Llama 3.1 405B vs Multilingual E5 Large

Compare Llama 3.1 405B and Multilingual E5 Large: pricing, performance, context window, latency, and best use cases. Side-by-side comparison on XALEN.

Updated 2026-05-21 · By Abhishek Raj · Our methodology

All Meta models All Microsoft models What is an LLM API? Python Quickstart What is inference?
Feature Llama 3.1 405B Multilingual E5 Large
CategoryOpen SourceEmbedding
Parameters405B560M
Context Window128K512
Input Price$0.08/1M tokens$0.001/1M tokens
Output Price$0.14/1M tokensN/A/1M tokens
Latency~600ms~20ms

Choose Llama 3.1 405B when:

  • ✓ Premium tasks
  • ✓ Research
  • ✓ Fine-tuning base
Key Strengths:

Largest open model, Highest open-source quality

Choose Multilingual E5 Large when:

  • ✓ Multilingual search
  • ✓ Cross-language RAG
  • ✓ Global apps
Key Strengths:

100+ languages, Strong multilingual, Good quality

Verdict: Llama 3.1 405B vs Multilingual E5 Large

For cost efficiency, Multilingual E5 Large wins at $0.001/1M input tokens. For speed, Multilingual E5 Large is faster at ~20ms. Llama 3.1 405B excels at Premium tasks while Multilingual E5 Large is better for Multilingual search. Both are available on XALEN through a single API — try them in the Playground to see which fits your workload.

Detailed Analysis

Pricing Comparison

Llama 3.1 405B costs $0.08/1M input tokens and $0.14/1M output tokens. Multilingual E5 Large costs $0.001 input and N/A output. Multilingual E5 Large is 80.0x cheaper on input tokens. XALEN offers batch processing at 50% discount on both models.

Performance & Context

Llama 3.1 405B has a 128K context window with ~600ms latency. Multilingual E5 Large offers 512 context at ~20ms. Llama 3.1 405B has the larger context window.

Best For

Llama 3.1 405B (Open Source) is optimized for: Premium tasks, Research, Fine-tuning base. Multilingual E5 Large (Embedding) works best for: Multilingual search, Cross-language RAG, Global apps.

Try Both on XALEN

Both models are available through XALEN's OpenAI-compatible API. Switch between them by changing the model parameter:

from xalen import XALEN

client = XALEN(api_key="xln_test_YOUR_KEY")

# Use Llama 3.1 405B
response_a = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="llama-3-1-405b",
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Your question here"}]
)

# Use Multilingual E5 Large
response_b = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="multilingual-e5-large",
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Your question here"}]
)

Start Building with XALEN

200+ AI models. One API. Pay-as-you-go.

Get API Key Try in Playground

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is better, Llama 3.1 405B or Multilingual E5 Large?

Llama 3.1 405B (Open Source, 405B) offers Largest open model. Multilingual E5 Large (Embedding, 560M) offers 100+ languages. Choose Llama 3.1 405B for Premium tasks or Multilingual E5 Large for Multilingual search.

How much does Llama 3.1 405B cost vs Multilingual E5 Large?

Llama 3.1 405B: $0.08/1M input, $0.14/1M output. Multilingual E5 Large: $0.001/1M input, N/A/1M output. Both available on XALEN with batch processing at 50% discount.

Can I use both models on XALEN?

Yes. XALEN provides 200+ models through a single OpenAI-compatible API. Switch between Llama 3.1 405B and Multilingual E5 Large by changing the model parameter. No code changes needed.

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Last updated: 2026-05-21. Pricing and specifications may change. Check pricing page for latest rates.