MiniMax M3.1 Flash vs Pixtral-12B
MiniMax M3.1 Flash leads the LLM Stats Score 48.5 to -1.9. Pixtral-12B is 1.7x cheaper per token.
MiniMax · Mistral AI · Updated for 2026
Which is better?
MiniMax M3.1 Flash leads the overall LLM Stats Score 48.5 to -1.9, ranking #29 overall.
On price, Pixtral-12B is roughly 1.7x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
MiniMax M3.1 Flash also accepts a larger context window (1,000,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.
Based on current LLM Stats indexes, shared benchmarks, pricing, and model metadata for 2026.
Choose MiniMax M3.1 Flash
- overall performance matters — it scores 48.5 and ranks #29 on LLM Stats
- your work emphasizes reasoning and coding — it leads those capability indexes
- you process long inputs — it offers a 1,000,000 token context window
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Oct 2026
Choose Pixtral-12B
- cost matters — it's about 1.7x cheaper per token
- you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune
At a glance
The differences that matter most.
Capability indexes
Additional strengths measured across groups of related public benchmarks
Individual benchmarks
14 reported for MiniMax M3.1 Flash · 12 for Pixtral-12B
MiniMax M3.1 Flash and Pixtral-12Bdon't have any common benchmark datasets to compare. They may have been evaluated on different testing suites.
Human preference
Blind head-to-head votes and playground preference scores
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, MiniMax M3.1 Flash ($0.15/1M tokens) costs the same as Pixtral-12B ($0.15/1M tokens).
For output processing, MiniMax M3.1 Flash ($0.60/1M tokens) is 4.0x more expensive than Pixtral-12B ($0.15/1M tokens).
In conclusion, MiniMax M3.1 Flash is more expensive than Pixtral-12B.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
MiniMax M3.1 Flash accepts 1,000,000 input tokens compared to Pixtral-12B's 128,000 tokens. MiniMax M3.1 Flash can generate longer responses up to 524,288 tokens, while Pixtral-12B is limited to 8,192 tokens.
Input capabilities
Documented input modalities across available providers
Both MiniMax M3.1 Flash and Pixtral-12B support multimodal inputs.
They are both capable of processing various types of data, offering versatility in application.
MiniMax M3.1 Flash
Pixtral-12B
License
Usage and distribution terms
MiniMax M3.1 Flash is licensed under a proprietary license, while Pixtral-12B uses Apache 2.0.
License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.
Proprietary
Closed source
Apache 2.0
Open weights
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
MiniMax M3.1 Flash was released on 2026-10-19, while Pixtral-12B was released on 2024-09-17.
MiniMax M3.1 Flash is 25 months newer than Pixtral-12B.
Oct 19, 2026
1 days ago
2.1yr newerSep 17, 2024
2.1 years 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 M3.1 Flash is available from MiniMax. Pixtral-12B is available from Mistral AI.
MiniMax M3.1 Flash
Pixtral-12B
Outputs Comparison
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against MiniMax M3.1 Flash and Pixtral-12B side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
FAQ
Common questions about MiniMax M3.1 Flash vs Pixtral-12B.