Llama 3 70B Instruct vs Llama 3.1 405B
Llama 3 70B Instruct (2024) and Llama 3.1 405B (2024) are compact production models from AI at Meta. Llama 3 70B Instruct ships a 8k-token context window, while Llama 3.1 405B ships a 128k-token context window. On HumanEval, Llama 3.1 405B leads by 16.4 pts. This comparison covers specs, pricing, API access, capabilities, benchmarks, input and output token costs, and production fit for coding and agent workloads.
Llama 3.1 405B fits 16x more tokens; pick it for long-context work and Llama 3 70B Instruct for tighter calls.
Decision scorecard
Local evidence first| Signal | Llama 3 70B Instruct | Llama 3.1 405B |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | provider-routed production | general production evaluation |
| Decision fit | Coding, Classification, and JSON / Tool use | Coding, Long context, and Classification |
| Context window | 8k | 128k |
| Cheapest output | $0.40/1M tokens | - |
| Provider routes | 18 tracked | 0 tracked |
| Shared benchmarks | 2 shared | HumanEval leader |
Decision tradeoffs
- Llama 3 70B Instruct has broader tracked provider coverage for fallback and route flexibility.
- Llama 3 70B Instruct uniquely exposes Structured outputs in local model data.
- Local decision data tags Llama 3 70B Instruct for Coding, Classification, and JSON / Tool use.
- Llama 3.1 405B holds a shared-benchmark lead on HumanEval, ahead by 16.4 points.
- Llama 3.1 405B has the larger context window for long prompts, retrieval packs, or transcript analysis.
- Local decision data tags Llama 3.1 405B for Coding, Long context, and Classification.
Monthly cost at traffic
Estimate token spend from the cheapest tracked input and output route or tier on this page.
Llama 3 70B Instruct
$420
Cheapest tracked route/tier: Hyperbolic AI Inference
Llama 3.1 405B
Unavailable
No complete token price in local provider data
Cost delta unavailable until both models have sourced input and output token prices.
Switch friction
- No overlapping tracked provider route is sourced for Llama 3 70B Instruct and Llama 3.1 405B; plan for SDK, billing, or endpoint changes.
- Check replacement coverage for Structured outputs before moving production traffic.
- No overlapping tracked provider route is sourced for Llama 3.1 405B and Llama 3 70B Instruct; plan for SDK, billing, or endpoint changes.
- Llama 3 70B Instruct adds Structured outputs in local capability data.
Specs
| Specification | ||
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2024-04-18 | 2024-07-23 |
| Context window | 8k | 128k |
| Parameters | 70B | 405B |
| Architecture | Decoder Only | Decoder Only |
| License | Llama 3 Community | Llama 3 Community |
| Openness | Open weights | Open weights |
| Weights | Available | Available |
| Code | Unknown | Unknown |
| Commercial use | Commercial use: conditional | Commercial use: conditional |
| Knowledge cutoff | 2023-12 | 2023-12 |
Pricing and availability
| Pricing attribute | Llama 3 70B Instruct | Llama 3.1 405B |
|---|---|---|
| Input price | $0.40/1M tokens | - |
| Output price | $0.40/1M tokens | - |
| Providers | - |
Capabilities
| Capability | Llama 3 70B Instruct | Llama 3.1 405B |
|---|---|---|
| Vision | No | No |
| Multimodal | No | No |
| Reasoning | No | No |
| JSON / Tool use | No | No |
| Structured outputs | Yes | No |
| Code execution | No | No |
| IDE integration | No | No |
| Computer use | No | No |
| Parallel agents | No | No |
Benchmarks
| Benchmark | Llama 3 70B Instruct | Llama 3.1 405B |
|---|---|---|
| HumanEval | 72.6 | 89.0 |
| Massive Multitask Language Understanding | 82.0 | 88.6 |
Continue comparing
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Last reviewed: 2026-10-09. Data sourced from public model cards and provider documentation.