Model Comparison

o3-mini vs DeepSeek R1 ZeroWhich is better in 2026?

o3-mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Verdict: o3-mini vs DeepSeek R1 Zero — which is better?

o3-mini (by OpenAI) and DeepSeek R1 Zero (by DeepSeek) 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.

o3-mini outperforms in 2 benchmarks (AIME 2024, GPQA), while DeepSeek R1 Zero is better at 0 benchmarks. o3-mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Choose o3-mini if…

  • you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 2 of 2 shared benchmarks
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Jan 2025

Choose DeepSeek R1 Zero if…

  • you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune
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Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

2 benchmarks

o3-mini outperforms in 2 benchmarks (AIME 2024, GPQA), while DeepSeek R1 Zero is better at 0 benchmarks.

o3-mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Fri Jun 12 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Only o3-mini specifies input context (200,000 tokens). Only o3-mini specifies output context (100,000 tokens).

OpenAI
o3-mini
Input200,000 tokens
Output100,000 tokens
DeepSeek
DeepSeek R1 Zero
Input- tokens
Output- tokens
Fri Jun 12 2026 • llm-stats.com

License

Usage and distribution terms

o3-mini is licensed under a proprietary license, while DeepSeek R1 Zero uses MIT.

License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.

o3-mini

Proprietary

Closed source

DeepSeek R1 Zero

MIT

Open weights

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

o3-mini was released on 2025-01-30, while DeepSeek R1 Zero was released on 2025-01-20.

o3-mini is 0 month newer than DeepSeek R1 Zero.

o3-mini

Jan 30, 2025

1.4 years ago

1w newer
DeepSeek R1 Zero

Jan 20, 2025

1.4 years ago

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

o3-mini has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2023-09-30, while DeepSeek R1 Zero's cutoff date is not specified.

We can confirm o3-mini's training data extends to 2023-09-30, but cannot make a direct comparison without DeepSeek R1 Zero's cutoff date.

o3-mini

Sep 2023

DeepSeek R1 Zero

—

Outputs Comparison

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Key Takeaways

OpenAI
Larger context window (200,000 tokens)
Higher AIME 2024 score (87.3% vs 86.7%)
Higher GPQA score (77.2% vs 73.3%)
DeepSeek
Has open weights

Detailed Comparison

AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
OpenAI
o3-mini
DeepSeek
DeepSeek R1 Zero

FAQ

Common questions about o3-mini vs DeepSeek R1 Zero.

Which is better, o3-mini or DeepSeek R1 Zero?

o3-mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. o3-mini is made by OpenAI and DeepSeek R1 Zero is made by DeepSeek. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does o3-mini compare to DeepSeek R1 Zero in benchmarks?

o3-mini scores COLLIE: 98.7%, MATH: 97.9%, IFEval: 93.9%, MGSM: 92.0%, AIME 2024: 87.3%. DeepSeek R1 Zero scores MATH-500: 95.9%, AIME 2024: 86.7%, GPQA: 73.3%, LiveCodeBench: 50.0%.

What are the context window sizes for o3-mini and DeepSeek R1 Zero?

o3-mini supports 200K tokens and DeepSeek R1 Zero supports an unknown number of tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.

What are the main differences between o3-mini and DeepSeek R1 Zero?

Key differences include licensing (Proprietary vs MIT). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes o3-mini and DeepSeek R1 Zero?

o3-mini is developed by OpenAI and DeepSeek R1 Zero is developed by DeepSeek.

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