DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731 vs Mercury 3
DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731 leads the LLM Stats Score 43.0 to 36.1. DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731 is 1.8x cheaper per token.
DeepSeek · Inception · Updated for 2026
Which is better?
DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731 leads the overall LLM Stats Score 43.0 to 36.1, ranking #57 overall.
On price, DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731 is roughly 1.8x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731 also accepts a larger context window (1,048,576 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.
Based on current LLM Stats indexes, shared benchmarks, pricing, and model metadata for 2026.
Choose DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731
- overall performance matters — it scores 43.0 and ranks #57 on LLM Stats
- cost matters — it's about 1.8x cheaper per token
- you process long inputs — it offers a 1,048,576 token context window
- you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune
Choose Mercury 3
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Oct 2026
At a glance
The differences that matter most.
Individual benchmarks
9 reported for DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731 · 12 for Mercury 3
DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731 and Mercury 3don'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
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731 ($0.06/1M tokens) is 1.7x cheaper than Mercury 3 ($0.10/1M tokens).
For output processing, DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731 ($0.18/1M tokens) is 1.9x cheaper than Mercury 3 ($0.35/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Mercury 3 is more expensive than DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731 accepts 1,048,576 input tokens compared to Mercury 3's 1,000,000 tokens. DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731 can generate longer responses up to 1,048,576 tokens, while Mercury 3 is limited to 131,072 tokens.
License
Usage and distribution terms
DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731 is licensed under MIT, while Mercury 3 uses a proprietary license.
License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.
MIT
Open weights
Proprietary
Closed source
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731 was released on 2026-07-31, while Mercury 3 was released on 2026-10-19.
Mercury 3 is 3 months newer than DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731.
Jul 31, 2026
2 months ago
Oct 19, 2026
3 days ago
2mo newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
Neither model specifies a knowledge cutoff date.
Unable to compare the recency of their training data.
Provider Availability
DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731 is available from DeepInfra, Novita, Fireworks. Mercury 3 is available from Inception.
DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731
Mercury 3
Outputs Comparison
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731 and Mercury 3 side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
FAQ
Common questions about DeepSeek-V4-Flash-0731 vs Mercury 3.