Model Comparison
Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base vs Qwen3 30B A3BWhich is better in 2026?
Qwen3 30B A3B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base and Qwen3 30B A3B cost the same.
Verdict: Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base vs Qwen3 30B A3B — which is better?
Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base (by Mistral AI) and Qwen3 30B A3B (by Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team) 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.
Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Qwen3 30B A3B is better at 1 benchmark (GPQA). Qwen3 30B A3B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Choose Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base if…
- you want predictable pricing at $0.10/M input and $0.30/M output
Choose Qwen3 30B A3B if…
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 1 of 1 shared benchmarks
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Apr 2025
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Qwen3 30B A3B is better at 1 benchmark (GPQA).
Qwen3 30B A3B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Human preference votes
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base ($0.10/1M tokens) costs the same as Qwen3 30B A3B ($0.10/1M tokens).
For output processing, Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base ($0.30/1M tokens) costs the same as Qwen3 30B A3B ($0.30/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base and Qwen3 30B A3B cost the same.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Model Size
Parameter count comparison
Qwen3 30B A3B has 6.5B more parameters than Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base, making it 27.1% larger.
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Both models have the same input context window of 128,000 tokens. Both models can generate responses up to 128,000 tokens.
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base supports multimodal inputs, whereas Qwen3 30B A3B does not.
Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.
Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base
Qwen3 30B A3B
License
Usage and distribution terms
Both models are licensed under Apache 2.0.
Both models share the same licensing terms, providing consistent usage rights.
Apache 2.0
Open weights
Apache 2.0
Open weights
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base was released on 2025-03-17, while Qwen3 30B A3B was released on 2025-04-29.
Qwen3 30B A3B is 1 month newer than Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base.
Mar 17, 2025
1.4 years ago
Apr 29, 2025
1.2 years 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
Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base is available from Mistral AI. Qwen3 30B A3B is available from DeepInfra, Novita, Fireworks.
Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base
Qwen3 30B A3B
Outputs Comparison
Key Takeaways
Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base
View detailsMistral AI
Qwen3 30B A3B
View detailsAlibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Detailed Comparison
Interactive Arena
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base and Qwen3 30B A3B side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
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FAQ
Common questions about Mistral Small 3.1 24B Base vs Qwen3 30B A3B.