DeepSeek-R1 vs Phi 4 Reasoning Plus
Comparing DeepSeek-R1 and Phi 4 Reasoning Plus across benchmarks, pricing, and capabilities.
DeepSeek · Microsoft · Updated for 2026
Which is better?
DeepSeek-R1 and Phi 4 Reasoning Plus trade strengths across price, capabilities, and technical limits. The better choice depends on the workload.
Based on current LLM Stats indexes, shared benchmarks, pricing, and model metadata for 2026.
Choose DeepSeek-R1
- you want predictable pricing at $0.55/M input and $2.19/M output
Choose Phi 4 Reasoning Plus
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Apr 2025
At a glance
The differences that matter most.
Individual benchmarks
0 reported for DeepSeek-R1 · 11 for Phi 4 Reasoning Plus
DeepSeek-R1 and Phi 4 Reasoning Plusdon't have any common benchmark datasets to compare. They may have been evaluated on different testing suites.
Human preference
Blind head-to-head votes and playground preference scores
Model Size
Parameter count comparison
DeepSeek-R1 has 657.0B more parameters than Phi 4 Reasoning Plus, making it 4692.9% larger.
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Only DeepSeek-R1 specifies input context (131,072 tokens). Only DeepSeek-R1 specifies output context (131,072 tokens).
License
Usage and distribution terms
Both models are licensed under MIT.
Both models share the same licensing terms, providing consistent usage rights.
MIT
Open weights
MIT
Open weights
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
DeepSeek-R1 was released on 2025-01-20, while Phi 4 Reasoning Plus was released on 2025-04-30.
Phi 4 Reasoning Plus is 3 months newer than DeepSeek-R1.
Jan 20, 2025
1.7 years ago
Apr 30, 2025
1.4 years ago
3mo newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
Phi 4 Reasoning Plus has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2025-03-01, while DeepSeek-R1's cutoff date is not specified.
We can confirm Phi 4 Reasoning Plus's training data extends to 2025-03-01, but cannot make a direct comparison without DeepSeek-R1's cutoff date.
—
Mar 2025
Outputs Comparison
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against DeepSeek-R1 and Phi 4 Reasoning Plus side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
FAQ
Common questions about DeepSeek-R1 vs Phi 4 Reasoning Plus.