Codestral 2508 vs MiniMax-01
Codestral 2508 costs 1.2x less per output token than MiniMax-01 ($0.90 vs $1.10 per million). Updated October 22, 2026; 1 benchmarks have a result for both.
Codestral 2508 or MiniMax-01: which to pick
Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding.
Pick Codestral 2508 for output tokens 1.2x cheaper ($0.90 vs $1.10 per million) and work measured by Kagi LLM Benchmark, where it leads.
- Shared results
- 1
- Codestral 2508 only
- 7
- MiniMax-01 only
- 0
- 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
Web design
Design Arena: websites
No call
Only Codestral 2508 has a Design Arena: websites result, 1012.
Directional only
Long documents
Listed context window
MiniMax-01
MiniMax-01 takes 1M tokens against 256K.
Listed by OpenRouter
Everyday cost
1K input + 500 output tokens
No call
Codestral 2508 $0.0008, MiniMax-01 $0.0008 per turn.
List prices
At a glance
- Coding index
- Codestral 2508 not benchmarked, MiniMax-01 not benchmarked.
- Widest category
- Reasoning, 10.0 points apart on average over 1 shared benchmark.
- Widest single gap
- Kagi LLM Benchmark: Codestral 2508 32.5% against MiniMax-01 42.5%, 10.0 points apart on a 0 to 100 scale.
- Output price
- Codestral 2508 $0.90 against MiniMax-01 $1.10 per million output tokens, 1.2x apart.
- Context window
- Codestral 2508 takes 256K tokens, MiniMax-01 1M.
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 | Codestral 2508 | Bars | MiniMax-01 | Ties |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reasoning | 0 | 1 | ||
| All shared boards | 0 | 1 |
CodingDirectional onlySix of these boards feed the Vibe Coding Index1 board, none shared
| Benchmark | Codestral 2508 | MiniMax-01 | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| ALE-Bench | 137.8 | Not measured | Only Codestral 2508 measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 38 boards here | |||
IntelligenceNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Codestral 2508 | MiniMax-01 | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 2 boards here | |||
Agentic workNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Codestral 2508 | MiniMax-01 | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 41 boards here | |||
ReasoningLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index01
| Benchmark | Codestral 2508 | MiniMax-01 | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kagi LLM Benchmark | 32.5% | 42.5% | MiniMax-01 |
| Neither model has a result on the other 21 boards here | |||
MathNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Codestral 2508 | MiniMax-01 | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 13 boards here | |||
KnowledgeNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Codestral 2508 | MiniMax-01 | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 18 boards here | |||
Web designDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index6 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Codestral 2508 | MiniMax-01 | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Design Arena: websites | 1012 | Not measured | Only Codestral 2508 measured |
| Design Arena: UI components | 1014 | Not measured | Only Codestral 2508 measured |
| Design Arena: game dev | 967 | Not measured | Only Codestral 2508 measured |
| Design Arena: data viz | 1017 | Not measured | Only Codestral 2508 measured |
| Design Arena: 3D | 1019 | Not measured | Only Codestral 2508 measured |
| Design Arena: all code categories | 1007 | Not measured | Only Codestral 2508 measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 3 boards here | |||
GeneralNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Codestral 2508 | MiniMax-01 | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 46 boards here | |||
Image generationNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Codestral 2508 | MiniMax-01 | 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
Same cost
Repository review
50K input + 3K output tokens
MiniMax-01 costs less
Agent loop
200K input + 10K output tokens
MiniMax-01 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 | Mistral Codestral 2508 | MiniMax-01 |
|---|---|---|
| Maker | Mistral AI | MiniMax |
| Weights | No public weights listed | Open weights |
| Released | August 1, 2025 | January 15, 2025 |
| Context window | 256K | 1M |
| Input $/Mtok | $0.30 | $0.20 |
| Output $/Mtok | $0.90 | $1.10 |
| 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 Codestral 2508 better than MiniMax-01 for coding?
Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding. Pick Codestral 2508 for output tokens 1.2x cheaper ($0.90 vs $1.10 per million) and work measured by Kagi LLM Benchmark, where it leads.
Which is cheaper, Codestral 2508 or MiniMax-01?
Codestral 2508 costs $0.30 per million input tokens and $0.90 per million output tokens; MiniMax-01 costs $0.20 and $1.10. Cost per solved task is known for neither of them.
Which has the bigger context window, Codestral 2508 or MiniMax-01?
MiniMax-01, with 1M tokens against 256K.
How many benchmarks is the Codestral 2508 vs MiniMax-01 comparison based on?
1 benchmarks have a result for both models as of October 22, 2026. Codestral 2508's coding index rests on 0 independent benchmarks and MiniMax-01's on 0. Where only one model has a result, the page says so instead of naming a winner.