API cost decision in 10 seconds

🔥Hy3 vs North Mini Code (free)

Pick North Mini Code (free) for lower cost; pick Hy3 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 North Mini Code (free) for lower cost; pick Hy3 only if the larger context window matters more.

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, North Mini Code (free) is estimated at $0 vs $0.4 for Hy3, saving $0.4 (100% lower).

Cost-first pickNorth Mini Code (free)
Context-first pickHy3
Sample savings$0.4100%
10x traffic gap$3.96

Hy3 has more context, but North Mini Code (free) saves $0.4 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $3.96. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.

Cost sensitivity

Workload Sensitivity

Same prices, different token mixes.

North Mini Code (free) stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.

Workload shapeToken mixBetter pickHy3North Mini Code (free)
Input-heavy / RAG5M input + 500K outputNorth Mini Code (free)$0.92$0
Balanced workload1M input + 1M outputNorth Mini Code (free)$0.66$0
Output-heavy chatbot1M input + 5M outputNorth Mini Code (free)$2.77$0
Cheaper input North Mini Code (free) $0.132 vs $0 / 1M

North Mini Code (free) is free for input tokens while Hy3 costs $0.13 per 1M tokens.

Cheaper output North Mini Code (free) $0.528 vs $0 / 1M

North Mini Code (free) is free for output tokens while Hy3 costs $0.53 per 1M tokens.

Larger context Hy3 262.14K vs 256K

Hy3 has 6.14K more context (1.02x larger).

Sample workload North Mini Code (free) $0.4 vs $0

North Mini Code (free) is free for the standard workload while the other model is estimated at $0.4.

Estimate your workload cost

Your Workload Cost

Prices are normalized to USD per 1M tokens.
Hy3 Calculating… Estimated API cost
North Mini Code (free) Calculating… Estimated API cost
Cheaper for this workload Calculating… Difference: calculating…

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

Verdict

North Mini Code (free) has the lower input price; North Mini Code (free) has the lower output price; Hy3 offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, North Mini Code (free) is cheaper for the standard workload.

For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $0.4 for Hy3 and $0 for North Mini Code (free).

Best Fit

Choose Hy3 when you care most about larger context window.

Choose North Mini Code (free) when you care most about lower input-token price, and lower output-token price.

Decision Notes
  • On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, North Mini Code (free) is estimated at $0 vs $0.4 for Hy3, saving $0.4 (100% lower).
  • North Mini Code (free) is free for the standard workload while the other model is estimated at $0.4.
  • North Mini Code (free) is free for input tokens while Hy3 costs $0.13 per 1M tokens.
  • North Mini Code (free) is free for output tokens while Hy3 costs $0.53 per 1M tokens.
  • Hy3 has 6.14K more context (1.02x larger).
Head-to-Head Specs
Feature🔥Hy3
(Tencent)
North Mini Code (free)
(Cohere)
Input Price
prompt tokens per 1M
$0.132$0
Completion Price
per 1M tokens
$0.528$0
Sample Workload Cost
1M input + 500K output
$0.4$0
Context Window262.14K256K
Release Date
Popularity#3

Use-Case Decision Matrix

Use caseBetter pickWhy
Budget-constrained productionNorth Mini Code (free)On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, North Mini Code (free) is estimated at $0 vs $0.4 for Hy3, saving $0.4 (100% lower).
High-volume input processingNorth Mini Code (free)Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill.
Long responses and chatbotsNorth Mini Code (free)Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens.
RAG or long-document workHy3A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files.

Related Alternatives

Same-provider lower-cost swaps
  • Hy3 (free) can replace Hy3 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
  • Hy-MT2-1.8B can replace Hy3 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.13.
  • Hy-MT2-30B-A3B can replace Hy3 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.22.
  • Hy-MT2-7B can replace Hy3 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.22.

Cheaper alternatives

Review low-cost models sorted by a standard 1M input plus 500K output workload.

Open cheapest models

Larger context alternatives

Find models with larger context windows for RAG, long documents, and codebase review.

Open largest context models

Provider catalogs

Compare models within provider hubs before choosing a final API vendor.

Open provider hubs

Tencent catalog

Review all tracked Tencent models before deciding whether this matchup is the right shortlist.

Open Tencent models

Cohere catalog

Check other Cohere models with comparable pricing, context, or release timing.

Open Cohere models
Hy3

Hy3 is a 295B-parameter Mixture-of-Experts model from Tencent (21B active, 192 experts with top-8 routing) built for reasoning, agentic workflows, and real-world production use. It supports a configurable reasoning effort:...

North Mini Code (free)

North Mini Code is Cohere's first agentic coding model and the debut of its North family. A sparse mixture-of-experts model with 30B total parameters and 3B active, it is optimized...