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Llama 3.1 8B Instruct vs MiniMax M2

MiniMax M2 leads Llama 3.1 8B Instruct on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index, 18.6 to 6.9, and Llama 3.1 8B Instruct costs 12.8x less per output token ($0.08 vs $1.02 per million). Updated October 22, 2026; 36 benchmarks have a result for both.

Replace Llama 3.1 8B Instruct Replace MiniMax M2
Llama 3.1 8B InstructMeta Llama
Coding
No data
Overall
17.9
Output $/M
$0.08
0
MiniMax M2MiniMax
Coding
No data
Overall
No data
Output $/M
$1.02
36
vs boards won of 36 shared

Llama 3.1 8B Instruct or MiniMax M2: which to pick

Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding.

Pick Llama 3.1 8B Instruct for output tokens 12.8x cheaper ($0.08 vs $1.02 per million) and work measured by LiveCodeBench (Artificial Analysis run) or Terminal-Bench Hard (Artificial Analysis run), where it leads.

Model ALlama 3.1 8B InstructMeta LlamaNot benchmarkedNo coding benchmarkNo cost per solved taskModel BMiniMax M2MiniMaxNot benchmarked1 independent benchmark$0.702 per solved task
Shared results
36
Llama 3.1 8B Instruct only
15
MiniMax M2 only
14
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.

At a glance

Coding index
Llama 3.1 8B Instruct not benchmarked, MiniMax M2 not benchmarked.
Widest category
Agentic work, 70.5 points apart on average over 1 shared benchmark.
Widest single gap
AA Math Index: Llama 3.1 8B Instruct 4.3 against MiniMax M2 78.3, 74.0 points apart on a 0 to 100 scale.
Output price
Llama 3.1 8B Instruct $0.08 against MiniMax M2 $1.02 per million output tokens, 12.8x apart.
Context window
Llama 3.1 8B Instruct takes 131K tokens, MiniMax M2 205K.

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.

Boards won, where both have a result
CategoryLlama 3.1 8B InstructBarsMiniMax M2Ties
Coding04
Intelligence01
Agentic work01
Reasoning05
Math04
Knowledge05
General016
All shared boards036
CodingLike-for-likeSix of these boards feed the Vibe Coding Index04
Coding benchmarks for Llama 3.1 8B Instruct and MiniMax M2
BenchmarkLlama 3.1 8B InstructMiniMax M2Leader
SWE-bench VerifiedNot measured61.0%Only MiniMax M2 measured
LMArena WebDevNot measured1297Only MiniMax M2 measured
AA Coding Index5.4Not measuredOnly Llama 3.1 8B Instruct measured
LiveCodeBench (Artificial Analysis run)11.6%82.6%MiniMax M2
Terminal-Bench Hard (Artificial Analysis run)0.8%25.8%MiniMax M2
Terminal-BenchNot measured30.0%Only MiniMax M2 measured
WeirdML1.7%Not measuredOnly Llama 3.1 8B Instruct measured
LMArena Text: coding11951371MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: software and IT11951373MiniMax M2
LMArena WebDev: HTMLNot measured1306Only MiniMax M2 measured
Neither model has a result on the other 29 boards here
IntelligenceLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index01
Intelligence benchmarks for Llama 3.1 8B Instruct and MiniMax M2
BenchmarkLlama 3.1 8B InstructMiniMax M2Leader
AA Intelligence Index6.918.6MiniMax M2
Epoch Capabilities Index116.5Not measuredOnly Llama 3.1 8B Instruct measured
Agentic workLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index01
Agentic work benchmarks for Llama 3.1 8B Instruct and MiniMax M2
BenchmarkLlama 3.1 8B InstructMiniMax M2Leader
τ²-Bench Telecom16.4%86.8%MiniMax M2
BALROG15.1%Not measuredOnly Llama 3.1 8B Instruct measured
Vending-Bench 2Not measured$161Only MiniMax M2 measured
Berkeley Function Calling Leaderboard (BFCL)25.8%Not measuredOnly Llama 3.1 8B Instruct measured
Neither model has a result on the other 37 boards here
ReasoningLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index05
Reasoning benchmarks for Llama 3.1 8B Instruct and MiniMax M2
BenchmarkLlama 3.1 8B InstructMiniMax M2Leader
GPQA Diamond (Artificial Analysis run)25.9%77.7%MiniMax M2
Humanity's Last Exam (Artificial Analysis run)5.3%13.7%MiniMax M2
GPQA Diamond (Epoch AI run)27.0%Not measuredOnly Llama 3.1 8B Instruct measured
LMArena Text: hard prompts11751357MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: expert11441338MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: hard prompts in English11961376MiniMax M2
Kagi LLM BenchmarkNot measured57.8%Only MiniMax M2 measured
Neither model has a result on the other 15 boards here
MathLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index04
Math benchmarks for Llama 3.1 8B Instruct and MiniMax M2
BenchmarkLlama 3.1 8B InstructMiniMax M2Leader
AA Math Index4.378.3MiniMax M2
AIME 2025 (Artificial Analysis run)4.3%78.3%MiniMax M2
OTIS Mock AIME1.7%Not measuredOnly Llama 3.1 8B Instruct measured
MATH level 522.9%Not measuredOnly Llama 3.1 8B Instruct measured
GSM8K82.4%Not measuredOnly Llama 3.1 8B Instruct measured
LMArena Text: math11791351MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: mathematical work11801368MiniMax M2
Neither model has a result on the other 6 boards here
KnowledgeLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index05
Knowledge benchmarks for Llama 3.1 8B Instruct and MiniMax M2
BenchmarkLlama 3.1 8B InstructMiniMax M2Leader
MMLU Pro (Artificial Analysis run)47.6%82.0%MiniMax M2
MMLU56.1%Not measuredOnly Llama 3.1 8B Instruct measured
LMArena Text: science11931348MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: medicine and healthcare11821367MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: legal and government12061349MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: business and finance11661336MiniMax M2
Neither model has a result on the other 12 boards here
Web designDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index7 boards, none shared
Web design benchmarks for Llama 3.1 8B Instruct and MiniMax M2
BenchmarkLlama 3.1 8B InstructMiniMax M2Leader
Design Arena: websitesNot measured1143Only MiniMax M2 measured
Design Arena: UI componentsNot measured1137Only MiniMax M2 measured
Design Arena: game devNot measured1118Only MiniMax M2 measured
Design Arena: data vizNot measured1140Only MiniMax M2 measured
Design Arena: 3DNot measured1098Only MiniMax M2 measured
Design Arena: all code categoriesNot measured1135Only MiniMax M2 measured
Design Arena: SVGNot measured1100Only MiniMax M2 measured
Neither model has a result on the other 2 boards here
GeneralLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index016
General benchmarks for Llama 3.1 8B Instruct and MiniMax M2
BenchmarkLlama 3.1 8B InstructMiniMax M2Leader
IFBench28.6%72.3%MiniMax M2
Long context reasoning (AA-LCR)18.0%64.3%MiniMax M2
DTBench50.9%Not measuredOnly Llama 3.1 8B Instruct measured
LMCA5.4%Not measuredOnly Llama 3.1 8B Instruct measured
PIQA81.2%Not measuredOnly Llama 3.1 8B Instruct measured
LMArena Text11871340MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: instruction following11591329MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: creative writing11541286MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: English12181364MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: non-English11481313MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: Chinese11511366MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: German11441357MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: Japanese1061Not measuredOnly Llama 3.1 8B Instruct measured
LMArena Text: Korean1053Not measuredOnly Llama 3.1 8B Instruct measured
LMArena Text: French11781336MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: Spanish11691326MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: Russian11581330MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: PolishNot measured1312Only MiniMax M2 measured
LMArena Text: multi-turn11721361MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: longer queries11811331MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: writing and language11621295MiniMax M2
LMArena Text: entertainment and media11451298MiniMax M2
Neither model has a result on the other 24 boards here
Image generationNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
Image generation benchmarks for Llama 3.1 8B Instruct and MiniMax M2
BenchmarkLlama 3.1 8B InstructMiniMax M2Leader
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

Llama 3.1 8B Instruct$0.0001Fits in one request
MiniMax M2$0.0008Fits in one request

Llama 3.1 8B Instruct costs less

Repository review

50K input + 3K output tokens

Llama 3.1 8B Instruct$0.0027Fits in one request
MiniMax M2$0.016Fits in one request

Llama 3.1 8B Instruct costs less

Agent loop

200K input + 10K output tokens

Llama 3.1 8B Instruct$0.011Exceeds the context window
MiniMax M2$0.061Exceeds the context window

Llama 3.1 8B Instruct 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.

Specifications of Llama 3.1 8B Instruct and MiniMax M2
SpecificationMeta Llama 3.1 8B InstructMiniMax M2
MakerMeta LlamaMiniMax
WeightsOpen weightsOpen weights
ReleasedJuly 23, 2024October 23, 2025
Context window131K205K
Input $/Mtok$0.05$0.255
Output $/Mtok$0.08$1.02
Coding indexNot benchmarkedNot benchmarked
Independent measurements behind it01
Cost per solved taskNot computable$0.702
SourceOpenRouter listingOpenRouter listing

Questions

Is Llama 3.1 8B Instruct better than MiniMax M2 for coding?

Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding. Pick Llama 3.1 8B Instruct for output tokens 12.8x cheaper ($0.08 vs $1.02 per million) and work measured by LiveCodeBench (Artificial Analysis run) or Terminal-Bench Hard (Artificial Analysis run), where it leads.

Which is cheaper, Llama 3.1 8B Instruct or MiniMax M2?

Llama 3.1 8B Instruct costs $0.05 per million input tokens and $0.08 per million output tokens; MiniMax M2 costs $0.255 and $1.02. Cost per solved task is known for MiniMax M2 only.

Which has the bigger context window, Llama 3.1 8B Instruct or MiniMax M2?

MiniMax M2, with 205K tokens against 131K.

How many benchmarks is the Llama 3.1 8B Instruct vs MiniMax M2 comparison based on?

36 benchmarks have a result for both models as of October 22, 2026. Llama 3.1 8B Instruct's coding index rests on 0 independent benchmarks and MiniMax M2's on 1. Where only one model has a result, the page says so instead of naming a winner.

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