MiniMax M3 vs Sonar
At a Glance
| Compare |  MiniMax M3MiniMax |  SonarPerplexity |
|---|---|---|
| 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 | $1.00Openrouter ↗ · Sep 22, 2026 |
| Output priceFrom · USD / 1M tokens | $1.10Deepinfra ↗ · Sep 22, 2026 | $1.00Openrouter ↗ · Sep 22, 2026 |
| Context windowMaximum documented tokens | 1,049K | 128K |
| 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
Side-by-Side Facts
| Field | MiniMax-M3 | Sonar |
|---|---|---|
| Developer | MiniMax | Perplexity |
| Family | Minimax M3 | Sonar |
| Model | MiniMax-M3 | Sonar |
| Version | MiniMax-M3 | Sonar |
| Lifecycle | active | active |
| Released | 2026-06-01 | Unknown |
| Knowledge cutoff | Unknown | Unknown |
| Input modalities | Text, Image | Text |
| Output modalities | Text | Text |
| Context window | 1,049K | 128K |
| 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) | Openrouter (Standard), Perplexity (Standard) |
| Capabilities | chat, generation, reasoning, tools | chat, citations, search |
MiniMax M3 Capabilities
Sonar Capabilities
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Primary Evidence
Sources and Freshness
Questions
MiniMax M3 vs Sonar FAQs
Is MiniMax M3 or Sonar better for coding?+
This comparison does not currently contain a protocol-matched coding benchmark for both MiniMax M3 and Sonar, so Model Markets cannot name a coding leader from pricing, context size, or capability labels alone.
Which is cheaper, MiniMax M3 or Sonar?+
MiniMax M3 is $0.28 and Sonar is $1.00 per million tokens, so MiniMax M3 is cheaper on this metric. MiniMax M3 is $1.10 and Sonar is $1.00 per million tokens, so Sonar is cheaper on this metric.
Which has a larger context window, MiniMax M3 or Sonar?+
MiniMax M3 has the larger sourced context window. MiniMax M3 supports 1,049K and Sonar supports 128K.
Which performs better in benchmarks, MiniMax M3 or Sonar?+
There is no overall benchmark winner: At least two independently verified, protocol-matched benchmarks are required for an overall winner.
Can MiniMax M3 or Sonar be self-hosted?+
MiniMax M3 is the only model in this pair currently marked as self-hostable. MiniMax M3 is open weight; Sonar is not marked open weight.
Can MiniMax M3 and Sonar understand images?+
MiniMax M3 is documented with image input; Sonar is not documented with image input. This reflects supported input modalities, not vision quality.
Which can generate longer answers, MiniMax M3 or Sonar?+
Neither has a larger sourced maximum output. MiniMax M3 is — and Sonar is —.
Do MiniMax M3 and Sonar support reasoning and tool use?+
MiniMax M3: reasoning, tool calling, and image input. Sonar: none of these features are definitively sourced. Feature support does not establish relative quality.
Which is available from more inference providers, MiniMax M3 or Sonar?+
MiniMax M3 has 5 sourced provider routes; Sonar has 2, so MiniMax M3 has broader tracked availability.
Which offers better value, MiniMax M3 or Sonar?+
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.