Model Comparison
Grok-3 vs DeepSeek-R1-0528Which is better in 2026?
Grok-3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. DeepSeek-R1-0528 is 6.6x cheaper per token.
Verdict: Grok-3 vs DeepSeek-R1-0528 — which is better?
Grok-3 (by xAI) and DeepSeek-R1-0528 (by DeepSeek) 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 4 benchmarks (AIME 2024, AIME 2025, GPQA, LiveCodeBench), while DeepSeek-R1-0528 is better at 0 benchmarks. Grok-3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
On price, DeepSeek-R1-0528 is roughly 6.6x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
DeepSeek-R1-0528 also accepts a larger context window (131,072 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 4 of 4 shared benchmarks
Choose DeepSeek-R1-0528 if…
- cost matters — it's about 6.6x cheaper per token
- you process long inputs — it offers a 131,072 token context window
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped May 2025
- you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
Grok-3 outperforms in 4 benchmarks (AIME 2024, AIME 2025, GPQA, LiveCodeBench), while DeepSeek-R1-0528 is better at 0 benchmarks.
Grok-3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Human preference votes
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, Grok-3 ($3.00/1M tokens) is 6.0x more expensive than DeepSeek-R1-0528 ($0.50/1M tokens).
For output processing, Grok-3 ($15.00/1M tokens) is 7.0x more expensive than DeepSeek-R1-0528 ($2.15/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Grok-3 is more expensive than DeepSeek-R1-0528.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
DeepSeek-R1-0528 accepts 131,072 input tokens compared to Grok-3's 128,000 tokens. DeepSeek-R1-0528 can generate longer responses up to 131,072 tokens, while Grok-3 is limited to 8,000 tokens.
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
Grok-3 supports multimodal inputs, whereas DeepSeek-R1-0528 does not.
Grok-3 can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.
Grok-3
DeepSeek-R1-0528
License
Usage and distribution terms
Grok-3 is licensed under a proprietary license, while DeepSeek-R1-0528 uses MIT.
License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.
Proprietary
Closed source
MIT
Open weights
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
Grok-3 was released on 2025-02-17, while DeepSeek-R1-0528 was released on 2025-05-28.
DeepSeek-R1-0528 is 3 months newer than Grok-3.
Feb 17, 2025
1.3 years ago
May 28, 2025
1.0 years ago
3mo newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
Grok-3 has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2024-11-17, while DeepSeek-R1-0528'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 DeepSeek-R1-0528's cutoff date.
Nov 2024
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Provider Availability
Grok-3 is available from xAI. DeepSeek-R1-0528 is available from DeepInfra, DeepSeek, Novita.
Grok-3
DeepSeek-R1-0528
Outputs Comparison
Key Takeaways
DeepSeek-R1-0528
View detailsDeepSeek
Grok-3DeepSeek-R1-0528Detailed Comparison
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FAQ
Common questions about Grok-3 vs DeepSeek-R1-0528.