Mistral Small 4 vs Nova 2 Sonic
Mistral Small 4 and Nova 2 Sonic are closely matched at 19.1 and 9.2 on the LLM Stats Score. Mistral Small 4 is 3.6x cheaper per token.
Mistral AI · Amazon · Updated for 2026
Which is better?
Mistral Small 4 and Nova 2 Sonic are closely matched on the overall LLM Stats Score at 19.1 and 9.2.
In the 1 individual benchmarks reported for both models, Mistral Small 4 wins 1; this is a narrower head-to-head signal than the composite indexes.
On price, Mistral Small 4 is roughly 3.6x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
Nova 2 Sonic 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 Mistral Small 4
- you value its reported benchmark strengths — it wins 1 of 1 exact shared results
- cost matters — it's about 3.6x cheaper per token
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Mar 2026
- you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune
Choose Nova 2 Sonic
- you process long inputs — it offers a 1,000,000 token context window
At a glance
The differences that matter most.
Individual benchmarks
9 reported for Mistral Small 4 · 4 for Nova 2 Sonic
Mistral Small 4 outperforms in 1 benchmarks (IFBench), while Nova 2 Sonic is better at 0 benchmarks.
Mistral Small 4 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Human preference
Blind head-to-head votes and playground preference scores
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, Mistral Small 4 ($0.15/1M tokens) is 2.2x cheaper than Nova 2 Sonic ($0.33/1M tokens).
For output processing, Mistral Small 4 ($0.60/1M tokens) is 4.6x cheaper than Nova 2 Sonic ($2.75/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Nova 2 Sonic is more expensive than Mistral Small 4.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Nova 2 Sonic accepts 1,000,000 input tokens compared to Mistral Small 4's 256,000 tokens. Mistral Small 4 can generate longer responses up to 256,000 tokens, while Nova 2 Sonic is limited to 65,536 tokens.
Input capabilities
Documented input modalities across available providers
Both Mistral Small 4 and Nova 2 Sonic support multimodal inputs.
They are both capable of processing various types of data, offering versatility in application.
Mistral Small 4
Nova 2 Sonic
License
Usage and distribution terms
Mistral Small 4 is licensed under Apache 2.0, while Nova 2 Sonic uses a proprietary license.
License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.
Apache 2.0
Open weights
Proprietary
Closed source
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
Mistral Small 4 was released on 2026-03-16, while Nova 2 Sonic was released on 2025-12-02.
Mistral Small 4 is 3 months newer than Nova 2 Sonic.
Mar 16, 2026
5 months ago
3mo newerDec 2, 2025
9 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
Mistral Small 4 is available from Mistral AI. Nova 2 Sonic is available from Bedrock.
Mistral Small 4
Nova 2 Sonic
Outputs Comparison
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against Mistral Small 4 and Nova 2 Sonic side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
FAQ
Common questions about Mistral Small 4 vs Nova 2 Sonic.