Aion 3.5 Mini vs Nova 2 Lite
Aion 3.5 Mini costs 1.8x less per output token than Nova 2 Lite ($1.40 vs $2.50 per million). Updated October 22, 2026; no benchmark has tested both models yet.
- Coding
- No data
- Overall
- No data
- Output $/M
- $1.40
- Coding
- No data
- Overall
- No data
- Output $/M
- $2.50
Aion 3.5 Mini or Nova 2 Lite: which to pick
Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding.
Pick Aion 3.5 Mini for output tokens 1.8x cheaper ($1.40 vs $2.50 per million).
No benchmark has tested both yet. Aion 3.5 Mini has none yet; Nova 2 Lite on AA Coding Index, ALE-Bench and LMArena Text: coding. Compare them on price and context instead.
Which one for your work
Each card is decided by one number both models carry. Where only one has it, the card says so and makes no call.
Coding
Vibe Coding Index, six public coding benchmarks
No call
Neither has a coding score yet.
One side not measured
Intelligence
AA Intelligence Index
No call
Only Nova 2 Lite has a AA Intelligence Index result, 13.4.
Directional only
Long documents
Listed context window
Nova 2 Lite
Nova 2 Lite takes 1M tokens against 262K.
Listed by OpenRouter
Everyday cost
1K input + 500 output tokens
Aion 3.5 Mini
Aion 3.5 Mini $0.0014, Nova 2 Lite $0.0015 per turn.
List prices
At a glance
- Coding index
- Aion 3.5 Mini not benchmarked, Nova 2 Lite not benchmarked.
- Widest category
- None yet: no category has been tested on both models.
- Widest single gap
- None yet: no benchmark has tested both models.
- Output price
- Aion 3.5 Mini $1.40 against Nova 2 Lite $2.50 per million output tokens, 1.8x apart.
- Context window
- Aion 3.5 Mini takes 262K tokens, Nova 2 Lite 1M.
Benchmark by benchmark
Every board either model has a result on, a category to a fold; bars are each result on a 0 to 100 scale. Only one model is measured on each, so no row names a leader.
CodingDirectional onlySix of these boards feed the Vibe Coding Index4 boards measured
| Benchmark | Aion 3.5 Mini | Nova 2 Lite | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA Coding Index | Not measured | 23.0 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| ALE-Bench | Not measured | 236.3 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: coding | Not measured | 1385 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: software and IT | Not measured | 1394 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 35 boards here | |||
IntelligenceDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index1 board measured
| Benchmark | Aion 3.5 Mini | Nova 2 Lite | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA Intelligence Index | Not measured | 13.4 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 1 board here | |||
ReasoningDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index3 boards measured
| Benchmark | Aion 3.5 Mini | Nova 2 Lite | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| LMArena Text: hard prompts | Not measured | 1364 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: expert | Not measured | 1359 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: hard prompts in English | Not measured | 1385 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 19 boards here | |||
MathDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index2 boards measured
| Benchmark | Aion 3.5 Mini | Nova 2 Lite | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| LMArena Text: math | Not measured | 1359 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: mathematical work | Not measured | 1369 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 11 boards here | |||
KnowledgeDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index4 boards measured
| Benchmark | Aion 3.5 Mini | Nova 2 Lite | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| LMArena Text: science | Not measured | 1382 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: medicine and healthcare | Not measured | 1386 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: legal and government | Not measured | 1359 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: business and finance | Not measured | 1369 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 14 boards here | |||
GeneralDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index17 boards measured
| Benchmark | Aion 3.5 Mini | Nova 2 Lite | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| LMArena Text | Not measured | 1362 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: instruction following | Not measured | 1335 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: creative writing | Not measured | 1292 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: English | Not measured | 1385 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: non-English | Not measured | 1337 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: Chinese | Not measured | 1364 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: German | Not measured | 1343 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: Japanese | Not measured | 1273 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: Korean | Not measured | 1281 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: French | Not measured | 1381 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: Spanish | Not measured | 1375 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: Russian | Not measured | 1342 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: Polish | Not measured | 1327 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: multi-turn | Not measured | 1338 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: longer queries | Not measured | 1335 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: writing and language | Not measured | 1318 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: entertainment and media | Not measured | 1309 | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 29 boards here | |||
What each workload costs
Three fixed token mixes at each model's listed price, so per-token rates become a bill.
Chat turn
1K input + 500 output tokens
Aion 3.5 Mini costs less
Repository review
50K input + 3K output tokens
Nova 2 Lite costs less
Agent loop
200K input + 10K output tokens
Nova 2 Lite costs less
Listed OpenRouter rates, without cache or batch discounts. A workload that does not fit a model's context window would need splitting.
Specification differences
The leading value in a row is marked; a row with a missing value names no leader. Our two rows are marked in red.
| Specification | AionLabs Aion 3.5 Mini | Amazon Nova 2 Lite |
|---|---|---|
| Maker | Aion Labs | Amazon |
| Weights | No public weights listed | No public weights listed |
| Released | September 23, 2026 | December 2, 2025 |
| Context window | 262K | 1M |
| Input $/Mtok | $0.70 | $0.30 |
| Output $/Mtok | $1.40 | $2.50 |
| Coding index | Not benchmarked | Not benchmarked |
| Independent measurements behind it | 0 | 0 |
| Cost per solved task | Not computable | Not computable |
| Source | OpenRouter listing | OpenRouter listing |
Questions
Is Aion 3.5 Mini better than Nova 2 Lite for coding?
Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding. Pick Aion 3.5 Mini for output tokens 1.8x cheaper ($1.40 vs $2.50 per million).
Which is cheaper, Aion 3.5 Mini or Nova 2 Lite?
Aion 3.5 Mini costs $0.70 per million input tokens and $1.40 per million output tokens; Nova 2 Lite costs $0.30 and $2.50. Cost per solved task is known for neither of them.
Which has the bigger context window, Aion 3.5 Mini or Nova 2 Lite?
Nova 2 Lite, with 1M tokens against 262K.
Has any benchmark tested both Aion 3.5 Mini and Nova 2 Lite?
No benchmark has tested both yet. Aion 3.5 Mini has none yet; Nova 2 Lite on AA Coding Index, ALE-Bench and LMArena Text: coding. Compare them on price and context instead. Data as of October 22, 2026.