Model Comparison
Grok-3 Mini vs Qwen3 MaxWhich is better in 2026?
Grok-3 Mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Grok-3 Mini is 4.6x cheaper per token.
Verdict: Grok-3 Mini vs Qwen3 Max — which is better?
Grok-3 Mini (by xAI) and Qwen3 Max (by Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team) 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.
Grok-3 Mini outperforms in 2 benchmarks (AIME 2025, GPQA), while Qwen3 Max is better at 0 benchmarks. Grok-3 Mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
On price, Grok-3 Mini is roughly 4.6x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
Qwen3 Max also accepts a larger context window (256,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.
Choose Grok-3 Mini if…
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 2 of 2 shared benchmarks
- cost matters — it's about 4.6x cheaper per token
Choose Qwen3 Max if…
- you process long inputs — it offers a 256,000 token context window
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Dec 2025
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
Grok-3 Mini outperforms in 2 benchmarks (AIME 2025, GPQA), while Qwen3 Max is better at 0 benchmarks.
Grok-3 Mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Human preference votes
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, Grok-3 Mini ($0.30/1M tokens) is 1.7x cheaper than Qwen3 Max ($0.50/1M tokens).
For output processing, Grok-3 Mini ($0.50/1M tokens) is 10.0x cheaper than Qwen3 Max ($5.00/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Qwen3 Max is more expensive than Grok-3 Mini.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Qwen3 Max accepts 256,000 input tokens compared to Grok-3 Mini's 128,000 tokens. Qwen3 Max can generate longer responses up to 131,072 tokens, while Grok-3 Mini is limited to 8,000 tokens.
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
Grok-3 Mini supports multimodal inputs, whereas Qwen3 Max does not.
Grok-3 Mini can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.
Grok-3 Mini
Qwen3 Max
License
Usage and distribution terms
Both models are licensed under proprietary licenses.
Both models have usage restrictions defined by their respective organizations.
Proprietary
Closed source
Proprietary
Closed source
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
Grok-3 Mini was released on 2025-02-17, while Qwen3 Max was released on 2025-12-15.
Qwen3 Max is 10 months newer than Grok-3 Mini.
Feb 17, 2025
1.3 years ago
Dec 15, 2025
6 months ago
10mo newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
Grok-3 Mini has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2024-11-17, while Qwen3 Max's cutoff date is not specified.
We can confirm Grok-3 Mini's training data extends to 2024-11-17, but cannot make a direct comparison without Qwen3 Max's cutoff date.
Nov 2024
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Provider Availability
Grok-3 Mini is available from xAI. Qwen3 Max is available from Novita.
Grok-3 Mini
Qwen3 Max
Outputs Comparison
Key Takeaways
Qwen3 Max
View detailsAlibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Grok-3 Mini
Qwen3 MaxDetailed Comparison
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FAQ
Common questions about Grok-3 Mini vs Qwen3 Max.