Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct vs Together AI - Mistral Small 3
Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct (2025) and Together AI - Mistral Small 3 (2026) are compact production models from AI at Meta and MistralAI. Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct ships a 328K-token context window, while Together AI - Mistral Small 3 ships a 33K-token context window. On pricing, Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct costs $0.08/1M input tokens versus $0.1/1M for the alternative. This comparison covers specs, pricing, capabilities, benchmarks, provider availability, and production fit.
Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct fits 10x more tokens; pick it for long-context work and Together AI - Mistral Small 3 for tighter calls.
Specs
| Specification | ||
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2025-04-05 | 2026-01-20 |
| Context window | 328K | 33K |
| Parameters | 17B | — |
| Architecture | mixture of experts | decoder only |
| License | Open Source | Open Source |
| Knowledge cutoff | - | - |
Pricing and availability
| Pricing attribute | Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct | Together AI - Mistral Small 3 |
|---|---|---|
| Input price | $0.08/1M tokens | $0.1/1M tokens |
| Output price | $0.3/1M tokens | $0.3/1M tokens |
| Providers |
Capabilities
| Capability | Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct | Together AI - Mistral Small 3 |
|---|---|---|
| Vision | No | No |
| Multimodal | No | No |
| Reasoning | No | No |
| Function calling | No | Yes |
| Tool use | No | Yes |
| Structured outputs | Yes | Yes |
| Code execution | 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 - Mistral Small 3 and tool use: Together AI - Mistral Small 3. 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, Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct lists $0.08/1M input and $0.3/1M output tokens, while Together AI - Mistral Small 3 lists $0.1/1M input and $0.3/1M output tokens on the cheapest tracked provider. A 70/30 input-output blend puts Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct lower by about $0.01 per million blended tokens. Availability is 8 providers versus 1, so concentration risk also matters.
Choose Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct when long-context analysis, larger context windows, and lower input-token cost are central to the workload. Choose Together AI - Mistral Small 3 when provider fit are more important. For production, rerun your own prompts through the exact provider, region, and tool stack you plan to ship. This keeps the decision grounded in measurable tradeoffs instead of brand-level assumptions.
FAQ
Which has a larger context window, Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct or Together AI - Mistral Small 3?
Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct supports 328K tokens, while Together AI - Mistral Small 3 supports 33K tokens. That gap matters most for long documents, large codebases, retrieval-heavy agents, and conversations where earlier context must remain visible.
Which is cheaper, Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct or Together AI - Mistral Small 3?
Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct is cheaper on tracked token pricing. Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct costs $0.08/1M input and $0.3/1M output tokens. Together AI - Mistral Small 3 costs $0.1/1M input and $0.3/1M output tokens. Provider discounts or batch pricing can still change the final bill.
Is Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct or Together AI - Mistral Small 3 open source?
Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct is listed under Open Source. Together AI - Mistral Small 3 is listed under Open Source. 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, Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct or Together AI - Mistral Small 3?
Together AI - Mistral Small 3 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, Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct or Together AI - Mistral Small 3?
Together AI - Mistral Small 3 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 Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct and Together AI - Mistral Small 3?
Llama 4 Scout 17B-16E Instruct is available on OpenRouter, Together AI, Fireworks AI, DeepInfra, and GCP Vertex AI. Together AI - Mistral Small 3 is available on Together AI. Provider coverage can affect latency, region availability, compliance posture, and fallback options.
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Last reviewed: 2026-05-11. Data sourced from public model cards and provider documentation.