Pairwise benchmark snapshot · Aug 16, 2026

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 vs MiniMax M2.5 benchmark

Name: MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 vs MiniMax M2.5 AI benchmark comparison
Creator: CompareLLM
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

This page compares MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 (Moonshot) and MiniMax M2.5 (MiniMax) using the latest snapshots we have as of Aug 16, 2026. On preference Elo, MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 is ahead by 37 points (1,515 vs 1,478; seed-bootstrap (Aug 1, 2026)). On SWE-bench coding, MiniMax M2.5 resolves 75.8% versus 71.3% (seed-bootstrap (Aug 1, 2026)). MiniMax M2.5 streams faster (90 tok/s) while MiniMax M2.5 is the cheaper output token ($0.9/1M). MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 has the larger context window (262k 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.

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Moonshot

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5

Auto-discovered from OpenRouter (moonshotai/kimi-k2.5). Preview until a second source matches.

Elo 1,515$2.8499999999999996/1M out

MiniMax

MiniMax M2.5

MiniMax coding model. Tied near the top of official SWE-bench bash-only in Feb 2026.

Elo 1,478$0.8999999999999999/1M out

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Quick vs:vs Claude Opus 4.5 vs Claude Opus 4.6 vs Claude Sonnet 4.5 vs Claude 3.7 Sonnet

Interactive Comparison Diagram

Matchup Breakdown

Tug-of-War Matchup Matrix

Category wins across intelligence, speed, and pricing efficiency.

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 (4)vsMiniMax M2.5 (6)

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5: 4W (40%)Overall: MiniMax M2.5MiniMax M2.5: 6W (60%)

← MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5MiniMax M2.5 →

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 (3/5)

Intelligence & Reasoning

Preference Elo, Coding proficiency, SWE-bench & LiveBench accuracy

Preference Elo

1,515vs1,478

Coding Elo

1,520vs1,536

SWE-bench

71.3%vs75.8%

LiveBench

67.2%vs64.4%

GPQA Diamond

87.6%vs76.2%

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5: 3WMiniMax M2.5: 2W

MiniMax M2.5 (2/2)

Speed & Latency

Generation throughput and time to first token responsiveness

Output speed

72 tok/svs90 tok/s

Time to first token

270 msvs250 ms

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5: 0WMiniMax M2.5: 2W

MiniMax M2.5 (2/3)

Pricing & Capacity

Cost per million tokens and max context window length

Output price

$2.85/1Mvs$0.9/1M

Input price

$0.57/1Mvs$0.22/1M

Context window

262kvs205k

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5: 1WMiniMax M2.5: 2W

Capability Matchup Radar

Multi-Dimensional Capability Radar

Each spoke is a skill. Farther from the center is better (0–100th percentile). Tap any dot to inspect details.

Tap any node to inspect

Percentile 0–100

Dimensional AdvantageEven 3–3

Preference Elo

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5

37 pts advantage

Throughput Speed

MiniMax M2.5

18 tok/s faster

Price Efficiency

MiniMax M2.5

$1.95/1M cheaper

Full Benchmark Score Matrix

—

Elo

High is better

+3%1,515

EloHigh is better

1,478

Code Elo

High is better

1,520

Code EloHigh is better

1,536+1%

LiveBench

High is better

+4%67.2%

LiveBenchHigh is better

64.4%

SWE-bench

High is better

71.3%

SWE-benchHigh is better

75.8%+6%

GPQA

High is better

+15%87.6%

GPQAHigh is better

76.2%

TTFT

Low is better

270 ms

TTFTLow is better

250 ms+8%

Speed

High is better

72 tok/s

SpeedHigh is better

90 tok/s+25%

In $

Low is better

$0.57/1M

In $Low is better

$0.22/1M+159%

Out $

Low is better

$2.85/1M

Out $Low is better

$0.9/1M+217%

Context

High is better

+28%262k

ContextHigh is better

205k

Interactive Simulator

Workload Cost & Savings Calculator

Simulate monthly production API costs based on published $/1M tokens.

Save up to 66% with MiniMax M2.5

Monthly Volume50M tokens/mo

Quick Presets:

Token Ratio (In vs Out)70% In / 30% Out

RAG / Search (10% out)Coding / Chat (50% out)

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5$62.70 / mo

In: $19.95Out: $42.75

MiniMax M2.5$21.20 / mo

In: $7.70Out: $13.50

Estimated Cost Delta

MiniMax M2.5 is estimated to save $41.50/month ($498/year).

Based on 50M tokens (30% gen)

Key Selection Recommendations

1
MiniMax M2.5:Pick MiniMax M2.5 when repo-level coding accuracy is the constraint.
2
MiniMax M2.5:Pick MiniMax M2.5 when time-to-first-token matters more than peak Elo.
3
MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5:Pick MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 as the default general assistant.

Recommended Workload Routing

Repo / coding agentsMiniMax M2.5

Higher SWE-bench (75.8%).

High-volume chatMiniMax M2.5

Lower output list price ($0.9/1M).

Voice / low-latency UIMiniMax M2.5

Lower TTFT (250 ms).

Long-document RAGMoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5

Larger window (262k).

Screenshots / visionMoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 is the side marked multimodal in the catalog.

Target Workload	Recommended Pick	Evaluation Rationale
Repo / coding agents	MiniMax M2.5	Higher SWE-bench (75.8%).
High-volume chat	MiniMax M2.5	Lower output list price ($0.9/1M).
Voice / low-latency UI	MiniMax M2.5	Lower TTFT (250 ms).
Long-document RAG	MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5	Larger window (262k).
Screenshots / vision	MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5	MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 is the side marked multimodal in the catalog.

Related Editorial Dispatches & Benchmark Notes

View all news

launchFeb 12, 2026

MiniMax M2.5: the Feb 2026 SWE-bench specialist still on the board

Tied near the top of official SWE-bench bash-only in Feb 2026. Coding lists should still see it.

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LIVE

Moonshot

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5

Elo 1,515

LiveBench67.2%

SWE-bench71.3%

Speed72 tok/s

Output cost$2.85/1M

MiniMax

MiniMax M2.5

Elo 1,478

LiveBench64.4%

SWE-bench75.8%

Speed90 tok/s

Output cost$0.9/1M

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is better overall, MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 or MiniMax M2.5?: MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 has the higher preference Elo in our latest snapshot (1,515). “Better” still depends on coding, price, and latency — see the table.
Which is better at coding, MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 or MiniMax M2.5?: MiniMax M2.5 leads SWE-bench at 75.8% vs 71.3%. SWE-bench is one harness, not your repo.
Which is cheaper to run in production?: MiniMax M2.5 output tokens are $0.9/1M versus $2.85/1M. Input prices and retry rates still move the real bill.
Which is faster, MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 or MiniMax M2.5?: MiniMax M2.5 has the lower time-to-first-token (250 ms vs 270 ms). Tokens/sec is a separate column if you care about long completions.
Which has the larger context window?: MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 accepts 262k tokens versus 205k.
Can I self-host either model?: MiniMax M2.5 is marked open-weights in our catalog. The other side is a closed API. Check the provider license before you ship weights.
Are these scores from CompareLLM’s own evals?: No. V1 aggregates public leaderboards (and optional first-party latency pings). Each cell names its source and date. Read /methodology.
What does preference Elo mean on this page?: Preference Elo is a crowd vote from LMArena / Arena. People see two hidden answers and pick the one they like more. The model that wins more often gets a higher Elo. That means people preferred it — not that it passed a school test. It is not SWE-bench, not accuracy, and not a number we invent. MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 and MiniMax M2.5 Elo cells are dated snapshots from the named source — we do not compute Arena ourselves.

Similar Head-to-Head Comparisons

All MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 matchups →|All MiniMax M2.5 matchups →

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 vs MoonshotAI: Kimi K2 0711 (previous kimi)MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 vs Kimi K3 (next kimi)MoonshotAI: Kimi K2 0711 vs MiniMax M2.5 Qwen 3 Max vs MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 Claude Sonnet 4.5 vs MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 Gemini 3.6 Flash vs MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 vs MiniMax M2.5 benchmark

Interactive Comparison Diagram

Matchup Breakdown

Tug-of-War Matchup Matrix

Category wins across intelligence, speed, and pricing efficiency.

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 (4)vsMiniMax M2.5 (6)

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5: 4W (40%)Overall: MiniMax M2.5MiniMax M2.5: 6W (60%)

← MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5MiniMax M2.5 →

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 (3/5)

Intelligence & Reasoning

Preference Elo, Coding proficiency, SWE-bench & LiveBench accuracy

Preference Elo

1,515vs1,478

Coding Elo

1,520vs1,536

SWE-bench

71.3%vs75.8%

LiveBench

67.2%vs64.4%

GPQA Diamond

87.6%vs76.2%

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5: 3WMiniMax M2.5: 2W

MiniMax M2.5 (2/2)

Speed & Latency

Generation throughput and time to first token responsiveness

Output speed

72 tok/svs90 tok/s

Time to first token

270 msvs250 ms

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5: 0WMiniMax M2.5: 2W

MiniMax M2.5 (2/3)

Pricing & Capacity

Cost per million tokens and max context window length

Output price

$2.85/1Mvs$0.9/1M

Input price

$0.57/1Mvs$0.22/1M

Context window

262kvs205k

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5: 1WMiniMax M2.5: 2W

Recommended Workload Routing

Repo / coding agentsMiniMax M2.5

Higher SWE-bench (75.8%).

High-volume chatMiniMax M2.5

Lower output list price ($0.9/1M).

Voice / low-latency UIMiniMax M2.5

Lower TTFT (250 ms).

Long-document RAGMoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5

Larger window (262k).

Screenshots / visionMoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 is the side marked multimodal in the catalog.

Target Workload	Recommended Pick	Evaluation Rationale
Repo / coding agents	MiniMax M2.5	Higher SWE-bench (75.8%).
High-volume chat	MiniMax M2.5	Lower output list price ($0.9/1M).
Voice / low-latency UI	MiniMax M2.5	Lower TTFT (250 ms).
Long-document RAG	MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5	Larger window (262k).
Screenshots / vision	MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5	MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 is the side marked multimodal in the catalog.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is better overall, MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 or MiniMax M2.5?

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 has the higher preference Elo in our latest snapshot (1,515). “Better” still depends on coding, price, and latency — see the table.

Which is better at coding, MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 or MiniMax M2.5?

MiniMax M2.5 leads SWE-bench at 75.8% vs 71.3%. SWE-bench is one harness, not your repo.

Which is cheaper to run in production?

MiniMax M2.5 output tokens are $0.9/1M versus $2.85/1M. Input prices and retry rates still move the real bill.

Which is faster, MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 or MiniMax M2.5?

MiniMax M2.5 has the lower time-to-first-token (250 ms vs 270 ms). Tokens/sec is a separate column if you care about long completions.

Which has the larger context window?

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 accepts 262k tokens versus 205k.

Can I self-host either model?

MiniMax M2.5 is marked open-weights in our catalog. The other side is a closed API. Check the provider license before you ship weights.

Are these scores from CompareLLM’s own evals?

No. V1 aggregates public leaderboards (and optional first-party latency pings). Each cell names its source and date. Read /methodology.

What does preference Elo mean on this page?

Preference Elo is a crowd vote from LMArena / Arena. People see two hidden answers and pick the one they like more. The model that wins more often gets a higher Elo. That means people preferred it — not that it passed a school test. It is not SWE-bench, not accuracy, and not a number we invent. MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5 and MiniMax M2.5 Elo cells are dated snapshots from the named source — we do not compute Arena ourselves.

Swap or Add Any Model to this Matchup

Interactive Comparison Diagram

Tug-of-War Matchup Matrix

Intelligence & Reasoning

Speed & Latency

Pricing & Capacity

Multi-Dimensional Capability Radar

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5

MiniMax M2.5

MiniMax M2.5

Full Benchmark Score Matrix

Workload Cost & Savings Calculator

Key Selection Recommendations

Recommended Workload Routing

Related Editorial Dispatches & Benchmark Notes

MiniMax M2.5: the Feb 2026 SWE-bench specialist still on the board

Cast Your Matchup Vote

Community Discussions (0)

Share card

CompareLLM Matrix

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5

MiniMax M2.5

Frequently Asked Questions

Related news

Similar Head-to-Head Comparisons

Swap or Add Any Model to this Matchup

Interactive Comparison Diagram

Tug-of-War Matchup Matrix

Intelligence & Reasoning

Speed & Latency

Pricing & Capacity

Multi-Dimensional Capability Radar

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5

MiniMax M2.5

MiniMax M2.5

Full Benchmark Score Matrix

Workload Cost & Savings Calculator

Key Selection Recommendations

Recommended Workload Routing

Related Editorial Dispatches & Benchmark Notes

MiniMax M2.5: the Feb 2026 SWE-bench specialist still on the board

Cast Your Matchup Vote

Community Discussions (0)

Share card

CompareLLM Matrix

MoonshotAI: Kimi K2.5

MiniMax M2.5

Frequently Asked Questions

Related news

Similar Head-to-Head Comparisons