Model Comparison

Claude Opus 4.6 vs Grok-3 MiniWhich is better in 2026?

Claude Opus 4.6 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Grok-3 Mini is 28.6x cheaper per token.

Verdict: Claude Opus 4.6 vs Grok-3 Mini — which is better?

Claude Opus 4.6 (by Anthropic) and Grok-3 Mini (by xAI) are two of the AI models people compare most. Here is how they stack up on benchmarks, price and capabilities, and which one to pick in 2026.

Claude Opus 4.6 outperforms in 2 benchmarks (AIME 2025, GPQA), while Grok-3 Mini is better at 0 benchmarks. Claude Opus 4.6 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

On price, Grok-3 Mini is roughly 28.6x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.

Claude Opus 4.6 also accepts a larger context window (1,000,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.

Choose Claude Opus 4.6 if…

  • you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 2 of 2 shared benchmarks
  • you process long inputs — it offers a 1,000,000 token context window
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Feb 2026

Choose Grok-3 Mini if…

  • cost matters — it's about 28.6x cheaper per token
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Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

2 benchmarks

Claude Opus 4.6 outperforms in 2 benchmarks (AIME 2025, GPQA), while Grok-3 Mini is better at 0 benchmarks.

Claude Opus 4.6 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Sun Jun 07 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Pricing Analysis

Price comparison per million tokens

Grok-3 Mini costs less

For input processing, Claude Opus 4.6 ($5.00/1M tokens) is 16.7x more expensive than Grok-3 Mini ($0.30/1M tokens).

For output processing, Claude Opus 4.6 ($25.00/1M tokens) is 50.0x more expensive than Grok-3 Mini ($0.50/1M tokens).

In conclusion, Claude Opus 4.6 is more expensive than Grok-3 Mini.*

* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens

Lowest available price from all providers
Sun Jun 07 2026 • llm-stats.com
Anthropic
Claude Opus 4.6
Input tokens$5.00
Output tokens$25.00
Best providerAnthropic
xAI
Grok-3 Mini
Input tokens$0.30
Output tokens$0.50
Best providerxAI
Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue→

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Claude Opus 4.6 accepts 1,000,000 input tokens compared to Grok-3 Mini's 128,000 tokens. Claude Opus 4.6 can generate longer responses up to 128,000 tokens, while Grok-3 Mini is limited to 8,000 tokens.

Anthropic
Claude Opus 4.6
Input1,000,000 tokens
Output128,000 tokens
xAI
Grok-3 Mini
Input128,000 tokens
Output8,000 tokens
Sun Jun 07 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Both Claude Opus 4.6 and Grok-3 Mini support multimodal inputs.

They are both capable of processing various types of data, offering versatility in application.

Claude Opus 4.6

Text
Images
Audio
Video

Grok-3 Mini

Text
Images
Audio
Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

Both models are licensed under proprietary licenses.

Both models have usage restrictions defined by their respective organizations.

Claude Opus 4.6

Proprietary

Closed source

Grok-3 Mini

Proprietary

Closed source

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Claude Opus 4.6 was released on 2026-02-05, while Grok-3 Mini was released on 2025-02-17.

Claude Opus 4.6 is 12 months newer than Grok-3 Mini.

Claude Opus 4.6

Feb 5, 2026

4 months ago

11mo newer
Grok-3 Mini

Feb 17, 2025

1.3 years ago

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

Grok-3 Mini has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2024-11-17, while Claude Opus 4.6's cutoff date is not specified.

We can confirm Grok-3 Mini's training data extends to 2024-11-17, but cannot make a direct comparison without Claude Opus 4.6's cutoff date.

Claude Opus 4.6

—

Grok-3 Mini

Nov 2024

Provider Availability

Claude Opus 4.6 is available from Anthropic. Grok-3 Mini is available from xAI.

Claude Opus 4.6

anthropic logo
Anthropic
Input Price:Input: $5.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $25.00/1M

Grok-3 Mini

xai logo
xAI
Input Price:Input: $0.30/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.50/1M
* Prices shown are per million tokens

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue discussion→

Key Takeaways

Anthropic
Larger context window (1,000,000 tokens)
Higher AIME 2025 score (99.8% vs 90.8%)
Higher GPQA score (91.3% vs 84.0%)
xAI
Less expensive input tokens
Less expensive output tokens
AnthropicClaude Opus 4.6
xAIGrok-3 Mini
Compare in Playground

Detailed Comparison

AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
Anthropic
Claude Opus 4.6
xAI
Grok-3 Mini

FAQ

Common questions about Claude Opus 4.6 vs Grok-3 Mini.

Which is better, Claude Opus 4.6 or Grok-3 Mini?

Claude Opus 4.6 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Claude Opus 4.6 is made by Anthropic and Grok-3 Mini is made by xAI. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does Claude Opus 4.6 compare to Grok-3 Mini in benchmarks?

Claude Opus 4.6 scores Vending-Bench 2: 100.0%, AIME 2025: 99.8%, Tau2 Telecom: 99.3%, Graphwalks parents >128k: 95.4%, MRCR v2 (8-needle): 93.0%. Grok-3 Mini scores AIME 2024: 95.8%, AIME 2025: 90.8%, GPQA: 84.0%, LiveCodeBench: 80.4%.

Is Claude Opus 4.6 cheaper than Grok-3 Mini?

Grok-3 Mini is 16.7x cheaper for input tokens. Claude Opus 4.6 costs $5.00/M input and $25.00/M output via anthropic. Grok-3 Mini costs $0.30/M input and $0.50/M output via xai.

What are the context window sizes for Claude Opus 4.6 and Grok-3 Mini?

Claude Opus 4.6 supports 1.0M tokens and Grok-3 Mini supports 128K tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.

What are the main differences between Claude Opus 4.6 and Grok-3 Mini?

Key differences include context window (1.0M vs 128K), input pricing ($5.00 vs $0.30/M). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes Claude Opus 4.6 and Grok-3 Mini?

Claude Opus 4.6 is developed by Anthropic and Grok-3 Mini is developed by xAI.

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