Nova 2 Lite vs Mixtral 8x22B Instruct
Nova 2 Lite leads Mixtral 8x22B Instruct on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index, 13.4 to 5.7, and Nova 2 Lite costs 2.4x less per output token ($2.50 vs $6.00 per million). Updated October 21, 2026; 1 benchmarks have a result for both.
Nova 2 Lite or Mixtral 8x22B Instruct: which to pick
Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding.
Pick Nova 2 Lite for output tokens 2.4x cheaper ($2.50 vs $6.00 per million) and a larger context window (1M against 66K tokens).
- Shared results
- 1
- Nova 2 Lite only
- 30
- Mixtral 8x22B Instruct only
- 6
- Like-for-like categories
- 1 of 9
Only benchmarks that tested both models count toward a pick; a result only one model has is shown but not compared.
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
Nova 2 Lite
Nova 2 Lite leads, 13.4 against 5.7.
Same board, both measured
Long documents
Listed context window
Nova 2 Lite
Nova 2 Lite takes 1M tokens against 66K.
Listed by OpenRouter
Everyday cost
1K input + 500 output tokens
Nova 2 Lite
Nova 2 Lite $0.0015, Mixtral 8x22B Instruct $0.0050 per turn.
List prices
At a glance
- Coding index
- Nova 2 Lite not benchmarked, Mixtral 8x22B Instruct not benchmarked.
- Widest category
- Intelligence, 7.7 points apart on average over 1 shared benchmark.
- Widest single gap
- AA Intelligence Index: Nova 2 Lite 13.4 against Mixtral 8x22B Instruct 5.7, 7.7 points apart on a 0 to 100 scale.
- Output price
- Nova 2 Lite $2.50 against Mixtral 8x22B Instruct $6.00 per million output tokens, 2.4x apart.
- Context window
- Nova 2 Lite takes 1M tokens, Mixtral 8x22B Instruct 66K.
Benchmark by benchmark
First the score: boards each model leads, per category, where both have a result. Then every board, a category to a fold; bars are each result on a 0 to 100 scale, so compare the two in a row, not one row with another.
| Category | Nova 2 Lite | Bars | Mixtral 8x22B Instruct | Ties |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Intelligence | 1 | 0 | ||
| All shared boards | 1 | 0 |
CodingDirectional onlySix of these boards feed the Vibe Coding Index5 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Nova 2 Lite | Mixtral 8x22B Instruct | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA Coding Index | 23.0 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LiveCodeBench (Artificial Analysis run) | Not measured | 14.8% | Only Mixtral 8x22B Instruct measured |
| ALE-Bench | 236.3 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: coding | 1385 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: software and IT | 1394 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 33 boards here | |||
IntelligenceLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index10
| Benchmark | Nova 2 Lite | Mixtral 8x22B Instruct | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA Intelligence Index | 13.4 | 5.7 | Nova 2 Lite |
| Epoch Capabilities Index | Not measured | 122.0 | Only Mixtral 8x22B Instruct measured |
Agentic workNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Nova 2 Lite | Mixtral 8x22B Instruct | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 39 boards here | |||
ReasoningDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index5 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Nova 2 Lite | Mixtral 8x22B Instruct | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| GPQA Diamond (Artificial Analysis run) | Not measured | 33.2% | Only Mixtral 8x22B Instruct measured |
| Humanity's Last Exam (Artificial Analysis run) | Not measured | 4.0% | Only Mixtral 8x22B Instruct measured |
| LMArena Text: hard prompts | 1364 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: expert | 1359 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: hard prompts in English | 1385 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 16 boards here | |||
MathDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index2 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Nova 2 Lite | Mixtral 8x22B Instruct | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| LMArena Text: math | 1359 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: mathematical work | 1369 | Not measured | 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 index5 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Nova 2 Lite | Mixtral 8x22B Instruct | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| MMLU Pro (Artificial Analysis run) | Not measured | 53.7% | Only Mixtral 8x22B Instruct measured |
| LMArena Text: science | 1382 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: medicine and healthcare | 1386 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: legal and government | 1359 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: business and finance | 1369 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 12 boards here | |||
Web designNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Nova 2 Lite | Mixtral 8x22B Instruct | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 9 boards here | |||
GeneralDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index18 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Nova 2 Lite | Mixtral 8x22B Instruct | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| DTBench | Not measured | 55.1% | Only Mixtral 8x22B Instruct measured |
| LMArena Text | 1362 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: instruction following | 1335 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: creative writing | 1292 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: English | 1385 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: non-English | 1337 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: Chinese | 1364 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: German | 1343 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: Japanese | 1273 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: Korean | 1281 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: French | 1381 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: Spanish | 1375 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: Russian | 1342 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: Polish | 1327 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: multi-turn | 1338 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: longer queries | 1335 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: writing and language | 1318 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| LMArena Text: entertainment and media | 1309 | Not measured | Only Nova 2 Lite measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 28 boards here | |||
Image generationNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Nova 2 Lite | Mixtral 8x22B Instruct | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 5 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
Nova 2 Lite 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 | Amazon Nova 2 Lite | Mistral Mixtral 8x22B Instruct |
|---|---|---|
| Maker | Amazon | Mistral AI |
| Weights | No public weights listed | Open weights |
| Released | December 2, 2025 | April 17, 2024 |
| Context window | 1M | 66K |
| Input $/Mtok | $0.30 | $2.00 |
| Output $/Mtok | $2.50 | $6.00 |
| 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 Nova 2 Lite better than Mixtral 8x22B Instruct for coding?
Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding. Pick Nova 2 Lite for output tokens 2.4x cheaper ($2.50 vs $6.00 per million) and a larger context window (1M against 66K tokens).
Which is cheaper, Nova 2 Lite or Mixtral 8x22B Instruct?
Nova 2 Lite costs $0.30 per million input tokens and $2.50 per million output tokens; Mixtral 8x22B Instruct costs $2.00 and $6.00. Cost per solved task is known for neither of them.
Which has the bigger context window, Nova 2 Lite or Mixtral 8x22B Instruct?
Nova 2 Lite, with 1M tokens against 66K.
How many benchmarks is the Nova 2 Lite vs Mixtral 8x22B Instruct comparison based on?
1 benchmarks have a result for both models as of October 21, 2026. Nova 2 Lite's coding index rests on 0 independent benchmarks and Mixtral 8x22B Instruct's on 0. Where only one model has a result, the page says so instead of naming a winner.