Model Comparison

MiniMax M1 40K vs Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512)Which is better in 2026?

Comparing MiniMax M1 40K and Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512) across benchmarks, pricing, and capabilities.

Verdict: MiniMax M1 40K vs Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512) — which is better?

MiniMax M1 40K (by MiniMax) and Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512) (by Mistral 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.

Choose MiniMax M1 40K if…

  • you are already invested in the MiniMax ecosystem

Choose Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512) if…

  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Dec 2025
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Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

No common benchmarks found

MiniMax M1 40K and Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512)don't have any common benchmark datasets to compare. They may have been evaluated on different testing suites.

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Model Size

Parameter count comparison

453.0B diff

MiniMax M1 40K has 453.0B more parameters than Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512), making it 15100.0% larger.

MiniMax
MiniMax M1 40K
456.0Bparameters
Mistral AI
Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512)
3.0Bparameters
456.0B
MiniMax M1 40K
3.0B
Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512)

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512) supports multimodal inputs, whereas MiniMax M1 40K does not.

Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512) can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.

MiniMax M1 40K

Text
Images
Audio
Video

Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512)

Text
Images
Audio
Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

MiniMax M1 40K is licensed under MIT, while Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512) uses Apache 2.0.

License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.

MiniMax M1 40K

MIT

Open weights

Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512)

Apache 2.0

Open weights

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

MiniMax M1 40K was released on 2025-06-16, while Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512) was released on 2025-12-04.

Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512) is 6 months newer than MiniMax M1 40K.

MiniMax M1 40K

Jun 16, 2025

12 months ago

Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512)

Dec 4, 2025

6 months ago

5mo 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

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Key Takeaways

MiniMax

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

Mistral AI
Supports multimodal inputs

Detailed Comparison

AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
MiniMax
MiniMax M1 40K
Mistral AI
Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512)

FAQ

Common questions about MiniMax M1 40K vs Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512).

Which is better, MiniMax M1 40K or Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512)?

MiniMax M1 40K (MiniMax) and Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512) (Mistral AI) each have strengths in different areas. Compare their benchmark scores, pricing, context windows, and capabilities above to determine which fits your needs.

How does MiniMax M1 40K compare to Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512) in benchmarks?

MiniMax M1 40K scores MATH-500: 96.0%, AIME 2024: 83.3%, MMLU-Pro: 80.6%, ZebraLogic: 80.1%, OpenAI-MRCR: 2 needle 128k: 76.1%. Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512) scores MATH: 83.0%, Wild Bench: 56.8%, Arena Hard: 30.5%, MM-MT-Bench: 7.8%.

What are the main differences between MiniMax M1 40K and Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512)?

Key differences include multimodal support (no vs yes), licensing (MIT vs Apache 2.0). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes MiniMax M1 40K and Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512)?

MiniMax M1 40K is developed by MiniMax and Ministral 3 (3B Instruct 2512) is developed by Mistral AI.

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