Model Comparison

Grok-3 vs Claude 3 SonnetWhich is better in 2026?

Grok-3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Grok-3 and Claude 3 Sonnet cost the same.

Verdict: Grok-3 vs Claude 3 Sonnet — which is better?

Grok-3 (by xAI) and Claude 3 Sonnet (by Anthropic) 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 outperforms in 1 benchmarks (GPQA), while Claude 3 Sonnet is better at 0 benchmarks. Grok-3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Claude 3 Sonnet also accepts a larger context window (200,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.

Choose Grok-3 if…

  • you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 1 of 1 shared benchmarks
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Feb 2025

Choose Claude 3 Sonnet if…

  • you process long inputs — it offers a 200,000 token context window

Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

1 benchmarks

Grok-3 outperforms in 1 benchmarks (GPQA), while Claude 3 Sonnet is better at 0 benchmarks.

Grok-3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Fri Jul 03 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Pricing Analysis

Price comparison per million tokens

For input processing, Grok-3 ($3.00/1M tokens) costs the same as Claude 3 Sonnet ($3.00/1M tokens).

For output processing, Grok-3 ($15.00/1M tokens) costs the same as Claude 3 Sonnet ($15.00/1M tokens).

In conclusion, Grok-3 and Claude 3 Sonnet cost the same.*

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

Lowest available price from all providers
Fri Jul 03 2026 • llm-stats.com
xAI
Grok-3
Input tokens$3.00
Output tokens$15.00
Best providerxAI
Anthropic
Claude 3 Sonnet
Input tokens$3.00
Output tokens$15.00
Best providerAnthropic
Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue→

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Claude 3 Sonnet accepts 200,000 input tokens compared to Grok-3's 128,000 tokens. Claude 3 Sonnet can generate longer responses up to 200,000 tokens, while Grok-3 is limited to 8,000 tokens.

xAI
Grok-3
Input128,000 tokens
Output8,000 tokens
Anthropic
Claude 3 Sonnet
Input200,000 tokens
Output200,000 tokens
Fri Jul 03 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Both Grok-3 and Claude 3 Sonnet support multimodal inputs.

They are both capable of processing various types of data, offering versatility in application.

Grok-3

Text
Images
Audio
Video

Claude 3 Sonnet

Text
Images
Audio
Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

Both models are licensed under proprietary licenses.

Both models have usage restrictions defined by their respective organizations.

Grok-3

Proprietary

Closed source

Claude 3 Sonnet

Proprietary

Closed source

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Grok-3 was released on 2025-02-17, while Claude 3 Sonnet was released on 2024-02-29.

Grok-3 is 12 months newer than Claude 3 Sonnet.

Grok-3

Feb 17, 2025

1.4 years ago

11mo newer
Claude 3 Sonnet

Feb 29, 2024

2.3 years ago

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

Grok-3 has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2024-11-17, while Claude 3 Sonnet's cutoff date is not specified.

We can confirm Grok-3's training data extends to 2024-11-17, but cannot make a direct comparison without Claude 3 Sonnet's cutoff date.

Grok-3

Nov 2024

Claude 3 Sonnet

—

Provider Availability

Grok-3 is available from xAI. Claude 3 Sonnet is available from Anthropic, Bedrock, Google.

Grok-3

xai logo
xAI
Input Price:Input: $3.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $15.00/1M

Claude 3 Sonnet

anthropic logo
Anthropic
Input Price:Input: $3.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $15.00/1M
bedrock logo
AWS Bedrock
Input Price:Input: $3.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $15.00/1M
google logo
Google
Input Price:Input: $3.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $15.00/1M
* Prices shown are per million tokens

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue discussion→

Key Takeaways

xAI
Higher GPQA score (84.6% vs 40.4%)
Anthropic
Larger context window (200,000 tokens)
xAIGrok-3
AnthropicClaude 3 Sonnet
Compare in Playground

Detailed Comparison

Interactive Arena

Judge for yourself.

Run your own prompts against Grok-3 and Claude 3 Sonnet side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.

Grok-3
✓ Preferred
Claude 3 Sonnet
Open in Playground
AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
xAI
Grok-3
Anthropic
Claude 3 Sonnet

FAQ

Common questions about Grok-3 vs Claude 3 Sonnet.

Which is better, Grok-3 or Claude 3 Sonnet?

Grok-3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Grok-3 is made by xAI and Claude 3 Sonnet is made by Anthropic. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does Grok-3 compare to Claude 3 Sonnet in benchmarks?

Grok-3 scores AIME 2024: 93.3%, AIME 2025: 93.3%, GPQA: 84.6%, LiveCodeBench: 79.4%, MMMU: 78.0%. Claude 3 Sonnet scores ARC-C: 93.2%, GSM8k: 92.3%, HellaSwag: 89.0%, MGSM: 83.5%, BIG-Bench Hard: 82.9%.

Is Grok-3 cheaper than Claude 3 Sonnet?

Both models cost $3.00 per million input tokens.

What are the context window sizes for Grok-3 and Claude 3 Sonnet?

Grok-3 supports 128K tokens and Claude 3 Sonnet supports 200K tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.

What are the main differences between Grok-3 and Claude 3 Sonnet?

Key differences include context window (128K vs 200K). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes Grok-3 and Claude 3 Sonnet?

Grok-3 is developed by xAI and Claude 3 Sonnet is developed by Anthropic.

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