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MiniMax: MiniMax M3 vs Kimi K3

Try both on us. Starter credit covers your first requests, then one key routes MiniMax M3 and Kimi K3. Switch by changing the model name.

Compare routesProviders, price, context, and policy posture in one view.

Use auto when uptime mattersKeep a primary model and let fallback handle provider failures.

Same API shapeUse the OpenAI client and set the model you want.

Practical read

Monthly evidence

MiniMax: MiniMax M3 has the lower published input-plus-output rate and more Credits provider routes. Their context windows are the same size. There is not enough recent probe data to compare speed.

$1.25545/1MMiniMax: MiniMax M3 cheapest route

$18.99/1MKimi K3 cheapest route

1653 msMiniMax: MiniMax M3 fastest measured p50 TTFT via lyceum

not enough dataKimi K3 fastest measured p50 TTFT

The price comparison adds each route's rate for one million input tokens and one million output tokens; your cost depends on your input/output mix. Prices and live route measurements can change. Use the monthly reports when you need a stable evidence window, then run a small task-specific eval before choosing a production default.

MiniMax: MiniMax M3Kimi K3

Model idminimax/minimax-m3moonshotai/kimi-k3-p

Publisher MiniMax Kimi

AI IQ IQ 115#55 —

Context1,048,576 tokens1,048,576 tokens

Credits provider routes151

Cheapest route$1.25545/1M$18.99/1M

Cached input$0.05275/1M to $0.2532/1M$0.3165/1M

Privacy posturehas ZDR routeprovider posture varies

Fastest measured p50 TTFT1653 ms via lyceumnot enough data

Highest measured throughput258 tok/s via fireworksnot enough data

Recent route uptime range100.00%not enough data

Modes chat chat

MiniMax: MiniMax M3 routes

Overview15 Credits routes
PricingInput, cached input, and output rates
BenchmarksTrustedRouter and external sources
ProvidersAll serving providers

Kimi K3 routes

Overview1 Credits routes

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Production choice

Pick a default model. Keep fallback enabled.

TrustedRouter is useful when you know the model you want, but still need provider rollover, budget limits, usage records, and a prompt path you can verify.

OpenAI clientPython

client = OpenAI(
    base_url="https://api.trustedrouter.com/v1",
    api_key="sk-tr-v1-..."
)

response = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="minimax/minimax-m3",
    messages=messages,
)

Questions

Which should I use, MiniMax: MiniMax M3 or Kimi K3?

MiniMax: MiniMax M3 has the lower published input-plus-output rate and more Credits provider routes. Their context windows are the same size. There is not enough recent probe data to compare speed.

Is MiniMax: MiniMax M3 or Kimi K3 cheaper?

The current cheapest TrustedRouter route is $1.25545/1M for MiniMax: MiniMax M3 and $18.99/1M for Kimi K3. The comparison uses current catalog prices and updates as provider pricing changes.

Is MiniMax: MiniMax M3 or Kimi K3 faster?

Current measured p50 time to first token is 1653 ms for MiniMax: MiniMax M3 and not enough data for Kimi K3. These are routed probe measurements, not vendor-advertised speeds, and update as new samples arrive.

Can I test MiniMax: MiniMax M3 and Kimi K3 with the same API?

Yes. Use the same OpenAI-compatible TrustedRouter base URL and API key, then change only the model id between minimax/minimax-m3 and moonshotai/kimi-k3-p. This makes side-by-side evals possible without maintaining two provider integrations.