Nova Lite 1.0 vs Mistral Small 3
Nova Lite 1.0 and Mistral Small 3 tie on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index at 6.7, and Mistral Small 3 costs 3.0x less per output token ($0.08 vs $0.24 per million). Updated October 21, 2026; 36 benchmarks have a result for both.
Nova Lite 1.0 or Mistral Small 3: which to pick
Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding.
Pick Nova Lite 1.0 for a larger context window (300K against 33K tokens) and work measured by LiveCodeBench (Artificial Analysis run) or LMArena Text: coding, where it leads.
- Shared results
- 36
- Nova Lite 1.0 only
- 5
- Mistral Small 3 only
- 0
- Like-for-like categories
- 7 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
No call
Tied at 6.7.
Same board, both measured
Long documents
Listed context window
Nova Lite 1.0
Nova Lite 1.0 takes 300K tokens against 33K.
Listed by OpenRouter
Everyday cost
1K input + 500 output tokens
Mistral Small 3
Nova Lite 1.0 $0.0002, Mistral Small 3 $0.0001 per turn.
List prices
At a glance
- Coding index
- Nova Lite 1.0 not benchmarked, Mistral Small 3 not benchmarked.
- Widest category
- General, 3.8 points apart on average over 17 shared benchmarks.
- Widest single gap
- Long context reasoning (AA-LCR): Nova Lite 1.0 19.0% against Mistral Small 3 0.0%, 19.0 points apart on a 0 to 100 scale.
- Output price
- Nova Lite 1.0 $0.24 against Mistral Small 3 $0.08 per million output tokens, 3.0x apart.
- Context window
- Nova Lite 1.0 takes 300K tokens, Mistral Small 3 33K.
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 Lite 1.0 | Bars | Mistral Small 3 | Ties |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coding | 0 | 3 | ||
| Intelligence | 0 | 0 | 1 tie | |
| Agentic work | 0 | 1 | ||
| Reasoning | 1 | 4 | ||
| Math | 2 | 2 | ||
| Knowledge | 2 | 3 | ||
| General | 8 | 9 | ||
| All shared boards | 13 | 22 | 1 tie |
CodingLike-for-likeSix of these boards feed the Vibe Coding Index03
| Benchmark | Nova Lite 1.0 | Mistral Small 3 | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| LiveCodeBench (Artificial Analysis run) | 16.7% | 25.2% | Mistral Small 3 |
| Terminal-Bench Hard (Artificial Analysis run) | 0.8% | Not measured | Only Nova Lite 1.0 measured |
| LMArena Text: coding | 1239 | 1246 | Mistral Small 3 |
| LMArena Text: software and IT | 1241 | 1248 | Mistral Small 3 |
| Neither model has a result on the other 35 boards here | |||
IntelligenceLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index00
| Benchmark | Nova Lite 1.0 | Mistral Small 3 | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA Intelligence Index | 6.7 | 6.7 | Tie |
| Neither model has a result on the other 1 board here | |||
Agentic workLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index01
| Benchmark | Nova Lite 1.0 | Mistral Small 3 | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| τ²-Bench Telecom | 17.5% | 19.6% | Mistral Small 3 |
| Neither model has a result on the other 40 boards here | |||
ReasoningLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index14
| Benchmark | Nova Lite 1.0 | Mistral Small 3 | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| GPQA Diamond (Artificial Analysis run) | 43.3% | 46.2% | Mistral Small 3 |
| Humanity's Last Exam (Artificial Analysis run) | 4.3% | 3.8% | Nova Lite 1.0 |
| LMArena Text: hard prompts | 1220 | 1233 | Mistral Small 3 |
| LMArena Text: expert | 1201 | 1202 | Mistral Small 3 |
| LMArena Text: hard prompts in English | 1226 | 1243 | Mistral Small 3 |
| Neither model has a result on the other 17 boards here | |||
MathLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index22
| Benchmark | Nova Lite 1.0 | Mistral Small 3 | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA Math Index | 7.0 | 4.3 | Nova Lite 1.0 |
| AIME 2025 (Artificial Analysis run) | 7.0% | 4.3% | Nova Lite 1.0 |
| LMArena Text: math | 1227 | 1240 | Mistral Small 3 |
| LMArena Text: mathematical work | 1235 | 1243 | Mistral Small 3 |
| Neither model has a result on the other 9 boards here | |||
KnowledgeLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index23
| Benchmark | Nova Lite 1.0 | Mistral Small 3 | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| MMLU Pro (Artificial Analysis run) | 59.0% | 65.2% | Mistral Small 3 |
| MMLU | 77.0% | Not measured | Only Nova Lite 1.0 measured |
| LMArena Text: science | 1232 | 1235 | Mistral Small 3 |
| LMArena Text: medicine and healthcare | 1213 | 1215 | Mistral Small 3 |
| LMArena Text: legal and government | 1238 | 1219 | Nova Lite 1.0 |
| LMArena Text: business and finance | 1219 | 1205 | Nova Lite 1.0 |
| 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 Lite 1.0 | Mistral Small 3 | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 9 boards here | |||
GeneralLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index89
| Benchmark | Nova Lite 1.0 | Mistral Small 3 | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| IFBench | 34.1% | 26.4% | Nova Lite 1.0 |
| Long context reasoning (AA-LCR) | 19.0% | 0.0% | Nova Lite 1.0 |
| LMArena Text | 1229 | 1234 | Mistral Small 3 |
| LMArena Text: instruction following | 1205 | 1214 | Mistral Small 3 |
| LMArena Text: creative writing | 1197 | 1194 | Nova Lite 1.0 |
| LMArena Vision | 990 | Not measured | Only Nova Lite 1.0 measured |
| LMArena Text: English | 1243 | 1256 | Mistral Small 3 |
| LMArena Text: non-English | 1208 | 1198 | Nova Lite 1.0 |
| LMArena Text: Chinese | 1225 | 1204 | Nova Lite 1.0 |
| LMArena Text: German | 1229 | 1211 | Nova Lite 1.0 |
| LMArena Text: Japanese | 1153 | 1111 | Nova Lite 1.0 |
| LMArena Text: Korean | 1153 | 1188 | Mistral Small 3 |
| LMArena Text: French | 1238 | 1204 | Nova Lite 1.0 |
| LMArena Text: Spanish | 1226 | Not measured | Only Nova Lite 1.0 measured |
| LMArena Text: Russian | 1216 | 1216 | Mistral Small 3 |
| LMArena Text: multi-turn | 1199 | 1217 | Mistral Small 3 |
| LMArena Text: longer queries | 1234 | 1246 | Mistral Small 3 |
| LMArena Text: writing and language | 1211 | 1214 | Mistral Small 3 |
| LMArena Text: entertainment and media | 1176 | 1184 | Mistral Small 3 |
| LMArena Vision: English | 999 | Not measured | Only Nova Lite 1.0 measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 26 boards here | |||
Image generationNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Nova Lite 1.0 | Mistral Small 3 | 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
Mistral Small 3 costs less
Repository review
50K input + 3K output tokens
Mistral Small 3 costs less
Agent loop
200K input + 10K output tokens
Mistral Small 3 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 Lite 1.0 | Mistral Small 3 |
|---|---|---|
| Maker | Amazon | Mistral AI |
| Weights | No public weights listed | Open weights |
| Released | December 5, 2024 | January 30, 2025 |
| Context window | 300K | 33K |
| Input $/Mtok | $0.06 | $0.05 |
| Output $/Mtok | $0.24 | $0.08 |
| 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 Lite 1.0 better than Mistral Small 3 for coding?
Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding. Pick Nova Lite 1.0 for a larger context window (300K against 33K tokens) and work measured by LiveCodeBench (Artificial Analysis run) or LMArena Text: coding, where it leads.
Which is cheaper, Nova Lite 1.0 or Mistral Small 3?
Nova Lite 1.0 costs $0.06 per million input tokens and $0.24 per million output tokens; Mistral Small 3 costs $0.05 and $0.08. Cost per solved task is known for neither of them.
Which has the bigger context window, Nova Lite 1.0 or Mistral Small 3?
Nova Lite 1.0, with 300K tokens against 33K.
How many benchmarks is the Nova Lite 1.0 vs Mistral Small 3 comparison based on?
36 benchmarks have a result for both models as of October 21, 2026. Nova Lite 1.0's coding index rests on 0 independent benchmarks and Mistral Small 3's on 0. Where only one model has a result, the page says so instead of naming a winner.