Pairwise benchmark snapshot · Aug 16, 2026
This page compares Claude Opus 4.8 (Anthropic) and Mistral Large 3 (Mistral) using the latest snapshots we have as of Aug 16, 2026. On preference Elo, Claude Opus 4.8 is ahead by 142 points (1,598 vs 1,456; seed-bootstrap (Aug 16, 2026)). On SWE-bench coding, Claude Opus 4.8 resolves 78.4% versus 55.4% (seed-bootstrap (Aug 16, 2026)). Mistral Large 3 streams faster (112 tok/s) while Mistral Large 3 is the cheaper output token ($6/1M). Claude Opus 4.8 has the larger context window (1M tokens). Every cell below is a dated snapshot from a named public source — we do not invent missing scores, and we do not run SWE-bench ourselves.
Anthropic
Claude Opus 4.8Prior Opus generation still billed at $5/$25. Kept as a compare baseline against Opus 5.
Instant pairwise benchmark recalculation across 400+ LLMs
Category wins across intelligence, speed, and pricing efficiency.
Preference Elo, Coding proficiency, SWE-bench & LiveBench accuracy
Generation throughput and time to first token responsiveness
Cost per million tokens and max context window length
Each spoke is a skill. Farther from the center is better (0–100th percentile). Tap any dot to inspect details.
142 pts advantage
46 tok/s faster
$19.00/1M cheaper
Simulate monthly production API costs based on published $/1M tokens.
Mistral Large 3 is estimated to save $390.00/month ($4,680/year).
Higher SWE-bench (78.4%).
Lower output list price ($6/1M).
Lower TTFT (190 ms).
Larger window (1M).
Both accept images. Defaulting to the higher-Elo side (Claude Opus 4.8).
| Target Workload | Recommended Pick | Evaluation Rationale |
|---|---|---|
| Repo / coding agents | Claude Opus 4.8 | Higher SWE-bench (78.4%). |
| High-volume chat | Mistral Large 3 | Lower output list price ($6/1M). |
| Voice / low-latency UI | Mistral Large 3 | Lower TTFT (190 ms). |
| Long-document RAG | Claude Opus 4.8 | Larger window (1M). |
| Screenshots / vision | Claude Opus 4.8 | Both accept images. Defaulting to the higher-Elo side (Claude Opus 4.8). |
Opus 4.8 still bills $5/$25. We keep it so Opus 5 vs 4.8 is a real generation delta, not marketing.
Jan 2026. Not the Elo crown. Useful when residency and tools matter more than Arena.
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Verified head-to-head card
