Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite vs Llama 2 70B Chat
Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite (2025) and Llama 2 70B Chat (2023) are compact production models from AI at Meta. Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite ships a 8k-token context window, while Llama 2 70B Chat ships a 4k-token context window. This comparison covers specs, pricing, API access, capabilities, benchmarks, input and output token costs, and production fit for coding and agent workloads.
Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite is ~400% cheaper at $0.10/1M; pay for Llama 2 70B Chat only for provider fit.
Decision scorecard
Local evidence first| Signal | Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite | Llama 2 70B Chat |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | tool-calling agents | provider-routed production |
| Decision fit | Agents, Classification, and JSON / Tool use | Classification and JSON / Tool use |
| Context window | 8k | 4k |
| Cheapest output | $0.10/1M tokens | $1.50/1M tokens |
| Provider routes | 1 tracked | 14 tracked |
| Shared benchmarks | 0 rows | 0 rows |
Decision tradeoffs
- Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite has the larger context window for long prompts, retrieval packs, or transcript analysis.
- Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite has the lower cheapest tracked output price at $0.10/1M tokens.
- Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite uniquely exposes Function calling and Tool use in local model data.
- Local decision data tags Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite for Agents, Classification, and JSON / Tool use.
- Llama 2 70B Chat has broader tracked provider coverage for fallback and procurement flexibility.
- Local decision data tags Llama 2 70B Chat for Classification and JSON / Tool use.
Monthly cost at traffic
Estimate token spend from the cheapest tracked input and output route or tier on this page.
Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite
$105
Cheapest tracked route/tier: Together AI
Llama 2 70B Chat
$775
Cheapest tracked route/tier: Databricks Foundation Model Serving
Estimated monthly gap: $670. Batch, cache, alternate speed tiers, and negotiated pricing are excluded from this local estimate.
Switch friction
- Provider overlap exists on Together AI; start route-level A/B tests there.
- Llama 2 70B Chat is $1.40/1M tokens higher on cheapest tracked output pricing, so quality gains need to justify the spend.
- Check replacement coverage for Function calling and Tool use before moving production traffic.
- Provider overlap exists on Together AI; start route-level A/B tests there.
- Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite is $1.40/1M tokens lower on cheapest tracked output pricing before cache, batch, or negotiated discounts.
- Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite adds Function calling and Tool use in local capability data.
Specs
| Specification | ||
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2025-07-15 | 2023-07-18 |
| Context window | 8k | 4k |
| Parameters | 8B | 70B |
| Architecture | decoder only | decoder only |
| License | Llama 3 Community | Llama 2 Community |
| Openness | Open weights | Open weights |
| Commercial use | Commercial use with conditions | Commercial use with conditions |
| Knowledge cutoff | 2024-03 | - |
Pricing and availability
| Pricing attribute | Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite | Llama 2 70B Chat |
|---|---|---|
| Input price | $0.10/1M tokens | $0.50/1M tokens |
| Output price | $0.10/1M tokens | $1.50/1M tokens |
| Providers |
Capabilities
| Capability | Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite | Llama 2 70B Chat |
|---|---|---|
| Vision | No | No |
| Multimodal | No | No |
| Reasoning | No | No |
| Function calling | Yes | No |
| Tool use | Yes | No |
| Structured outputs | Yes | Yes |
| Code execution | No | No |
| IDE integration | No | No |
| Computer use | No | No |
| Parallel agents | No | No |
Benchmarks
No shared benchmark rows are currently sourced for this pair.
Deep dive
The capability footprint differs most on function calling: Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite and tool use: Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite. Both models share 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, Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite lists $0.10/1M input and $0.10/1M output tokens on the cheapest tracked provider, while Llama 2 70B Chat lists $0.50/1M input and $1.50/1M output tokens on the cheapest tracked provider. A 70/30 input-output blend puts Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite lower by about $0.70 per million blended tokens. Availability is 1 providers versus 14, so concentration risk also matters.
Choose Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite when long-context analysis, larger context windows, and lower input-token cost are central to the workload. Choose Llama 2 70B Chat when provider fit 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
Which has a larger context window, Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite or Llama 2 70B Chat?
Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite supports 8k tokens, while Llama 2 70B Chat supports 4k tokens. That gap matters most for long documents, large codebases, retrieval-heavy agents, and conversations where earlier context must remain visible.
Which is cheaper, Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite or Llama 2 70B Chat?
Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite is cheaper on tracked token pricing. Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite costs $0.10/1M input and $0.10/1M output tokens. Llama 2 70B Chat costs $0.50/1M input and $1.50/1M output tokens. Provider discounts or batch pricing can still change the final bill.
Is Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite or Llama 2 70B Chat open source?
Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite is listed under Llama 3 Community. Llama 2 70B Chat is listed under Llama 2 Community. 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 function calling, Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite or Llama 2 70B Chat?
Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite 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, Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite or Llama 2 70B Chat?
Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite 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 Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite and Llama 2 70B Chat?
Together AI - Llama 3 8B Lite is available on Together AI. Llama 2 70B Chat is available on Databricks Foundation Model Serving, Microsoft Foundry, GCP Vertex AI, Alibaba Cloud PAI-EAS, and AWS Bedrock. Provider coverage can affect latency, region availability, compliance posture, and fallback options.
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Last reviewed: 2026-05-19. Data sourced from public model cards and provider documentation.