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DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max vs Inkling 2 Small

Inkling 2 Small leads the LLM Stats Score 47.1 to 38.5. DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max is 4.2x cheaper per token.

DeepSeek · Thinking Machines Lab · Updated for 2026

Which is better?

Inkling 2 Small leads the overall LLM Stats Score 47.1 to 38.5, ranking #41 overall.

In the 5 individual benchmarks reported for both models, Inkling 2 Small wins 4; this is a narrower head-to-head signal than the composite indexes.

On price, DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max is roughly 4.2x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.

DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max 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-Max

  • cost matters — it's about 4.2x 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 Inkling 2 Small

  • overall performance matters — it scores 47.1 and ranks #41 on LLM Stats
  • your work emphasizes reasoning and coding — it leads those capability indexes
  • you value its reported benchmark strengths — it wins 4 of 5 exact shared results
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Nov 2026

At a glance

The differences that matter most.

DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max
DeepSeek
Inkling 2 Small
Thinking Machines Lab
Core performance indexes
LLM Stats Score
38.5
#86
47.1
#41
Reasoning
39.3
#81
47.8
#26
Coding
28.3
#80
36.2
#35
Agents
17.7
#102
33.3
#39
Cost, coverage & limits
Benchmark wins
1 of 5
4 of 5
Input price
$0.09 / M
$0.30 / M
Output price
$0.18 / M
$1.00 / M
Context window
1,048,576
256,000

Capability indexes

Additional strengths measured across groups of related public benchmarks

1 shared
Index
DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max
Inkling 2 Small
Tool use
16.8#100
28.3#28
Conservative TrueSkill rating · higher is betterHow scores work

Individual benchmarks

19 reported for DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max · 11 for Inkling 2 Small

5 shared

DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max outperforms in 1 benchmarks (Humanity's Last Exam), while Inkling 2 Small is better at 4 benchmarks (BrowseComp, GPQA, MCP Atlas, SWE-Bench Verified).

Inkling 2 Small significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Wed Nov 11 2026 • llm-stats.com

Human preference

Blind head-to-head votes and playground preference scores

Pricing Analysis

Price comparison per million tokens

DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max costs less

For input processing, DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max ($0.09/1M tokens) is 3.3x cheaper than Inkling 2 Small ($0.30/1M tokens).

For output processing, DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max ($0.18/1M tokens) is 5.6x cheaper than Inkling 2 Small ($1.00/1M tokens).

In conclusion, Inkling 2 Small is more expensive than DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max.*

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

Lowest available price from all providers
Wed Nov 11 2026 • llm-stats.com
DeepSeek
DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max
Input tokens$0.09
Output tokens$0.18
Best providerDeepinfra
Thinking Machines Lab
Inkling 2 Small
Input tokens$0.30
Output tokens$1.00
Best providerUnknown Organization
Notice missing or incorrect data?

Model Size

Parameter count comparison

310.0B diff

Inkling 2 Small has 310.0B more parameters than DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max, making it 109.2% larger.

DeepSeek
DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max
284.0Bparameters
Thinking Machines Lab
Inkling 2 Small
594.0Bparameters
284.0B
DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max
594.0B
Inkling 2 Small

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max accepts 1,048,576 input tokens compared to Inkling 2 Small's 256,000 tokens. Only DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max specifies output context (1,048,576 tokens).

DeepSeek
DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max
Input1,048,576 tokens
Output1,048,576 tokens
Thinking Machines Lab
Inkling 2 Small
Input256,000 tokens
Output- tokens
Wed Nov 11 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input capabilities

Documented input modalities across available providers

Inkling 2 Small supports multimodal inputs, whereas DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max does not.

Inkling 2 Small can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.

DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max

Text
Images
Audio
Video

Inkling 2 Small

Text
Images
Audio
Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max is licensed under MIT, while Inkling 2 Small uses a proprietary license.

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

DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max

MIT

Open weights

Inkling 2 Small

Proprietary

Closed source

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max was released on 2026-04-23, while Inkling 2 Small was released on 2026-11-05.

Inkling 2 Small is 7 months newer than DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max.

DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max

Apr 23, 2026

6 months ago

Inkling 2 Small

Nov 5, 2026

4 days ago

6mo newer

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

Neither model specifies a knowledge cutoff date.

Unable to compare the recency of their training data.

No cutoff dates available

Provider Availability

DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max is available from DeepInfra, DeepSeek. Inkling 2 Small is available from Thinking Machines Lab.

DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max

deepinfra logo
Deepinfra
Input Price:Input: $0.09/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.18/1M
deepseek logo
DeepSeek
Input Price:Input: $0.14/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.28/1M

Inkling 2 Small

thinking-machines logo
Unknown Organization
Input Price:Input: $0.30/1MOutput Price:Output: $1.00/1M
* Prices shown are per million tokens

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?

Judge for yourself.

Run your own prompts against DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max and Inkling 2 Small side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.

DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max
✓ Preferred
Inkling 2 Small
Open in Playground

FAQ

Common questions about DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max vs Inkling 2 Small.

Which is better, DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max or Inkling 2 Small?

Inkling 2 Small leads the LLM Stats Score 47.1 to 38.5. DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max is made by DeepSeek and Inkling 2 Small is made by Thinking Machines Lab. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their capability indexes, individual benchmarks, pricing, and limits above.

How does DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max compare to Inkling 2 Small in benchmarks?

DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max scores CodeForces: 100.0%, HMMT Feb 26: 94.8%, LiveCodeBench: 91.6%, IMO-AnswerBench: 88.4%, GPQA: 88.1%. Inkling 2 Small scores GPQA: 93.0%, BrowseComp: 90.2%, CharXiv-R: 85.6%, MCP Atlas: 85.0%, SWE-Bench Verified: 82.2%.

Is DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max cheaper than Inkling 2 Small?

DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max is 3.3x cheaper for input tokens. DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max costs $0.09/M input and $0.18/M output via deepinfra. Inkling 2 Small costs $0.30/M input and $1.00/M output via thinking-machines.

What are the context window sizes for DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max and Inkling 2 Small?

DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max supports 1.0M tokens and Inkling 2 Small supports 256K tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.

What are the main differences between DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max and Inkling 2 Small?

Key differences include LLM Stats Score (38.5 vs 47.1), context window (1.0M vs 256K), input pricing ($0.09 vs $0.30/M), multimodal support (no vs yes), licensing (MIT vs Proprietary). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max and Inkling 2 Small?

DeepSeek-V4-Flash-Max is developed by DeepSeek and Inkling 2 Small is developed by Thinking Machines Lab.

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