MiniMax M3 vs Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct
At a Glance
| Compare |  MiniMax M3MiniMax | |
|---|---|---|
| Intelligence, Cost, and Efficiency | ||
| IntelligenceHigher is better · MM Intelligence v2.5 | #35 of 4632.6 score · 2/3 sources · provisional · missing ARC-AGI-2 · full-core range 21.8–55.1 | UnrankedNot in the 46-model eligible cohort |
| CostLower is better · Published-token output estimate | #3 of 44$0.017 per LiveBench case | UnrankedNot in the 44-model eligible cohort |
| EfficiencyHigher is better · MM Efficiency v1.5 | #10 of 3859.2 score · 2/3 sources · provisional · missing ARC-AGI-2 · full-core range 53.8–70.4 | UnrankedNot in the 38-model eligible cohort |
| Pricing and Limits | ||
| Input priceFrom · USD / 1M tokens | $0.28Deepinfra ↗ · Sep 22, 2026 | $0.10Deepinfra ↗ · Sep 22, 2026 |
| Output priceFrom · USD / 1M tokens | $1.10Deepinfra ↗ · Sep 22, 2026 | $0.30Deepinfra ↗ · Sep 22, 2026 |
| Context windowMaximum documented tokens | 1,049K | 10,000K |
| Model facts checked | Aug 28, 2026View model evidence → | Aug 28, 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 | Llama-4-Scout-17B-16E-Instruct |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Text Arenatext-2026-09-13-d25aabda0010 · arena_rating · leader | 1,433.50100% of row best · rating · minimax-m3; 95% CI [1429.31077607, 1437.68800840]; votes 48540; rank 82 | 1,279.2989% of row best · rating · llama-4-scout-17b-16e-instruct; 95% CI [1274.57681953, 1284.00026285]; votes 29740; rank 259 |
| LMArena Vision Arenavision-2026-09-13-d25aabda0010 · arena_rating · leader | 1,254.31100% of row best · rating · minimax-m3; 95% CI [1247.29883203, 1261.32003459]; votes 15192; rank 50 | 1,117.8089% of row best · rating · llama-4-scout-17b-16e-instruct; 95% CI [1108.35603674, 1127.24229078]; votes 6466; rank 114 |
| ToneBench2026-09-11-10-task-4ef099199c9c · overall_score · unverified | 83.44100% of row best · points · MiniMax M3 · 16,142 output tokens / case | 47.3257% of row best · points · Llama 4 Scout · 696 output tokens / case |
| 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 | Llama-4-Scout-17B-16E-Instruct |
|---|---|---|
| Developer | MiniMax | Meta |
| Family | Minimax M3 | Llama 4 Scout 17b 16e Instruct |
| Model | MiniMax-M3 | Llama-4-Scout-17B-16E-Instruct |
| Version | MiniMax-M3 | Llama-4-Scout-17B-16E-Instruct |
| Lifecycle | active | active |
| Released | 2026-06-01 | 2025-04-05 |
| Knowledge cutoff | Unknown | Unknown |
| Input modalities | Text, Image | Text, Image |
| Output modalities | Text | Text |
| Context window | 1,049K | 10,000K |
| Total parameters | 427B | 108.6B |
| Active parameters | 23B | 17B |
| License | other | other |
| Open weights | Yes | Yes |
| API available | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hostable | Yes | Yes |
| Provider access | Deepinfra (Standard), Fireworks Ai (Standard), Hugging Face (Standard), Openrouter (Standard), Together Ai (Standard) | Deepinfra (Standard), Hugging Face (Standard), Openrouter (Standard), Together Ai (Standard) |
| Capabilities | chat, generation, reasoning, tools | chat, generation, tools |
MiniMax M3 Capabilities
Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct Capabilities
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Primary Evidence
Sources and Freshness
Questions
MiniMax M3 vs Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct FAQs
Is MiniMax M3 or Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct better for coding?+
This comparison does not currently contain a protocol-matched coding benchmark for both MiniMax M3 and Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct, so Model Markets cannot name a coding leader from pricing, context size, or capability labels alone.
Which is cheaper, MiniMax M3 or Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct?+
MiniMax M3 is $0.28 and Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct is $0.10 per million tokens, so Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct is cheaper on this metric. MiniMax M3 is $1.10 and Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct is $0.30 per million tokens, so Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct is cheaper on this metric.
Which has a larger context window, MiniMax M3 or Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct?+
Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct has the larger sourced context window. MiniMax M3 supports 1,049K and Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct supports 10,000K.
Which performs better in benchmarks, MiniMax M3 or Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct?+
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 Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct be self-hosted?+
Both models have the same recorded self-hosting status: supported. MiniMax M3 is open weight; Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct is open weight.
Can MiniMax M3 and Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct understand images?+
MiniMax M3 is documented with image input; Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct is documented with image input. This reflects supported input modalities, not vision quality.
Which can generate longer answers, MiniMax M3 or Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct?+
Neither has a larger sourced maximum output. MiniMax M3 is — and Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct is —.
Do MiniMax M3 and Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct support reasoning and tool use?+
MiniMax M3: reasoning, tool calling, and image input. Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct: tool calling and image input. Feature support does not establish relative quality.
Which is available from more inference providers, MiniMax M3 or Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct?+
MiniMax M3 has 5 sourced provider routes; Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct has 4, so MiniMax M3 has broader tracked availability.
Which offers better value, MiniMax M3 or Llama 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct?+
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.