Mistral Medium 3.1 is $0.85 cheaper per 1M input tokens (68% lower; 3.12x difference).
API cost decision in 10 seconds
NewGrok 4.3 vs Mistral Medium 3.1
Pick Mistral Medium 3.1 for lower cost; pick Grok 4.3 only if the larger context window matters more.
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Data confirmed:
Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens
Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output
Budget verdict
Pick Mistral Medium 3.1 for lower cost; pick Grok 4.3 only if the larger context window matters more.
On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Mistral Medium 3.1 is estimated at $1.4 vs $2.5 for Grok 4.3, saving $1.1 (44% lower).
Cost-first pickMistral Medium 3.1
Context-first pickGrok 4.3
Sample savings$1.144%
10x traffic gap$11
Grok 4.3 has more context, but Mistral Medium 3.1 saves $1.1 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $11. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.
Cost sensitivity
Workload Sensitivity
Mistral Medium 3.1 stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.
| Workload shape | Token mix | Better pick | Grok 4.3 | Mistral Medium 3.1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Input-heavy / RAG | 5M input + 500K output | Mistral Medium 3.1 | $7.5 | $3 |
| Balanced workload | 1M input + 1M output | Mistral Medium 3.1 | $3.75 | $2.4 |
| Output-heavy chatbot | 1M input + 5M output | Mistral Medium 3.1 | $13.75 | $10.4 |
Mistral Medium 3.1 is $0.5 cheaper per 1M output tokens (20% lower; 1.25x difference).
Grok 4.3 has 868.93K more context (7.63x larger).
Mistral Medium 3.1 is $1.1 cheaper on the standard workload (44% 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
Mistral Medium 3.1 has the lower input price; Mistral Medium 3.1 has the lower output price; Grok 4.3 offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, Mistral Medium 3.1 is cheaper for the standard workload.
For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $2.5 for Grok 4.3 and $1.4 for Mistral Medium 3.1.
Choose Grok 4.3 when you care most about larger context window.
Choose Mistral Medium 3.1 when you care most about lower input-token price, and lower output-token price.
- On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Mistral Medium 3.1 is estimated at $1.4 vs $2.5 for Grok 4.3, saving $1.1 (44% lower).
- Mistral Medium 3.1 is $1.1 cheaper on the standard workload (44% lower).
- Mistral Medium 3.1 is $0.85 cheaper per 1M input tokens (68% lower; 3.12x difference).
- Mistral Medium 3.1 is $0.5 cheaper per 1M output tokens (20% lower; 1.25x difference).
- Grok 4.3 has 868.93K more context (7.63x larger).
| Feature | NewGrok 4.3 (xAI) | Mistral Medium 3.1 (Mistral) |
|---|---|---|
| Input Price prompt tokens per 1M | $1.25 | $0.4 |
| Completion Price per 1M tokens | $2.5 | $2 |
| Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output | $2.5 | $1.4 |
| Context Window | 1M | 131.07K |
| Release Date | ||
| Popularity | #45 | #147 |
Use-Case Decision Matrix
| Use case | Better pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Budget-constrained production | Mistral Medium 3.1 | On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Mistral Medium 3.1 is estimated at $1.4 vs $2.5 for Grok 4.3, saving $1.1 (44% lower). |
| High-volume input processing | Mistral Medium 3.1 | Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill. |
| Long responses and chatbots | Mistral Medium 3.1 | Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens. |
| RAG or long-document work | Grok 4.3 | A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files. |
Related Alternatives
- Grok Build 0.1 can replace Grok 4.3 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $2.
- Mistral Nemo can replace Mistral Medium 3.1 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.04.
- Mistral Small 3 can replace Mistral Medium 3.1 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.09.
- Ministral 3 3B 2512 can replace Mistral Medium 3.1 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.15.
- Llama 4 Scout offers 10M context with $0.23 sample workload cost.
- Grok 4.20 offers 2M context with $2.5 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.
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- DeepSeek V4 Flash · DeepSeek · #2
- Claude Opus 4.7 · Anthropic · #3
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