| Signal | Grok 3 Mini | Delta | Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct |
|---|---|---|---|
Capabilities | 83 | +33 | |
Benchmarks | 77 | +10 | |
Pricing | 1 | -1 | |
Context window size | 81 | -5 | |
Recency | 80 | -17 | |
Output Capacity | 20 | -- | |
| Overall Result | 2 wins | of 6 | 3 wins |
13
days higher
0
days
17
days higher
xAI
Alibaba
Grok 3 Mini saves you $9.00/month
That's $108.00/year compared to Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct at your current usage level of 100K calls/month.
| Metric | Grok 3 Mini | Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall Score | 70 | 70 | Grok 3 Mini |
| Rank | #160 | #162 | Grok 3 Mini |
| Quality Rank | #160 | #162 | Grok 3 Mini |
| Adoption Rank | #160 | #162 | Grok 3 Mini |
| Parameters | -- | 80B | -- |
| Context Window | 131K | 262K | Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct |
| Pricing | $0.30/$0.50/M | $0.09/$1.10/M | -- |
| Signal Scores | |||
| Capabilities | 83 | 50 | Grok 3 Mini |
| Benchmarks | 77 | 67 | Grok 3 Mini |
| Pricing | 1 | 1 | Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct |
| Context window size | 81 | 86 | Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct |
| Recency | 80 | 97 | Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct |
| Output Capacity | 20 | 20 | Grok 3 Mini |
Our composite score (0–100) combines six weighted signals: benchmark performance (25%), pricing efficiency (25%), context window size (15%), model recency (15%), output capacity (10%), and capability versatility (10%). Here's what the scores mean for these two models:
Scores 70/100 (rank #160), placing it in the top 45% of all 290 models tracked.
Scores 70/100 (rank #162), placing it in the top 44% of all 290 models tracked.
With only a 0-point gap, these models are in the same performance tier. The practical difference in output quality is minimal - your choice should depend on pricing, latency requirements, and specific feature needs.
Grok 3 Mini offers 33% better value per quality point. At 1M tokens/day, you'd spend $12.00/month with Grok 3 Mini vs $17.85/month with Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct - a $5.85 monthly difference.
Both models have comparable response speeds. For most applications, the latency difference is negligible.
When latency matters most: Interactive chatbots, IDE code completion, real-time translation, and user-facing applications where response time directly impacts experience. For batch processing, background summarization, or offline analysis, latency is less critical.
Code generation & review
Higher benchmark score (0/100) indicates stronger performance on coding tasks like generating functions, debugging, and refactoring
Customer support chatbot
Faster response time (speed score 0/100) is critical for user-facing chat. Grok 3 Mini also offers lower per-token costs for high-volume support
Long document analysis
Larger context window (262K tokens) can process longer documents, contracts, and research papers in a single pass
Batch data extraction
Lower output pricing ($0.50/M) reduces costs when processing thousands of records daily
Creative writing & content
Higher overall composite score (70/100) correlates with better nuance, coherence, and style in long-form content
Grok 3 Mini and Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct are extremely close in overall performance (only 0.29999999999999716 points apart). Your best choice depends entirely on which specific strengths matter most for your use case.
Best for Quality
Grok 3 Mini
Marginally better benchmark scores; both are excellent
Best for Cost
Grok 3 Mini
33% lower pricing; better value at scale
Best for Reliability
Grok 3 Mini
Higher uptime and faster response speeds
Best for Prototyping
Grok 3 Mini
Stronger community support and better developer experience
Best for Production
Grok 3 Mini
Wider enterprise adoption and proven at scale
by xAI
| Capability | Grok 3 Mini | Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct |
|---|---|---|
| Vision (Image Input) | ||
| Function Calling | ||
| Streaming | ||
| JSON Mode | ||
| Reasoningdiffers | ||
| Web Searchdiffers | ||
| Image Output |
xAI
Alibaba
Grok 3 Mini saves you $0.3420/month
That's 23% cheaper than Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct at 1,000 tokens/request and 100 requests/day.
Assumes 60% input / 40% output token ratio per request. Actual costs may vary based on your usage pattern.
| Parameter | Grok 3 Mini | Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct |
|---|---|---|
| Context Window | 131K | 262K |
| Max Output Tokens | -- | -- |
| Open Source | No | Yes |
| Created | Jun 10, 2025 | Sep 11, 2025 |
Grok 3 Mini scores 70/100 (rank #160) compared to Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct's 70/100 (rank #162), giving it a 0-point advantage. Grok 3 Mini is the stronger overall choice, though Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct may excel in specific areas like certain benchmarks.
Grok 3 Mini is ranked #160 and Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct is ranked #162 out of 290+ AI models. Rankings use a composite score combining benchmark performance (25%), pricing (25%), context window (15%), recency (15%), output capacity (10%), and versatility (10%). Scores update hourly.
Grok 3 Mini is cheaper at $0.50/M output tokens vs Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct's $1.10/M output tokens - 2.2x more expensive. Input token pricing: Grok 3 Mini at $0.30/M vs Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct at $0.09/M.
Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct has a larger context window of 262,144 tokens compared to Grok 3 Mini's 131,072 tokens. A larger context window means the model can process longer documents and conversations.