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Head-to-head comparison

MiniMax M3 vs Grok 4.6

MiniMax M3 (MiniMax) and Grok 4.6 (xAI) compared on the ModelCap Index, API price, context window, provider availability, weight access and every public benchmark board they share. Figures are the same ones shown on the live rankings; nothing here is a hidden score.

Snapshot as of 17 August 2026

As of 17 August 2026, Grok 4.6 holds the stronger ModelCap Index position (#10 vs #22); MiniMax M3 is 5× cheaper per output token ($1.20/1M vs $6.00/1M); and MiniMax M3 offers the longer context window (1M vs 500K tokens).

Which should you choose?

Choose MiniMax M3 if…

  • API cost matters — $1.20/1M output tokens against $6.00/1M, about 5× cheaper.
  • your workload is prompt-heavy — input tokens cost $0.30/1M against $2.00/1M.
  • you need the longer context window — 1M tokens against 500K.
  • you want provider choice — 12 listed API providers against 1.

Choose Grok 4.6 if…

  • you want the stronger overall ModelCap Index position — #10 against #22 (74.4 vs 65.5 points).
  • Arena coding is your yardstick — 1512 against 1497.
  • Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index is your yardstick — 60.9 against 45.4.
  • you want the more recently listed model — Grok 4.6 was listed 12 August 2026, MiniMax M3 31 May 2026.

MiniMax M3 vs Grok 4.6: specs, pricing and context

Specification comparison of MiniMax M3 and Grok 4.6
FieldMiniMax M3MiniMaxGrok 4.6xAI
ModelCap Index position#22#10
Index score65.574.4
EvidenceMeasuredMeasured
Input price / 1M tokens$0.30$2.00
Output price / 1M tokens$1.20$6.00
Context window1M tokens500K tokens
Max output tokens512K—
API providers listed121
Weight accessRestricted licenseAPI only
Input modalitiesText, Image, VideoText, Image, File
First listed31 May 202612 August 2026
PublisherMiniMaxxAI

Evidence: 4 public benchmark observations across 4 boards · 5 public benchmark observations across 5 boards. Prices are the lowest listed API offer per million tokens observed on the OpenRouter catalogue.

Benchmark scores: MiniMax M3 vs Grok 4.6

Public benchmark boards where MiniMax M3 or Grok 4.6 has a published result
BoardMiniMax M3Grok 4.6Leads
Arena codingArena (LMArena)14971490–150415121485–1538HighGrok 4.6
LMArena AgentLMArena-2.5%-3.4%–-1.7%—Only one result
ARC-AGI-2ARC Prize Foundation—67.1%X-HighOnly one result
ARC-AGI-3ARC Prize Foundation—2.1%X-HighOnly one result
Artificial Analysis Intelligence IndexArtificial Analysis45.4intelligence-index60.9intelligence-indexGrok 4.6

Scores are the sources' own published figures for each model's best evaluated configuration; ModelCap never re-runs a benchmark.

Want a different pairing? Open the interactive comparison tool to swap either model for any current ranked language model.

MiniMax M3 vs Grok 4.6: common questions

Is MiniMax M3 better than Grok 4.6?

Grok 4.6 ranks higher on the ModelCap Index as of 17 August 2026: #10 against #22. That is a capability ranking built from public benchmark evidence with published uncertainty; whether it is "better" for you also depends on price, context and where you can run it.

Is MiniMax M3 cheaper than Grok 4.6?

MiniMax M3 is cheaper on output tokens: $1.20/1M against $6.00/1M. Input tokens are $0.30/1M for MiniMax M3 and $2.00/1M for Grok 4.6. Prices are the lowest listed API offer ModelCap observed, in USD per million tokens.

Which has the bigger context window, MiniMax M3 or Grok 4.6?

MiniMax M3 has the larger context window: 1M tokens against 500K.

Which is better for coding, MiniMax M3 or Grok 4.6?

Arena coding: MiniMax M3 1497, Grok 4.6 1512 — Grok 4.6 leads.

Are MiniMax M3 and Grok 4.6 open-weight models?

MiniMax M3: Restricted license. Grok 4.6: API only. Open weights mean the checkpoint can be downloaded and self-hosted under its licence; API-only models are available solely through hosted endpoints.

Where can I run MiniMax M3 and Grok 4.6?

ModelCap currently lists 12 API providers for MiniMax M3 and 1 for Grok 4.6, from the OpenRouter catalogue snapshot the site serves; each model page lists the providers and their prices.

How current is this MiniMax M3 vs Grok 4.6 comparison?

Every figure comes from the sealed ModelCap dataset published 17 August 2026; the page re-renders within a minute of each data refresh, and the ModelCap Index positions are the same ones shown on the live rankings.

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