Pairwise benchmark snapshot · Aug 16, 2026
In this head-to-head showdown, Claude Opus 5 delivers higher overall intelligence and human-preferred responses (Elo 1,624 vs 1,528), while Claude Opus 5 leads in SWE-bench software engineering benchmarks (79.2%), while Kimi K3 is more budget-friendly at $2.5/1M per 1M output tokens, while Claude Opus 5 provides faster response streaming (72 tok/s). Review the complete breakdown below to determine which model best fits your performance and budget requirements.
10 direct benchmark disciplines evaluated across capability, speed, and cost
Anthropic current default flagship. Official API $5/$25 per 1M tokens and a 1M context window (Anthropic, Jul 24 2026).
Moonshot AI frontier flagship reasoning and agent swarm model with 256k context and top-tier SWE-bench coding capability.
Simulate accuracy gains vs added response time & token cost
Reasoning models “think before answering” by generating internal reasoning tokens. Higher effort improves math, coding, and logic accuracy, but increases response delay and token costs.
Simulate accuracy gains vs added response time & token cost
Reasoning models “think before answering” by generating internal reasoning tokens. Higher effort improves math, coding, and logic accuracy, but increases response delay and token costs.
Δ 96 Arena Elo pts
72 tok/s
$2.5 / 1M output
Relative percentile scores computed across all active models in the benchmark catalog.
Comparing top Western standard models with China's leading frontier rival across 6 skill dimensions. Tap any spoke or dot to inspect.
Category wins across reasoning intelligence, generation speed, and token cost.
Preference Elo, Coding proficiency, SWE-bench & LiveBench accuracy
Generation throughput and time to first token responsiveness
Cost per million tokens and max context window length
| Benchmark | Claude Opus 5 | Kimi K3 | Advantage Delta |
|---|---|---|---|
| Preference Elo | +96 | ||
| Coding Elo | +83 | ||
| LiveBench | +5.3% | ||
| SWE-bench | +5.4% | ||
| GPQA Diamond | +1.3% | ||
| Time to first token | +20 ms | ||
| Output speed | 72 tok/s | 68 tok/s | +4 tok/s |
| Input price | $0.6/1M | +$4.4/1M | |
| Output price | $2.5/1M | +$22.5/1M | |
| Context window | +738k |
Simulate monthly production API costs in USD (US Dollar).
Kimi K3 is estimated to save $491.50/month ($5,898/year).
Higher SWE-bench (79.2%).
Lower output list price ($2.5/1M).
Lower TTFT (290 ms).
Larger window (1M).
Both accept images. Defaulting to the higher-Elo side (Claude Opus 5).
| Target Workload | Recommended Pick | Evaluation Rationale |
|---|---|---|
| Repo / coding agents | Claude Opus 5 | Higher SWE-bench (79.2%). |
| High-volume chat | Kimi K3 | Lower output list price ($2.5/1M). |
| Voice / low-latency UI | Kimi K3 | Lower TTFT (290 ms). |
| Long-document RAG | Claude Opus 5 | Larger window (1M). |
| Screenshots / vision | Claude Opus 5 | Both accept images. Defaulting to the higher-Elo side (Claude Opus 5). |
Usually Sonnet 5 vs Opus 5. Coding delta versus output $/1M. The workhorse question.
Top Anthropic vs top Google. Usually Opus 5 vs 3.6 Pro. Two different invoices.
Not a frozen 2025 article. Today that is usually Opus 5 vs GPT-5.6 Sol. Dated cells, not a brand fight.
Jul 24 2026 official API at $5/$25 and a 1M window. Preference Elo is taste, not a coding exam.
No comments posted on this matchup yet. Be the first to share an evaluation note!
Dynamic OpenGraph banner generated at /compare/claude-opus-5-vs-kimi-k3/opengraph-image
Verified Head-to-Head Telemetry
compare · Aug 10, 2026
Sonnet vs Opus in 2026: same family, different invoice
compare · Jul 24, 2026
Claude vs Gemini: coding, Elo, and output price — not a brand mashup
compare · Jul 24, 2026
Claude vs GPT benchmark: this hub always remaps to the current Elo leaders
launch · Jul 24, 2026
Claude Opus 5 is Anthropic’s default flagship — how to read it on CompareLLM