DeepSeek-R1 vs Grok-3 Comparison

Comparing DeepSeek-R1 and Grok-3 across benchmarks, pricing, and capabilities.

Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

No common benchmarks found

DeepSeek-R1 and Grok-3 don't have any common benchmark datasets to compare. They may have been evaluated on different testing suites.

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Pricing Analysis

Price comparison per million tokens

DeepSeek-R1 costs less

For input processing, DeepSeek-R1 ($0.55/1M tokens) is 5.5x cheaper than Grok-3 ($3.00/1M tokens).

For output processing, DeepSeek-R1 ($2.19/1M tokens) is 6.8x cheaper than Grok-3 ($15.00/1M tokens).

In conclusion, Grok-3 is more expensive than DeepSeek-R1.*

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

Lowest available price from all providers
Sun Mar 22 2026 • llm-stats.com
DeepSeek
DeepSeek-R1
Input tokens$0.55
Output tokens$2.19
Best providerDeepSeek
xAI
Grok-3
Input tokens$3.00
Output tokens$15.00
Best providerxAI
Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

DeepSeek-R1 accepts 131,072 input tokens compared to Grok-3's 128,000 tokens. DeepSeek-R1 can generate longer responses up to 131,072 tokens, while Grok-3 is limited to 8,000 tokens.

DeepSeek
DeepSeek-R1
Input131,072 tokens
Output131,072 tokens
xAI
Grok-3
Input128,000 tokens
Output8,000 tokens
Sun Mar 22 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Grok-3 supports multimodal inputs, whereas DeepSeek-R1 does not.

Grok-3 can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.

DeepSeek-R1

Text
Images
Audio
Video

Grok-3

Text
Images
Audio
Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

DeepSeek-R1 is licensed under MIT, while Grok-3 uses a proprietary license.

License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.

DeepSeek-R1

MIT

Open weights

Grok-3

Proprietary

Closed source

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

DeepSeek-R1 was released on 2025-01-20, while Grok-3 was released on 2025-02-17.

Grok-3 is 1 month newer than DeepSeek-R1.

DeepSeek-R1

Jan 20, 2025

1.2 years ago

Grok-3

Feb 17, 2025

1.1 years ago

4w newer

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

Grok-3 has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2024-11-17, while DeepSeek-R1's cutoff date is not specified.

We can confirm Grok-3's training data extends to 2024-11-17, but cannot make a direct comparison without DeepSeek-R1's cutoff date.

DeepSeek-R1

Grok-3

Nov 2024

Provider Availability

DeepSeek-R1 is available from DeepSeek, DeepInfra, Together, Fireworks. Grok-3 is available from xAI. The availability of providers can affect quality of the model and reliability.

DeepSeek-R1

deepseek logo
DeepSeek
Input Price:Input: $0.55/1MOutput Price:Output: $2.19/1M
deepinfra logo
Deepinfra
Input Price:Input: $0.85/1MOutput Price:Output: $2.50/1M
together logo
Together
Input Price:Input: $7.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $7.00/1M
fireworks logo
Fireworks
Input Price:Input: $8.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $8.00/1M

Grok-3

xai logo
xAI
Input Price:Input: $3.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $15.00/1M
* Prices shown are per million tokens

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue discussion

Key Takeaways

Larger context window (131,072 tokens)
Less expensive input tokens
Less expensive output tokens
Has open weights
Supports multimodal inputs
DeepSeekDeepSeek-R1
xAIGrok-3

Detailed Comparison

AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
DeepSeek
DeepSeek-R1
xAI
Grok-3