Model comparison
MiniMax M2.5 / M2.5-Lightning vs MiniMax M2.1
- Input
- $0.15 / 1M tokens (M2.5); $0.30 / 1M tokens (M2.5-Lightning)
- Output
- $1.20 / 1M tokens (M2.5); $2.40 / 1M tokens (M2.5-Lightning)
- Context
- 205K
- Released
- 2026-02-12
- Input
- $0.30 / 1M tokens
- Output
- $1.20 / 1M tokens
- Context
- 205K
- Released
- 2025-12-23
MiniMax M2.5 / M2.5-Lightning scores higher on 5 of the 6 benchmarks both models report (the other leads on 1); MiniMax M2.5 / M2.5-Lightning is cheaper on input tokens ($0.2 vs $0.3 per 1M, 2×).
Specs and pricing side by side
| Spec | MiniMax M2.5 / M2.5-Lightning | MiniMax M2.1 |
|---|---|---|
| Maker | MiniMax | MiniMaxsame |
| Released | 2026-02-12 | 2025-12-23 |
| Context window | 205K | 205Ksame |
| Max output | ~131K tokens | 196,608 tokens |
| Input price | $0.15 / 1M tokens (M2.5); $0.30 / 1M tokens (M2.5-Lightning) | $0.30 / 1M tokens |
| Output price | $1.20 / 1M tokens (M2.5); $2.40 / 1M tokens (M2.5-Lightning) | $1.20 / 1M tokens |
| Parameters | 229B total / 10B active (MoE) | 230B total / 10B active (MoE) |
| License | Modified MIT (attribution required for commercial use) | Modified MIT |
| Weights | Open weights | Open weightssame |
| Modalities | Text | Textsame |
| Knowledge cutoff | Not disclosed | not published |
Benchmarks both models report
| Benchmark | MiniMax M2.5 / M2.5-Lightning | MiniMax M2.1 |
|---|---|---|
| SWE-bench Verified | 80.2% | 74% |
| Multi-SWE-Bench | 51.3% | 49.4% |
| BrowseComp | 76.3% | 47.4% |
| GPQA Diamond | 85.2% | 83% |
| AIME 2025 | 86.3% | 83% |
| MMLU-Pro | 80.1% | 88% |
Scores are as published by each maker or its cited source; harness, reasoning effort and date can differ between rows, so treat small gaps as ties. Sources are listed on each model page.
Which one should you pick?
Pick MiniMax M2.5 / M2.5-Lightning if…
- You care about SWE-bench Verified, Multi-SWE-Bench, BrowseComp (it scores higher on 5 shared benchmarks).
- Cost matters: input tokens cost 2× less ($0.2 vs $0.3 per 1M).
- Your use case is: autonomous and semi-autonomous coding agents running across large codebases.
Pick MiniMax M2.1 if…
- You care about MMLU-Pro (it scores higher on 1 shared benchmark).
- Your use case is: autonomous and assisted software engineering across many programming languages.
FAQ
Which is better, MiniMax M2.5 / M2.5-Lightning or MiniMax M2.1?
MiniMax M2.5 / M2.5-Lightning scores higher on 5 of the 6 benchmarks both models report (the other leads on 1); MiniMax M2.5 / M2.5-Lightning is cheaper on input tokens ($0.2 vs $0.3 per 1M, 2×). The better pick depends on whether you value benchmark scores, price per token, context length or openness for your workload.
How much cheaper is MiniMax M2.5 / M2.5-Lightning?
MiniMax M2.5 / M2.5-Lightning: $0.15 / 1M tokens (M2.5); $0.30 / 1M tokens (M2.5-Lightning) input, $1.20 / 1M tokens (M2.5); $2.40 / 1M tokens (M2.5-Lightning) output. MiniMax M2.1: $0.30 / 1M tokens input, $1.20 / 1M tokens output (list API prices as published by each maker).
What are the context windows of MiniMax M2.5 / M2.5-Lightning and MiniMax M2.1?
MiniMax M2.5 / M2.5-Lightning offers 205K with up to ~131K tokens output; MiniMax M2.1 offers 205K with up to 196,608 tokens output.
Is MiniMax M2.5 / M2.5-Lightning newer than MiniMax M2.1?
MiniMax M2.5 / M2.5-Lightning was released 2026-02-12; MiniMax M2.1 was released 2025-12-23.