0.30/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Claude 3 Sonnet is more expensive than Llama 4 Scout.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Llama 4 Scout accepts 10,000,000 input tokens compared to Claude 3 Sonnet's 200,000 tokens. Llama 4 Scout can generate longer responses up to 10,000,000 tokens, while Claude 3 Sonnet is limited to 200,000 tokens.
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
Both Claude 3 Sonnet and Llama 4 Scout support multimodal inputs.
They are both capable of processing various types of data, offering versatility in application.
Claude 3 Sonnet
Llama 4 Scout
License
Usage and distribution terms
Claude 3 Sonnet is licensed under a proprietary license, while Llama 4 Scout uses Llama 4 Community License Agreement.
License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.
Proprietary
Closed source
Llama 4 Community License Agreement
Open weights
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
Claude 3 Sonnet was released on 2024-02-29, while Llama 4 Scout was released on 2025-04-05.
Llama 4 Scout is 13 months newer than Claude 3 Sonnet.
Feb 29, 2024
2.5 years ago
Apr 5, 2025
1.4 years ago
1.1yr newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
Neither model specifies a knowledge cutoff date.
Unable to compare the recency of their training data.
Provider Availability
Claude 3 Sonnet is available from Anthropic, Bedrock, Google. Llama 4 Scout is available from DeepInfra, Lambda, Novita, Groq, Fireworks, Together.
Claude 3 Sonnet
Llama 4 Scout
Outputs Comparison
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against Claude 3 Sonnet and Llama 4 Scout side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
FAQ
Common questions about Claude 3 Sonnet vs Llama 4 Scout.