Model Comparison
Grok-3 vs o3-miniWhich is better in 2026?
Grok-3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. o3-mini is 3.1x cheaper per token.
Verdict: Grok-3 vs o3-mini — which is better?
Grok-3 (by xAI) and o3-mini (by OpenAI) 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 2 benchmarks (AIME 2024, GPQA), while o3-mini is better at 0 benchmarks. Grok-3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
On price, o3-mini is roughly 3.1x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
o3-mini 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 2 of 2 shared benchmarks
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Feb 2025
Choose o3-mini if…
- cost matters — it's about 3.1x cheaper per token
- you process long inputs — it offers a 200,000 token context window
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
Grok-3 outperforms in 2 benchmarks (AIME 2024, GPQA), while o3-mini 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 2.7x more expensive than o3-mini ($1.10/1M tokens).
For output processing, Grok-3 ($15.00/1M tokens) is 3.4x more expensive than o3-mini ($4.40/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Grok-3 is more expensive than o3-mini.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
o3-mini accepts 200,000 input tokens compared to Grok-3's 128,000 tokens. o3-mini can generate longer responses up to 100,000 tokens, while Grok-3 is limited to 8,000 tokens.
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
Grok-3 supports multimodal inputs, whereas o3-mini does not.
Grok-3 can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.
Grok-3
o3-mini
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 was released on 2025-02-17, while o3-mini was released on 2025-01-30.
Grok-3 is 1 month newer than o3-mini.
Feb 17, 2025
1.4 years ago
2w newerJan 30, 2025
1.4 years ago
Knowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
Grok-3 has a knowledge cutoff of 2024-11-17, while o3-mini has a cutoff of 2023-09-30.
Grok-3 has more recent training data (up to 2024-11-17), making it potentially better informed about events through that date compared to o3-mini (2023-09-30).
Nov 2024
1.2 yr newerSep 2023
Provider Availability
Grok-3 is available from xAI. o3-mini is available from Azure, OpenAI.
Grok-3
o3-mini
Outputs Comparison
Key Takeaways
o3-mini
View detailsOpenAI
Grok-3o3-miniDetailed Comparison
Interactive Arena
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against Grok-3 and o3-mini side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
FAQ
Common questions about Grok-3 vs o3-mini.