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Model vs model · live prices

DeepSeek V4.1 Flash vs MiniMax M3

DeepSeek V4.1 Flash is 3.6× cheaper than MiniMax M3 at a 3:1 input:output mix ($0.147 vs $0.525 per million tokens).
Per 1M tokensDeepSeek: DeepSeek V4.1 FlashMiniMax: MiniMax M3
Input$0.03$0.3
Output$0.5$1.20
Cached input$0.01$0.06
Blended 3:1$0.147$0.525
Context window1.0M1.0M
ReleasedSeptember 10, 2026May 31, 2026
Tools · reasoningTools · ReasoningTools · Reasoning

List prices from OpenRouter, refreshed hourly. Lower price and larger context highlighted.

What the same work costs on each

At list price, before batch or caching discounts.
WorkloadDeepSeek V4.1 FlashMiniMax M3Difference
1,000 chat messages
1,000 input + 500 output tokens each
$0.28$0.90$0.62
1,000 RAG questions
8,000 input + 500 output tokens each
$0.49$3.00$2.51
100 coding-agent steps
30,000 input + 2,000 output tokens each, no caching
$0.19$1.14$0.95

Which one should you use?

Price is only half the decision: run both on a sample of your own prompts and compare quality, speed and failure rate. If DeepSeek V4.1 Flash is good enough for a task, it saves $0.62 per thousand chat messages. A common setup is to route easy requests to the cheaper model and keep MiniMax M3 for the hard ones.

Both are available behind one OpenAI-compatible key through OpenRouter or a reseller, so switching is a one-line change. See where credits cost least today and how to cut the token bill.

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Disclosure: this site is run by the team behind smaaart, one of the options compared. Tables are ranked by price only, from live quotes and published fees, including when smaaart isn't first. How we compare