Falcon 180B vs Mistral Small 4
Falcon 180B (2023) and Mistral Small 4 (2026) are general-purpose language models from Technology Innovation Institute (TII) and MistralAI. Falcon 180B ships a not-yet-sourced context window, while Mistral Small 4 ships a 256K-token context window. On Google-Proof Q&A, Mistral Small 4 leads by 18.0 pts. This comparison covers specs, pricing, capabilities, benchmarks, provider availability, and production fit. It focuses on practical selection signals rather than broad model-family marketing.
Mistral Small 4 is safer overall; choose Falcon 180B when provider fit matters.
Decision scorecard
Local evidence first| Signal | Falcon 180B | Mistral Small 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Decision fit | Coding and Classification | RAG, Agents, and Long context |
| Context window | — | 256K |
| Cheapest output | - | $0.6/1M tokens |
| Provider routes | 2 tracked | 3 tracked |
| Shared benchmarks | 1 rows | Google-Proof Q&A leader |
Decision tradeoffs
- Local decision data tags Falcon 180B for Coding and Classification.
- Mistral Small 4 leads the largest shared benchmark signal on Google-Proof Q&A by 18.0 points.
- Mistral Small 4 has the larger context window for long prompts, retrieval packs, or transcript analysis.
- Mistral Small 4 has broader tracked provider coverage for fallback and procurement flexibility.
- Mistral Small 4 uniquely exposes Vision, Multimodal, and Function calling in local model data.
- Local decision data tags Mistral Small 4 for RAG, Agents, and Long context.
Monthly cost at traffic
Estimate token spend from the cheapest tracked input and output prices on this page.
Falcon 180B
Unavailable
No complete token price in local provider data
Mistral Small 4
$270
Cheapest tracked route: OpenRouter
Cost delta unavailable until both models have sourced input and output token prices.
Switch friction
- No overlapping tracked provider route is sourced for Falcon 180B and Mistral Small 4; plan for SDK, billing, or endpoint changes.
- Mistral Small 4 adds Vision, Multimodal, and Function calling in local capability data.
- No overlapping tracked provider route is sourced for Mistral Small 4 and Falcon 180B; plan for SDK, billing, or endpoint changes.
- Check replacement coverage for Vision, Multimodal, and Function calling before moving production traffic.
Specs
| Specification | ||
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2023-11-28 | 2026-03-16 |
| Context window | — | 256K |
| Parameters | 180B | 119B (6.5B active) |
| Architecture | decoder only | moe |
| License | Apache 2.0 | Apache 2.0 |
| Knowledge cutoff | - | 2025-06 |
Pricing and availability
| Pricing attribute | Falcon 180B | Mistral Small 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Input price | - | $0.15/1M tokens |
| Output price | - | $0.6/1M tokens |
| Providers |
Capabilities
| Capability | Falcon 180B | Mistral Small 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Vision | No | Yes |
| Multimodal | No | Yes |
| Reasoning | No | No |
| Function calling | No | Yes |
| Tool use | No | Yes |
| Structured outputs | No | No |
| Code execution | No | No |
Benchmarks
| Benchmark | Falcon 180B | Mistral Small 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Google-Proof Q&A | 58.9 | 76.9 |
Deep dive
On shared benchmark coverage, Google-Proof Q&A has Falcon 180B at 58.9 and Mistral Small 4 at 76.9, with Mistral Small 4 ahead by 18.0 points. The largest visible gap is 18.0 points on Google-Proof Q&A, 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: Mistral Small 4, multimodal input: Mistral Small 4, function calling: Mistral Small 4, and tool use: Mistral Small 4. Both models share the core language-model surface, 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.
Pricing coverage is uneven: Falcon 180B has no token price sourced yet and Mistral Small 4 has $0.15/1M input tokens. Provider availability is 2 tracked routes versus 3. Treat unknown pricing as an integration gap, then verify the route you will actually call before estimating production spend.
Choose Falcon 180B when provider fit are central to the workload. Choose Mistral Small 4 when vision-heavy evaluation and broader provider choice are more important. For production, rerun your own prompts through the exact provider, region, and tool stack you plan to ship.
FAQ
Is Falcon 180B or Mistral Small 4 open source?
Falcon 180B is listed under Apache 2.0. Mistral Small 4 is listed under Apache 2.0. 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, Falcon 180B or Mistral Small 4?
Mistral Small 4 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.
Which is better for multimodal input, Falcon 180B or Mistral Small 4?
Mistral Small 4 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 function calling, Falcon 180B or Mistral Small 4?
Mistral Small 4 has the clearer documented function calling signal in this comparison. If function calling is mission-critical, validate it against the provider endpoint because model-level support and API-level exposure can differ.
Which is better for tool use, Falcon 180B or Mistral Small 4?
Mistral Small 4 has the clearer documented tool use signal in this comparison. If tool use is mission-critical, validate it against the provider endpoint because model-level support and API-level exposure can differ.
Where can I run Falcon 180B and Mistral Small 4?
Falcon 180B is available on Alibaba Cloud PAI-EAS and Scale AI GenAI Platform. Mistral Small 4 is available on OpenRouter, NVIDIA NIM, and Mistral AI Studio. Provider coverage can affect latency, region availability, compliance posture, and fallback options.
Continue comparing
Last reviewed: 2026-05-19. Data sourced from public model cards and provider documentation.