Model Comparison

Kimi K2 Base vs Kimi K3Which is better in 2026?

Kimi K3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Verdict: Kimi K2 Base vs Kimi K3 — which is better?

Kimi K2 Base (by Moonshot AI) and Kimi K3 (by Moonshot AI) 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.

Kimi K2 Base outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Kimi K3 is better at 1 benchmark (GPQA). Kimi K3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Choose Kimi K2 Base if…

  • you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune

Choose Kimi K3 if…

  • you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 1 of 1 shared benchmarks
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Jul 2026

Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

1 benchmarks

Kimi K2 Base outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Kimi K3 is better at 1 benchmark (GPQA).

Kimi K3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Fri Jul 24 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Model Size

Parameter count comparison

1800.0B diff

Kimi K3 has 1800.0B more parameters than Kimi K2 Base, making it 180.0% larger.

Moonshot AI
Kimi K2 Base
1.0Tparameters
Moonshot AI
Kimi K3
2.8Tparameters
1000.0B
Kimi K2 Base
2800.0B
Kimi K3

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Only Kimi K3 specifies input context (1,048,576 tokens). Only Kimi K3 specifies output context (1,048,576 tokens).

Moonshot AI
Kimi K2 Base
Input- tokens
Output- tokens
Moonshot AI
Kimi K3
Input1,048,576 tokens
Output1,048,576 tokens
Fri Jul 24 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Kimi K3 supports multimodal inputs, whereas Kimi K2 Base does not.

Kimi K3 can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.

Kimi K2 Base

Text
Images
Audio
Video

Kimi K3

Text
Images
Audio
Video

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Kimi K2 Base was released on 2025-07-11, while Kimi K3 was released on 2026-07-16.

Kimi K3 is 12 months newer than Kimi K2 Base.

Kimi K2 Base

Jul 11, 2025

1.0 years ago

Kimi K3

Jul 16, 2026

1 weeks ago

1.0yr newer

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

Neither model specifies a knowledge cutoff date.

Unable to compare the recency of their training data.

No cutoff dates available

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue discussion→

Key Takeaways

Moonshot AI

No standout differentiators in the data we have for this pair.

Moonshot AI
Larger context window (1,048,576 tokens)
Supports multimodal inputs
Higher GPQA score (93.5% vs 48.1%)

Detailed Comparison

Interactive Arena

Judge for yourself.

Run your own prompts against Kimi K2 Base and Kimi K3 side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.

Kimi K2 Base
✓ Preferred
Kimi K3
Open in Playground
AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
Moonshot AI
Kimi K2 Base
Moonshot AI
Kimi K3

FAQ

Common questions about Kimi K2 Base vs Kimi K3.

Which is better, Kimi K2 Base or Kimi K3?

Kimi K3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Kimi K2 Base is made by Moonshot AI and Kimi K3 is made by Moonshot AI. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does Kimi K2 Base compare to Kimi K3 in benchmarks?

Kimi K2 Base scores C-Eval: 92.5%, GSM8k: 92.1%, MMLU-redux-2.0: 90.2%, MMLU: 87.8%, TriviaQA: 85.1%. Kimi K3 scores MathVision: 97.8%, DeepSearchQA: 95.0%, GPQA: 93.5%, CharXiv-R: 91.3%, BrowseComp: 91.2%.

What are the context window sizes for Kimi K2 Base and Kimi K3?

Kimi K2 Base supports an unknown number of tokens and Kimi K3 supports 1.0M tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.

What are the main differences between Kimi K2 Base and Kimi K3?

Key differences include multimodal support (no vs yes), licensing (MIT vs Unknown). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

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