DeepSeek V3 vs o4-mini
DeepSeek V3 (2024) and o4-mini (2025) are frontier reasoning models from DeepSeek and OpenAI. DeepSeek V3 ships a 64k-token context window, while o4-mini ships a not-yet-sourced context window. On MMLU PRO, o4-mini leads by 7.3 pts. On pricing, DeepSeek V3 costs $0.1/1M input tokens versus $0.5/1M for the alternative. This comparison covers specs, pricing, capabilities, benchmarks, provider availability, and production fit.
DeepSeek V3 is ~400% cheaper at $0.1/1M; pay for o4-mini only for coding workflow support.
Specs
| Released | 2024-12-26 | 2025-04-16 |
| Context window | 64k | — |
| Parameters | 671B | — |
| Architecture | mixture of experts | decoder only |
| License | Open Source | Proprietary |
| Knowledge cutoff | 2024-04 | 2025-08 |
Pricing and availability
| DeepSeek V3 | o4-mini | |
|---|---|---|
| Input price | $0.1/1M tokens | $0.5/1M tokens |
| Output price | $0.3/1M tokens | $2/1M tokens |
| Providers |
Capabilities
| DeepSeek V3 | o4-mini | |
|---|---|---|
| Vision | ||
| Multimodal | ||
| Reasoning | ||
| Function calling | ||
| Tool use | ||
| Structured outputs | ||
| Code execution |
Benchmarks
| Benchmark | DeepSeek V3 | o4-mini |
|---|---|---|
| MMLU PRO | 75.9 | 83.2 |
| LiveCodeBench | 49.6 | 87.3 |
| Aider Polyglot | 48.4 | 72.0 |
Deep dive
On shared benchmark coverage, MMLU PRO has DeepSeek V3 at 75.9 and o4-mini at 83.2, with o4-mini ahead by 7.3 points; LiveCodeBench has DeepSeek V3 at 49.6 and o4-mini at 87.3, with o4-mini ahead by 37.7 points; Aider Polyglot has DeepSeek V3 at 48.4 and o4-mini at 72, with o4-mini ahead by 23.6 points. The largest visible gap is 37.7 points on LiveCodeBench, which matters most when that benchmark mirrors your workload. Treat isolated benchmark wins as directional, because provider routing, prompt style, and tool access can move real application results.
The capability footprint differs most on vision: o4-mini, multimodal input: o4-mini, reasoning mode: o4-mini, and code execution: o4-mini. Both models share function calling, tool use, and structured outputs, so the practical split is not just feature count. Use those differences to decide whether the page is about raw model quality, agentic coding support, multimodal ingestion, or predictable structured API behavior.
For cost, DeepSeek V3 lists $0.1/1M input and $0.3/1M output tokens, while o4-mini lists $0.5/1M input and $2/1M output tokens on the cheapest tracked provider. A 70/30 input-output blend puts DeepSeek V3 lower by about $0.79 per million blended tokens. Availability is 12 providers versus 4, so concentration risk also matters.
Choose DeepSeek V3 when provider fit, lower input-token cost, and broader provider choice are central to the workload. Choose o4-mini when coding workflow support are more important. For production, rerun your own prompts through the exact provider, region, and tool stack you plan to ship.
FAQ
Which is cheaper, DeepSeek V3 or o4-mini?
DeepSeek V3 is cheaper on tracked token pricing. DeepSeek V3 costs $0.1/1M input and $0.3/1M output tokens. o4-mini costs $0.5/1M input and $2/1M output tokens. Provider discounts or batch pricing can still change the final bill.
Is DeepSeek V3 or o4-mini open source?
DeepSeek V3 is listed under Open Source. o4-mini is listed under Proprietary. License labels affect whether you can self-host, redistribute weights, or rely only on hosted APIs, so confirm the upstream license before deployment.
Which is better for vision, DeepSeek V3 or o4-mini?
o4-mini has the clearer documented vision signal in this comparison. If vision is mission-critical, validate it against the provider endpoint because model-level support and API-level exposure can differ. Use this as a quick comparison signal, then confirm the provider-specific limits before committing to production.
Which is better for multimodal input, DeepSeek V3 or o4-mini?
o4-mini has the clearer documented multimodal input signal in this comparison. If multimodal input is mission-critical, validate it against the provider endpoint because model-level support and API-level exposure can differ.
Which is better for reasoning mode, DeepSeek V3 or o4-mini?
o4-mini has the clearer documented reasoning mode signal in this comparison. If reasoning mode is mission-critical, validate it against the provider endpoint because model-level support and API-level exposure can differ.
Where can I run DeepSeek V3 and o4-mini?
DeepSeek V3 is available on DeepInfra, Fireworks AI, DeepSeek Platform, Microsoft Foundry, and OpenRouter. o4-mini is available on OpenAI API, OpenRouter, OpenAI Batch API, and Replicate API. Provider coverage can affect latency, region availability, compliance posture, and fallback options.
Continue comparing
Last reviewed: 2026-04-24. Data sourced from public model cards and provider documentation.