Pairwise benchmark snapshot · Aug 17, 2026
In this head-to-head showdown, Qwen3 235B delivers higher overall intelligence and human-preferred responses (Elo 1,440 vs 1,320), while Qwen3 235B leads in SWE-bench software engineering benchmarks (59.4%), while Codestral 25.01 is more budget-friendly at $0.9/1M per 1M output tokens. Review the complete breakdown below to determine which model best fits your performance and budget requirements.
Speed, cost, and intelligence tradeoffs across the Mistral lineup
Δ 120 Arena Elo pts
148 tok/s
$0.9 / 1M output
Relative percentile scores computed across all active models in the benchmark catalog.
Each spoke is a skill. Farther from the center is better (0–100th percentile). Tap any dot to inspect details.
Category wins across reasoning intelligence, generation speed, and token cost.
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
| Benchmark | Codestral 25.01 | Qwen3 235B | Advantage Delta |
|---|---|---|---|
| Preference Elo | Qwen3 235B (+120) | ||
| Coding Elo | — | — | |
| LiveBench | Qwen3 235B (+9.5%) | ||
| SWE-bench | Qwen3 235B (+7.6%) | ||
| GPQA Diamond | Qwen3 235B (+18.4%) | ||
| Time to first token | Codestral 25.01 (+170 ms) | ||
| Output speed | 148 tok/s | 74 tok/s | Codestral 25.01 (+74 tok/s) |
| Input price | $0.3/1M | $0.455/1M | Codestral 25.01 (+$0.155/1M) |
| Output price | $0.9/1M | $1.82/1M | Codestral 25.01 (+$0.92/1M) |
| Context window | Codestral 25.01 (+125k) |
Simulate monthly production API costs in USD (US Dollar).
Codestral 25.01 is estimated to save $19.22/month ($231/year).
Higher SWE-bench (59.4%).
Lower output list price ($0.9/1M).
Lower TTFT (150 ms).
Larger window (256k).
Qwen3 235B is the side marked multimodal in the catalog.
| Target Workload | Recommended Pick | Evaluation Rationale |
|---|---|---|
| Repo / coding agents | Qwen3 235B | Higher SWE-bench (59.4%). |
| High-volume chat | Codestral 25.01 | Lower output list price ($0.9/1M). |
| Voice / low-latency UI | Codestral 25.01 | Lower TTFT (150 ms). |
| Long-document RAG | Codestral 25.01 | Larger window (256k). |
| Screenshots / vision | Qwen3 235B | Qwen3 235B is the side marked multimodal in the catalog. |
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