Model Comparison

DeepSeek-V3 vs o4-mini

o4-mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. DeepSeek-V3 is 4.0x cheaper per token.

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Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

5 benchmarks

DeepSeek-V3 outperforms in 1 benchmarks (Aider-Polyglot Edit), while o4-mini is better at 4 benchmarks (Aider-Polyglot, AIME 2024, GPQA, SWE-Bench Verified).

o4-mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Fri May 01 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Pricing Analysis

Price comparison per million tokens

DeepSeek-V3 costs less

For input processing, DeepSeek-V3 ($0.27/1M tokens) is 4.1x cheaper than o4-mini ($1.10/1M tokens).

For output processing, DeepSeek-V3 ($1.10/1M tokens) is 4.0x cheaper than o4-mini ($4.40/1M tokens).

In conclusion, o4-mini is more expensive than DeepSeek-V3.*

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

Lowest available price from all providers
Fri May 01 2026 • llm-stats.com
DeepSeek
DeepSeek-V3
Input tokens$0.27
Output tokens$1.10
Best providerDeepSeek
OpenAI
o4-mini
Input tokens$1.10
Output tokens$4.40
Best providerOpenAI
Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue→

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

o4-mini accepts 200,000 input tokens compared to DeepSeek-V3's 131,072 tokens. DeepSeek-V3 can generate longer responses up to 131,072 tokens, while o4-mini is limited to 100,000 tokens.

DeepSeek
DeepSeek-V3
Input131,072 tokens
Output131,072 tokens
OpenAI
o4-mini
Input200,000 tokens
Output100,000 tokens
Fri May 01 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

o4-mini supports multimodal inputs, whereas DeepSeek-V3 does not.

o4-mini can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.

DeepSeek-V3

Text
Images
Audio
Video

o4-mini

Text
Images
Audio
Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

DeepSeek-V3 is licensed under MIT + Model License (Commercial use allowed), while o4-mini uses a proprietary license.

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

DeepSeek-V3

MIT + Model License (Commercial use allowed)

Open weights

o4-mini

Proprietary

Closed source

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

DeepSeek-V3 was released on 2024-12-25, while o4-mini was released on 2025-04-16.

o4-mini is 4 months newer than DeepSeek-V3.

DeepSeek-V3

Dec 25, 2024

1.3 years ago

o4-mini

Apr 16, 2025

1.0 years ago

3mo newer

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

o4-mini has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2024-05-31, while DeepSeek-V3's cutoff date is not specified.

We can confirm o4-mini's training data extends to 2024-05-31, but cannot make a direct comparison without DeepSeek-V3's cutoff date.

DeepSeek-V3

—

o4-mini

May 2024

Provider Availability

DeepSeek-V3 is available from DeepSeek. o4-mini is available from OpenAI.

DeepSeek-V3

deepseek logo
DeepSeek
Input Price:Input: $0.27/1MOutput Price:Output: $1.10/1M

o4-mini

openai logo
OpenAI
Input Price:Input: $1.10/1MOutput Price:Output: $4.40/1M
* Prices shown are per million tokens

Outputs Comparison

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Key Takeaways

DeepSeek
Less expensive input tokens
Less expensive output tokens
Has open weights
Higher Aider-Polyglot Edit score (79.7% vs 58.2%)
OpenAI
Larger context window (200,000 tokens)
Supports multimodal inputs
Higher Aider-Polyglot score (68.9% vs 49.6%)
Higher AIME 2024 score (93.4% vs 39.2%)
Higher GPQA score (81.4% vs 59.1%)
Higher SWE-Bench Verified score (68.1% vs 42.0%)
DeepSeekDeepSeek-V3
OpenAIo4-mini
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Detailed Comparison

AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
DeepSeek
DeepSeek-V3
OpenAI
o4-mini

FAQ

Common questions about DeepSeek-V3 vs o4-mini

o4-mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. DeepSeek-V3 is made by DeepSeek and o4-mini is made by OpenAI. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.
DeepSeek-V3 scores DROP: 91.6%, CLUEWSC: 90.9%, MATH-500: 90.2%, MMLU-Redux: 89.1%, MMLU: 88.5%. o4-mini scores AIME 2024: 93.4%, AIME 2025: 92.7%, MathVista: 84.3%, MMMU: 81.6%, GPQA: 81.4%.
DeepSeek-V3 is 4.1x cheaper for input tokens. DeepSeek-V3 costs $0.27/M input and $1.10/M output via deepseek. o4-mini costs $1.10/M input and $4.40/M output via openai.
DeepSeek-V3 supports 131K tokens and o4-mini supports 200K tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.
Key differences include context window (131K vs 200K), input pricing ($0.27 vs $1.10/M), multimodal support (no vs yes), licensing (MIT + Model License (Commercial use allowed) vs Proprietary). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.
DeepSeek-V3 is developed by DeepSeek and o4-mini is developed by OpenAI.