Claude Sonnet 5.5 vs MiniMax M3
Price, context window & benchmark comparison
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Verdict: MiniMax M3 is 7.6× cheaper than Claude Sonnet 5.5 on a typical 3:1 input/output mix. Claude Sonnet 5.5 scores higher on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index (54.2 vs 18.7). MiniMax M3 has the larger context window (1M vs 1M).
| Claude Sonnet 5.5 | MiniMax M3 | |
|---|---|---|
| Input price / 1M | $2.00 | $0.30 |
| Output price / 1M | $10.00 | $1.20 |
| Blended price (3:1) | $4.00 | $0.52 |
| Cached input / 1M | $0.10 | $0.06 |
| Context window | 1M | 1M |
| Max output | 128K | 512K |
| Intelligence index | 54.2 | 18.7 |
| Coding index | — | 58.6 |
| Providers | 10 | 13 |
| Best provider uptime (30m) | 100.0% | 100.0% |
| Vision input | Yes | Yes |
| Reasoning | Yes | Yes |
| Tool calling | Yes | Yes |
| Released | 2026-09-28 | 2026-05-31 |
| Retirement | — | — |
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FAQ
Which is cheaper, Claude Sonnet 5.5 or MiniMax M3?
MiniMax M3 is 7.6× cheaper than Claude Sonnet 5.5 on a typical 3:1 input/output mix.
Claude Sonnet 5.5 vs MiniMax M3: which has a bigger context window?
Claude Sonnet 5.5: 1,000,000 tokens. MiniMax M3: 1,048,576 tokens.
How much would 1 million requests cost?
At 2,000 input + 500 output tokens per request: Claude Sonnet 5.5 ≈ $9,000, MiniMax M3 ≈ $1,200.
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