Pairwise benchmark snapshot · Aug 16, 2026
In this head-to-head showdown, Grok 4.6 delivers higher overall intelligence and human-preferred responses (Elo 1,592 vs 1,320), while Grok 4.6 leads in SWE-bench software engineering benchmarks (69.1%), while Codestral 25.01 is more budget-friendly at $0.9/1M per 1M output tokens. 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
Mistral code-specialist model.
xAI Aug 12 2026 post-training refresh of Grok 4.5. Same $2/$6 API price, 500k context, stronger agentic traces.
Currently comparing Codestral 25.01 vs Grok 4.6. Alternative family tiers available.
Δ 272 Arena Elo pts
148 tok/s
$0.9 / 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 | Codestral 25.01 | Grok 4.6 | Advantage Delta |
|---|---|---|---|
| Preference Elo | +272 | ||
| Coding Elo | +166 | ||
| LiveBench | +17.4% | ||
| SWE-bench | +17.3% | ||
| GPQA Diamond | +26.2% | ||
| Time to first token | +45 ms | ||
| Output speed | 148 tok/s | 118 tok/s | +30 tok/s |
| Input price | $0.3/1M | +$1.7/1M | |
| Output price | $0.9/1M | +$5.1/1M | |
| Context window | +244k |
Simulate monthly production API costs in USD (US Dollar).
Codestral 25.01 is estimated to save $136.00/month ($1,632/year).
Higher SWE-bench (69.1%).
Lower output list price ($0.9/1M).
Lower TTFT (150 ms).
Larger window (500k).
Grok 4.6 is the side marked multimodal in the catalog.
| Target Workload | Recommended Pick | Evaluation Rationale |
|---|---|---|
| Repo / coding agents | Grok 4.6 | Higher SWE-bench (69.1%). |
| High-volume chat | Codestral 25.01 | Lower output list price ($0.9/1M). |
| Voice / low-latency UI | Codestral 25.01 | Lower TTFT (150 ms). |
| Long-document RAG | Grok 4.6 | Larger window (500k). |
| Screenshots / vision | Grok 4.6 | Grok 4.6 is the side marked multimodal in the catalog. |
Brand hub remaps to top xAI vs top OpenAI. After Aug 12 that is Grok 4.6 vs Sol.
xAI’s Aug 12 2026 refresh of Grok 4.5. 500k context. The Grok vs ChatGPT hub remaps here.
2025-07 row. 4.6 is the buy. We keep 4 so upgrade pairs and old inbound links resolve.
Jan 2025 code model. Still a valid cheap-coding compare. Not a chatbot.
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Verified Head-to-Head Telemetry
compare · Aug 12, 2026
Grok vs ChatGPT: price and Elo, not a personality contest
launch · Aug 12, 2026
Grok 4.6 (Aug 12): post-training refresh, same $2/$6 list
launch · Jul 10, 2025
Grok 4 remains the previous xAI flagship on this catalog
launch · Jan 14, 2025
Codestral 25.01: Mistral’s code-specialist row