Model Comparison
MiniMax M3 vs Mistral Medium 3.5Which is better in 2026?
MiniMax M3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. MiniMax M3 is 5.7x cheaper per token.
Verdict: MiniMax M3 vs Mistral Medium 3.5 — which is better?
MiniMax M3 (by MiniMax) and Mistral Medium 3.5 (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.
MiniMax M3 outperforms in 4 benchmarks (BrowseComp, Finance Agent v2, GDPval-AA, SWE-Bench Verified), while Mistral Medium 3.5 is better at 0 benchmarks. MiniMax M3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
On price, MiniMax M3 is roughly 5.7x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
MiniMax M3 also accepts a larger context window (512,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.
Choose MiniMax M3 if…
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 4 of 4 shared benchmarks
- cost matters — it's about 5.7x cheaper per token
- you process long inputs — it offers a 512,000 token context window
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Jun 2026
Choose Mistral Medium 3.5 if…
- you want predictable pricing at $1.50/M input and $7.50/M output
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
MiniMax M3 outperforms in 4 benchmarks (BrowseComp, Finance Agent v2, GDPval-AA, SWE-Bench Verified), while Mistral Medium 3.5 is better at 0 benchmarks.
MiniMax M3 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 5.0x cheaper than Mistral Medium 3.5 ($1.50/1M tokens).
For output processing, MiniMax M3 ($1.20/1M tokens) is 6.3x cheaper than Mistral Medium 3.5 ($7.50/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Mistral Medium 3.5 is more expensive than MiniMax M3.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
MiniMax M3 accepts 512,000 input tokens compared to Mistral Medium 3.5's 256,000 tokens. Mistral Medium 3.5 can generate longer responses up to 256,000 tokens, while MiniMax M3 is limited to 131,072 tokens.
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
Both MiniMax M3 and Mistral Medium 3.5 support multimodal inputs.
They are both capable of processing various types of data, offering versatility in application.
MiniMax M3
Mistral Medium 3.5
License
Usage and distribution terms
MiniMax M3 is licensed under MIT, while Mistral Medium 3.5 uses Modified MIT License.
License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.
MIT
Open weights
Modified MIT License
Open weights
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
MiniMax M3 was released on 2026-06-01, while Mistral Medium 3.5 was released on 2026-04-29.
MiniMax M3 is 1 month newer than Mistral Medium 3.5.
Jun 1, 2026
1 months ago
1mo newerApr 29, 2026
2 months ago
Knowledge 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. Mistral Medium 3.5 is available from Mistral AI.
MiniMax M3
Mistral Medium 3.5
Outputs Comparison
Key Takeaways
MiniMax M3
View detailsMiniMax
Mistral Medium 3.5
View detailsMistral AI
No standout differentiators in the data we have for this pair.
Detailed Comparison
Interactive Arena
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against MiniMax M3 and Mistral Medium 3.5 side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
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FAQ
Common questions about MiniMax M3 vs Mistral Medium 3.5.