Model Comparison

GPT-3.5 Turbo vs Grok-1.5Which is better in 2026?

Grok-1.5 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Verdict: GPT-3.5 Turbo vs Grok-1.5 — which is better?

GPT-3.5 Turbo (by OpenAI) and Grok-1.5 (by xAI) are two of the AI models people compare most. Here is how they stack up on benchmarks, price and capabilities, and which one to pick in 2026.

GPT-3.5 Turbo outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Grok-1.5 is better at 6 benchmarks (GPQA, HumanEval, MATH, MathVista, MMLU, MMMU). Grok-1.5 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Choose GPT-3.5 Turbo if…

  • you want predictable pricing at $0.50/M input and $1.50/M output

Choose Grok-1.5 if…

  • you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 6 of 6 shared benchmarks
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Mar 2024

Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

6 benchmarks

GPT-3.5 Turbo outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Grok-1.5 is better at 6 benchmarks (GPQA, HumanEval, MATH, MathVista, MMLU, MMMU).

Grok-1.5 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Tue Aug 04 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Only GPT-3.5 Turbo specifies input context (16,385 tokens). Only GPT-3.5 Turbo specifies output context (4,096 tokens).

OpenAI
GPT-3.5 Turbo
Input16,385 tokens
Output4,096 tokens
xAI
Grok-1.5
Input- tokens
Output- tokens
Tue Aug 04 2026 • llm-stats.com

License

Usage and distribution terms

Both models are licensed under proprietary licenses.

Both models have usage restrictions defined by their respective organizations.

GPT-3.5 Turbo

Proprietary

Closed source

Grok-1.5

Proprietary

Closed source

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

GPT-3.5 Turbo was released on 2023-03-21, while Grok-1.5 was released on 2024-03-28.

Grok-1.5 is 12 months newer than GPT-3.5 Turbo.

GPT-3.5 Turbo

Mar 21, 2023

3.4 years ago

Grok-1.5

Mar 28, 2024

2.4 years ago

1.0yr newer

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

GPT-3.5 Turbo has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2021-09-30, while Grok-1.5's cutoff date is not specified.

We can confirm GPT-3.5 Turbo's training data extends to 2021-09-30, but cannot make a direct comparison without Grok-1.5's cutoff date.

GPT-3.5 Turbo

Sep 2021

Grok-1.5

—

Outputs Comparison

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Key Takeaways

OpenAI
Larger context window (16,385 tokens)
xAI
Higher GPQA score (35.9% vs 30.8%)
Higher HumanEval score (74.1% vs 68.0%)
Higher MATH score (50.6% vs 43.1%)
Higher MathVista score (52.8% vs 0.0%)
Higher MMLU score (81.3% vs 69.8%)
Higher MMMU score (53.6% vs 0.0%)

Detailed Comparison

Interactive Arena

Judge for yourself.

Run your own prompts against GPT-3.5 Turbo and Grok-1.5 side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.

GPT-3.5 Turbo
✓ Preferred
Grok-1.5
Open in Playground
AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
OpenAI
GPT-3.5 Turbo
xAI
Grok-1.5

FAQ

Common questions about GPT-3.5 Turbo vs Grok-1.5.

Which is better, GPT-3.5 Turbo or Grok-1.5?

Grok-1.5 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. GPT-3.5 Turbo is made by OpenAI and Grok-1.5 is made by xAI. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does GPT-3.5 Turbo compare to Grok-1.5 in benchmarks?

GPT-3.5 Turbo scores DROP: 70.2%, MMLU: 69.8%, HumanEval: 68.0%, MGSM: 56.3%, MATH: 43.1%. Grok-1.5 scores GSM8k: 90.0%, DocVQA: 85.6%, MMLU: 81.3%, HumanEval: 74.1%, MMMU: 53.6%.

What are the context window sizes for GPT-3.5 Turbo and Grok-1.5?

GPT-3.5 Turbo supports 16K tokens and Grok-1.5 supports an unknown number of tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.

Who makes GPT-3.5 Turbo and Grok-1.5?

GPT-3.5 Turbo is developed by OpenAI and Grok-1.5 is developed by xAI.

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