Model Comparison
MiniMax M3 vs Kimi K3Which is better in 2026?
Kimi K3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. MiniMax M3 is 11.4x cheaper per token.
Verdict: MiniMax M3 vs Kimi K3 — which is better?
MiniMax M3 (by MiniMax) 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.
MiniMax M3 outperforms in 1 benchmarks (PostTrainBench), while Kimi K3 is better at 7 benchmarks (APEX-Agents, BrowseComp, GDPval-AA, MCP Atlas, MMMU-Pro, OfficeQA Pro, Terminal-Bench 2.1). Kimi K3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
On price, MiniMax M3 is roughly 11.4x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
Kimi K3 also accepts a larger context window (1,048,576 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.
Choose MiniMax M3 if…
- cost matters — it's about 11.4x cheaper per token
- you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune
Choose Kimi K3 if…
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 7 of 8 shared benchmarks
- you process long inputs — it offers a 1,048,576 token context window
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Jul 2026
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
MiniMax M3 outperforms in 1 benchmarks (PostTrainBench), while Kimi K3 is better at 7 benchmarks (APEX-Agents, BrowseComp, GDPval-AA, MCP Atlas, MMMU-Pro, OfficeQA Pro, Terminal-Bench 2.1).
Kimi K3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Human preference votes
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, MiniMax M3 ($0.30/1M tokens) is 10.0x cheaper than Kimi K3 ($3.00/1M tokens).
For output processing, MiniMax M3 ($1.20/1M tokens) is 12.5x cheaper than Kimi K3 ($15.00/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Kimi K3 is more expensive than MiniMax M3.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Kimi K3 accepts 1,048,576 input tokens compared to MiniMax M3's 512,000 tokens. Kimi K3 can generate longer responses up to 1,048,576 tokens, while MiniMax M3 is limited to 131,072 tokens.
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
Both MiniMax M3 and Kimi K3 support multimodal inputs.
They are both capable of processing various types of data, offering versatility in application.
MiniMax M3
Kimi K3
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
MiniMax M3 was released on 2026-06-01, while Kimi K3 was released on 2026-07-16.
Kimi K3 is 2 months newer than MiniMax M3.
Jun 1, 2026
1 months ago
Jul 16, 2026
1 days ago
1mo newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
Neither model specifies a knowledge cutoff date.
Unable to compare the recency of their training data.
Provider Availability
MiniMax M3 is available from Fireworks, Novita, Together, MiniMax. Kimi K3 is available from Moonshot AI.
MiniMax M3
Kimi K3
Outputs Comparison
Key Takeaways
MiniMax M3
View detailsMiniMax
Kimi K3
View detailsMoonshot AI
Detailed Comparison
Interactive Arena
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against MiniMax M3 and Kimi K3 side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
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FAQ
Common questions about MiniMax M3 vs Kimi K3.