Grok 3 Mini vs O1 Preview

Performance benchmarks + pricing comparison — updated April 2026

Grok 3 Mini

xAI

Cost-effective xAI model for high-volume tasks. Good balance of capability and affordability.

Input$0.300/M
Output$0.500/M
Context128K tokens
Best ForHigh-volume tasks, simple coding, cost-sensitive projects
Benchmark50/100

O1 Preview

OpenAI

OpenAI's first reasoning model. Strong at complex problem solving but expensive.

Input$15.00/M
Output$60.00/M
Context128K tokens
Best ForComplex math, science, algorithm design

Cost Comparison by Scenario

Estimated cost per project with 30% cache hit rate. Actual costs may vary based on usage patterns.

ScenarioGrok 3 MiniO1 PreviewSavings
Small Script (1K lines) $0.03 $2.32 Grok 3 Mini saves $2.30 (99%)
Medium Feature (10K lines) $0.21 $17.25 Grok 3 Mini saves $17.05 (99%)
Large Project (50K lines) $1.02 $86.25 Grok 3 Mini saves $85.22 (99%)
Code Review (5K lines) $0.07 $4.13 Grok 3 Mini saves $4.06 (98%)

Verdict

Grok 3 Mini wins on both price and performance — $0.300/M input with a benchmark score of N/A/100.

For most developers, this is the clear choice between these two models.

Compare with Other Models