Model comparison
Mistral Medium 3.5 vs Mistral Medium 3
- Input
- $1.50 / 1M tokens
- Output
- $7.50 / 1M tokens
- Context
- 256K
- Released
- 2026-04-28
- Input
- $0.40 / 1M tokens
- Output
- $2.00 / 1M tokens
- Context
- 128K
- Released
- 2025-05-07
Mistral Medium 3 is cheaper on input tokens ($0.4 vs $1.5 per 1M, 3.8×); Mistral Medium 3.5 has the larger context window (256K vs 128K); Mistral Medium 3.5 ships open weights while Mistral Medium 3 is API-only.
Specs and pricing side by side
| Spec | Mistral Medium 3.5 | Mistral Medium 3 |
|---|---|---|
| Maker | Mistral AI | Mistral AIsame |
| Released | 2026-04-28 | 2025-05-07 |
| Context window | 256K | 128K |
| Input price | $1.50 / 1M tokens | $0.40 / 1M tokens |
| Output price | $7.50 / 1M tokens | $2.00 / 1M tokens |
| Parameters | 128B (dense) | not published |
| License | Modified MIT | Proprietary |
| Weights | Open weights | API only |
| Modalities | Text, Vision | Text, Vision, PDF |
| Knowledge cutoff | not published | Not disclosed |
Not published by either maker: max output.
Benchmarks both models report
These two models have no benchmark in common in our registry, so there is no like-for-like score to compare. See each model’s own results: Mistral Medium 3.5, Mistral Medium 3.
Which one should you pick?
Pick Mistral Medium 3.5 if…
- You need the longer context (256K vs 128K).
- You want to self-host or fine-tune (open weights, Modified MIT).
- Your use case is: autonomous and remote coding agents (it powers Mistral Vibe's cloud agents).
Pick Mistral Medium 3 if…
- Cost matters: input tokens cost 3.8× less ($0.4 vs $1.5 per 1M).
- You need PDF input, which Mistral Medium 3.5 lacks.
- Your use case is: cost-sensitive enterprise coding assistants and code generation.
FAQ
Which is better, Mistral Medium 3.5 or Mistral Medium 3?
Mistral Medium 3 is cheaper on input tokens ($0.4 vs $1.5 per 1M, 3.8×); Mistral Medium 3.5 has the larger context window (256K vs 128K); Mistral Medium 3.5 ships open weights while Mistral Medium 3 is API-only. The better pick depends on whether you value benchmark scores, price per token, context length or openness for your workload.
How much cheaper is Mistral Medium 3?
Mistral Medium 3.5: $1.50 / 1M tokens input, $7.50 / 1M tokens output. Mistral Medium 3: $0.40 / 1M tokens input, $2.00 / 1M tokens output (list API prices as published by each maker).
What are the context windows of Mistral Medium 3.5 and Mistral Medium 3?
Mistral Medium 3.5 offers 256K; Mistral Medium 3 offers 128K.
Is Mistral Medium 3.5 newer than Mistral Medium 3?
Mistral Medium 3.5 was released 2026-04-28; Mistral Medium 3 was released 2025-05-07.