MiniMax M3 vs GPT-4.1
At a Glance
| Compare |  MiniMax M3MiniMax |  GPT-4.1OpenAI |
|---|---|---|
| Intelligence, Cost, and Efficiency | ||
| IntelligenceHigher is better · MM Intelligence v4.4 | #32 of 5733.9 score · 2/3 sources · provisional · missing ARC-AGI-2 · full-core range 22.6–55.9 | UnrankedNot in the 57-model eligible cohort |
| CostLower is better · Published-token output estimate | #3 of 27$0.017 per LiveBench case | UnrankedNot in the 27-model eligible cohort |
| EfficiencyHigher is better · MM Efficiency v1.9 | #15 of 2749.0 score · 2/3 sources · provisional · missing ARC-AGI-2 · full-core range 43.4–60.0 | UnrankedNot in the 27-model eligible cohort |
| Pricing and Limits | ||
| Input priceFrom · USD / 1M tokens | $0.28Deepinfra ↗ · Oct 19, 2026 | $1.00Openrouter ↗ · Sep 3, 2026 |
| Output priceFrom · USD / 1M tokens | $1.10Deepinfra ↗ · Oct 19, 2026 | $4.00Openrouter ↗ · Sep 3, 2026 |
| Context windowMaximum documented tokens | 1,049K | 1,048K |
| Model facts checked | Aug 28, 2026View model evidence → | Aug 29, 2026View model evidence → |
Token prices are the lowest available sourced USD rates; input and output may use different providers. Cost ranking estimates output spend on LiveBench, not a full request bill. Ranking methodology →
Available Benchmarks
| Benchmark | MiniMax-M3 | GPT-4.1 |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Text Arenatext-2026-10-15-a64ca3b12b6e · arena_rating · leader | 1,433.33100% of row best · rating · minimax-m3; 95% CI [1429.51159020, 1437.14164071]; votes 63973; rank 91 | 1,382.8996% of row best · rating · gpt-4.1-2025-04-14; 95% CI [1379.19934172, 1386.58437112]; votes 50312; rank 172 |
| LMArena Vision Arenavision-2026-10-09-a64ca3b12b6e · arena_rating · leader | 1,253.11100% of row best · rating · minimax-m3; 95% CI [1246.68252453, 1259.53765792]; votes 19026; rank 60 | 1,210.6297% of row best · rating · gpt-4.1-2025-04-14; 95% CI [1203.95207689, 1217.29091390]; votes 41017; rank 87 |
| Overall ResultCounted from the protocol-matched rows above | 2 benchmark winsNo overall winner | 0 benchmark winsNo overall winner |
Third-party benchmark Only like-for-like primary-publisher results are shown; raw scores, relative scores, configuration, and token spend remain visible.
Side-by-Side Facts
| Field | MiniMax-M3 | GPT-4.1 |
|---|---|---|
| Developer | MiniMax | OpenAI |
| Family | Minimax M3 | Gpt 4 1 |
| Model | MiniMax-M3 | GPT-4.1 |
| Version | MiniMax-M3 | GPT-4.1 |
| Lifecycle | active | active |
| Released | 2026-06-01 | Unknown |
| Knowledge cutoff | Unknown | 2024-06-01 |
| Input modalities | Text, Image | Text, Image |
| Output modalities | Text | Text |
| Context window | 1,049K | 1,048K |
| Total parameters | 427B | Unknown |
| Active parameters | 23B | Unknown |
| License | other | Unknown |
| Open weights | Yes | No |
| API available | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hostable | Yes | No |
| Provider access | Deepinfra (Standard), Fireworks Ai (Standard), Hugging Face (Standard), Openrouter (Standard), Together Ai (Standard) | Openai (Standard), Openrouter (Standard) |
| Capabilities | chat, generation, reasoning, tools | chat, generation, tools |
MiniMax M3 Capabilities
GPT-4.1 Capabilities
Related Comparisons
All image comparisons →| A | Pair | B | Context |
|---|---|---|---|
MiniMax-M2.7MiniMax | vs | MiniMax-M3MiniMax | family variantstext |
MiniMax-M3MiniMax | vs |  DeepSeek-V4.1-FlashDeepSeek | cross-developer peersimage, text |
MiniMax-M3MiniMax | vs |  Hy4 previewTencent | cross-developer peerstext |
MiniMax-M3MiniMax | vs |  MiMo-V2.6-ProXiaomi | cross-developer peersimage, text |
MiniMax-M3MiniMax | vs |  Antigravity AgentGoogle DeepMind | cross-developer peerstext |
MiniMax-M3MiniMax | vs | cross-developer peersimage, text | |
MiniMax-M2.5MiniMax | vs | MiniMax-M3MiniMax | family variantstext |
MiniMax-M3MiniMax | vs |  Mistral-Small-4-119B-2603Mistral AI | cross-developer peersimage, text |
MiniMax-M3MiniMax | vs | GPT-4.1 MiniOpenAI | cross-developer peersimage, text |
MiniMax-M3MiniMax | vs | GPT-4.1 NanoOpenAI | cross-developer peersimage, text |
MiniMax-M3MiniMax | vs | GPT-5.6 LunaOpenAI | cross-developer peersimage, text |
MiniMax-M3MiniMax | vs | Hy3Tencent | cross-developer peerstext |
Primary Evidence
Sources and Freshness
Questions
MiniMax M3 vs GPT-4.1 FAQs
Is MiniMax M3 or GPT-4.1 better for coding?+
This comparison does not currently contain a protocol-matched coding benchmark for both MiniMax M3 and GPT-4.1, so Model Markets cannot name a coding leader from pricing, context size, or capability labels alone.
Which is cheaper, MiniMax M3 or GPT-4.1?+
MiniMax M3 is $0.28 and GPT-4.1 is $1.00 per million tokens, so MiniMax M3 is cheaper on this metric. MiniMax M3 is $1.10 and GPT-4.1 is $4.00 per million tokens, so MiniMax M3 is cheaper on this metric.
Which has a larger context window, MiniMax M3 or GPT-4.1?+
MiniMax M3 has the larger sourced context window. MiniMax M3 supports 1,048,576 tokens and GPT-4.1 supports 1,047,576 tokens.
Which performs better in benchmarks, MiniMax M3 or GPT-4.1?+
There is no overall benchmark winner: An overall winner requires at least two decisive benchmarks from at least two original publishers.
Can MiniMax M3 or GPT-4.1 be self-hosted?+
MiniMax M3 is documented as self-hostable; GPT-4.1 is documented as not self-hostable. MiniMax M3 is open weight; GPT-4.1 is not marked open weight.
Can MiniMax M3 and GPT-4.1 understand images?+
MiniMax M3 is documented with image input; GPT-4.1 is documented with image input. This reflects supported input modalities, not vision quality.
Which can generate longer answers, MiniMax M3 or GPT-4.1?+
GPT-4.1 has a sourced maximum output of 32,768 tokens; MiniMax M3's maximum output is not reported. A larger limit cannot be determined.
Do MiniMax M3 and GPT-4.1 support reasoning and tool use?+
MiniMax M3: reasoning, tool calling, and image input. GPT-4.1: tool calling and image input. Feature support does not establish relative quality.
Which is available from more inference providers, MiniMax M3 or GPT-4.1?+
MiniMax M3 has 5 sourced provider routes; GPT-4.1 has 2, so MiniMax M3 has broader tracked availability.
Which offers better value, MiniMax M3 or GPT-4.1?+
There is no universal value winner. Compare the input and output prices above with the matched benchmark result for your workload: cheaper tokens can be offset by different quality, token usage, latency, or provider availability.