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 1,515), while Kimi K2.5 Max leads in SWE-bench software engineering benchmarks (71.3%), while Kimi K2.5 Max is more budget-friendly at $2/1M per 1M output tokens, while Grok 4.6 provides faster response streaming (118 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
xAI Aug 12 2026 post-training refresh of Grok 4.5. Same $2/$6 API price, 500k context, stronger agentic traces.
Moonshot flagship reasoning model with high-fidelity coding, deep thinking, and tool use across a 200k context.
Currently comparing Grok 4.6 vs Kimi K2.5 Max. Alternative family tiers available.
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 77 Arena Elo pts
118 tok/s
$2 / 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 | Grok 4.6 | Kimi K2.5 Max | Advantage Delta |
|---|---|---|---|
| Preference Elo | +77 | ||
| Coding Elo | +48 | ||
| LiveBench | +4.2% | ||
| SWE-bench | +2.2% | ||
| GPQA Diamond | +3% | ||
| Time to first token | +75 ms | ||
| Output speed | 118 tok/s | 72 tok/s | +46 tok/s |
| Input price | $0.5/1M | +$1.5/1M | |
| Output price | +$4/1M | ||
| Context window | +300k |
Simulate monthly production API costs in USD (US Dollar).
Kimi K2.5 Max is estimated to save $112.50/month ($1,350/year).
Higher SWE-bench (71.3%).
Lower output list price ($2/1M).
Lower TTFT (195 ms).
Larger window (500k).
Both accept images. Defaulting to the higher-Elo side (Grok 4.6).
| Target Workload | Recommended Pick | Evaluation Rationale |
|---|---|---|
| Repo / coding agents | Kimi K2.5 Max | Higher SWE-bench (71.3%). |
| High-volume chat | Kimi K2.5 Max | Lower output list price ($2/1M). |
| Voice / low-latency UI | Grok 4.6 | Lower TTFT (195 ms). |
| Long-document RAG | Grok 4.6 | Larger window (500k). |
| Screenshots / vision | Grok 4.6 | Both accept images. Defaulting to the higher-Elo side (Grok 4.6). |
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.
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