DeepSeek R1 0528 vs Grok-3
DeepSeek R1 0528 (2025) and Grok-3 (2025) are frontier-tier reasoning models from DeepSeek and xAI. DeepSeek R1 0528 ships a 130k-token context window, while Grok-3 ships a 131k-token context window. On MMLU PRO, DeepSeek R1 0528 leads by 5.1 pts. On pricing, DeepSeek R1 0528 costs $0.50/1M input tokens versus $0.80/1M for the alternative. This comparison covers specs, pricing, API access, capabilities, benchmarks, input and output token costs, and production fit for coding and agent workloads.
DeepSeek R1 0528 is ~60% cheaper at $0.50/1M; pay for Grok-3 only for long-context analysis.
Decision scorecard
Local evidence first| Signal | DeepSeek R1 0528 | Grok-3 |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | reasoning-heavy apps and provider-routed production | reasoning-heavy apps, multimodal apps, and tool-calling agents |
| Decision fit | Coding, RAG, and Agents | Coding, RAG, and Agents |
| Context window | 130k | 131k |
| Cheapest output | $2.15/1M tokens | $2.40/1M tokens |
| Provider routes | 7 tracked | 4 tracked |
| Shared benchmarks | MMLU PRO leader | 5 shared |
Decision tradeoffs
- DeepSeek R1 0528 holds a shared-benchmark lead on MMLU PRO, ahead by 5.1 points.
- DeepSeek R1 0528 has the lower cheapest tracked output price at $2.15/1M tokens.
- DeepSeek R1 0528 has broader tracked provider coverage for fallback and route flexibility.
- DeepSeek R1 0528 uniquely exposes Code execution in local model data.
- Local decision data tags DeepSeek R1 0528 for Coding, RAG, and Agents.
- Grok-3 holds a shared-benchmark lead on Google-Proof Q&A, ahead by 3.6 points.
- Grok-3 has the larger context window for long prompts, retrieval packs, or transcript analysis.
- Grok-3 uniquely exposes Vision, Multimodal, and JSON / Tool use in local model data.
- Local decision data tags Grok-3 for Coding, RAG, and Agents.
Monthly cost at traffic
Estimate token spend from the cheapest tracked input and output route or tier on this page.
DeepSeek R1 0528
$938
Cheapest tracked route/tier: OpenRouter
Grok-3
$1,240
Cheapest tracked route/tier: Chutes AI
Estimated monthly gap: $303. Batch, cache, alternate speed tiers, and negotiated pricing are excluded from this local estimate.
Switch friction
- Provider overlap exists on OpenRouter and Microsoft Foundry; start route-level A/B tests there.
- Grok-3 is $0.25/1M tokens higher on cheapest tracked output pricing, so quality gains need to justify the spend.
- Check replacement coverage for Code execution before moving production traffic.
- Grok-3 adds Vision, Multimodal, and JSON / Tool use in local capability data.
- Provider overlap exists on OpenRouter and Microsoft Foundry; start route-level A/B tests there.
- DeepSeek R1 0528 is $0.25/1M tokens lower on cheapest tracked output pricing before cache, batch, or negotiated discounts.
- Check replacement coverage for Vision, Multimodal, and JSON / Tool use before moving production traffic.
- DeepSeek R1 0528 adds Code execution in local capability data.
Specs
| Specification | ||
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2025-05-28 | 2025-02-17 |
| Context window | 130k | 131k |
| Parameters | 685B total, 37B active (MoE) | — |
| Architecture | Decoder Only | - |
| License | MITOSI-approved | Proprietary |
| Openness | Open source | Proprietary |
| Weights | Unknown | Not released |
| Code | Unknown | Unknown |
| Commercial use | Commercial use: permitted | Commercial use: conditional |
| Knowledge cutoff | - | 2025-04 |
Pricing and availability
| Pricing attribute | DeepSeek R1 0528 | Grok-3 |
|---|---|---|
| Input price | $0.50/1M tokens | $0.80/1M tokens |
| Output price | $2.15/1M tokens | $2.40/1M tokens |
| Providers |
Capabilities
| Capability | DeepSeek R1 0528 | Grok-3 |
|---|---|---|
| Vision | No | Yes |
| Multimodal | No | Yes |
| Reasoning | Yes | Yes |
| JSON / Tool use | No | Yes |
| Structured outputs | Yes | Yes |
| Code execution | Yes | No |
| IDE integration | No | No |
| Computer use | No | No |
| Parallel agents | No | No |
Benchmarks
| Benchmark | DeepSeek R1 0528 | Grok-3 |
|---|---|---|
| MMLU PRO | 85.0 | 79.9 |
| Google-Proof Q&A | 81.0 | 84.6 |
| AIME 2025 | 87.5 | 93.3 |
| LiveCodeBench | 73.3 | 79.4 |
| Aider Polyglot | 71.4 | 53.3 |
Continue comparing
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Last reviewed: 2026-07-10. Data sourced from public model cards and provider documentation.