Ministral 3 3B 2512 is $0.4 cheaper per 1M input tokens (80% lower; 5x difference).
API cost decision in 10 seconds
R1 0528 vs Ministral 3 3B 2512
Pick Ministral 3 3B 2512 for lower cost; pick R1 0528 only if the larger context window matters more.
Page updated:
Data confirmed:
Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens
Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output
Budget verdict
Pick Ministral 3 3B 2512 for lower cost; pick R1 0528 only if the larger context window matters more.
On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Ministral 3 3B 2512 is estimated at $0.15 vs $1.57 for R1 0528, saving $1.42 (90.5% lower).
Cost-first pickMinistral 3 3B 2512
Context-first pickR1 0528
Sample savings$1.4290.5%
10x traffic gap$14.25
R1 0528 has more context, but Ministral 3 3B 2512 saves $1.42 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $14.25. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.
Cost sensitivity
Workload Sensitivity
Ministral 3 3B 2512 stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.
| Workload shape | Token mix | Better pick | R1 0528 | Ministral 3 3B 2512 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Input-heavy / RAG | 5M input + 500K output | Ministral 3 3B 2512 | $3.58 | $0.55 |
| Balanced workload | 1M input + 1M output | Ministral 3 3B 2512 | $2.65 | $0.2 |
| Output-heavy chatbot | 1M input + 5M output | Ministral 3 3B 2512 | $11.25 | $0.6 |
Ministral 3 3B 2512 is $2.05 cheaper per 1M output tokens (95.3% lower; 21.5x difference).
R1 0528 has 32.77K more context (1.25x larger).
Ministral 3 3B 2512 is $1.42 cheaper on the standard workload (90.5% lower).
Estimate your workload cost
Your Workload Cost
This estimate uses normalized public API pricing per 1M tokens. It is a planning aid, not a billing quote. Verify provider pricing, limits, and terms before production use.
Quick Decision
Ministral 3 3B 2512 has the lower input price; Ministral 3 3B 2512 has the lower output price; R1 0528 offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, Ministral 3 3B 2512 is cheaper for the standard workload.
For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $1.57 for R1 0528 and $0.15 for Ministral 3 3B 2512.
Choose R1 0528 when you care most about larger context window.
Choose Ministral 3 3B 2512 when you care most about lower input-token price, and lower output-token price.
- On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Ministral 3 3B 2512 is estimated at $0.15 vs $1.57 for R1 0528, saving $1.42 (90.5% lower).
- Ministral 3 3B 2512 is $1.42 cheaper on the standard workload (90.5% lower).
- Ministral 3 3B 2512 is $0.4 cheaper per 1M input tokens (80% lower; 5x difference).
- Ministral 3 3B 2512 is $2.05 cheaper per 1M output tokens (95.3% lower; 21.5x difference).
- R1 0528 has 32.77K more context (1.25x larger).
| Feature | R1 0528 (DeepSeek) | Ministral 3 3B 2512 (Mistral) |
|---|---|---|
| Input Price prompt tokens per 1M | $0.5 | $0.1 |
| Completion Price per 1M tokens | $2.15 | $0.1 |
| Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output | $1.57 | $0.15 |
| Context Window | 163.84K | 131.07K |
| Release Date | ||
| Popularity | #106 | #130 |
Use-Case Decision Matrix
| Use case | Better pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Budget-constrained production | Ministral 3 3B 2512 | On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Ministral 3 3B 2512 is estimated at $0.15 vs $1.57 for R1 0528, saving $1.42 (90.5% lower). |
| High-volume input processing | Ministral 3 3B 2512 | Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill. |
| Long responses and chatbots | Ministral 3 3B 2512 | Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens. |
| RAG or long-document work | R1 0528 | A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files. |
Related Alternatives
- DeepSeek V4 Flash (free) can replace R1 0528 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash can replace R1 0528 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.2.
- R1 Distill Qwen 32B can replace R1 0528 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.43.
- DeepSeek V3.2 can replace R1 0528 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.44.
- Llama 4 Scout offers 10M context with $0.23 sample workload cost.
- Owl Alpha offers 1.05M context with $0 sample workload cost.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash offers 1.05M context with $0.2 sample workload cost.
- DeepSeek V4 Pro offers 1.05M context with $0.87 sample workload cost.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash · DeepSeek · #1
- Hy3 preview · Tencent · #2
- Claude Opus 4.7 · Anthropic · #3
- Claude Sonnet 4.6 · Anthropic · #4
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