Mistral Small 3.1 vs Codestral

Compare Mistral Small 3.1 and Codestral: pricing, performance, context window, latency, and best use cases. Side-by-side comparison on XALEN.

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

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Feature Mistral Small 3.1 Codestral
CategoryCompactCode
Parameters24B22B
Context Window128K256K
Input Price$0.02/1M tokens$0.03/1M tokens
Output Price$0.04/1M tokens$0.05/1M tokens
Latency~120ms~200ms

Choose Mistral Small 3.1 when:

  • ✓ Lightweight tasks
  • ✓ Classification
  • ✓ Simple generation
Key Strengths:

128K context, Low cost, Fast

Choose Codestral when:

  • ✓ API integration code
  • ✓ SDK generation
  • ✓ Code review
Key Strengths:

256K context for code, Strong code generation, Good APIs

Verdict: Mistral Small 3.1 vs Codestral

For cost efficiency, Mistral Small 3.1 wins at $0.02/1M input tokens. For speed, Mistral Small 3.1 is faster at ~120ms. Mistral Small 3.1 excels at Lightweight tasks while Codestral is better for API integration code. Both are available on XALEN through a single API — try them in the Playground to see which fits your workload.

Detailed Analysis

Pricing Comparison

Mistral Small 3.1 costs $0.02/1M input tokens and $0.04/1M output tokens. Codestral costs $0.03 input and $0.05 output. Mistral Small 3.1 is 1.5x cheaper on input tokens. XALEN offers batch processing at 50% discount on both models.

Performance & Context

Mistral Small 3.1 has a 128K context window with ~120ms latency. Codestral offers 256K context at ~200ms. Codestral has the larger context window.

Best For

Mistral Small 3.1 (Compact) is optimized for: Lightweight tasks, Classification, Simple generation. Codestral (Code) works best for: API integration code, SDK generation, Code review.

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 Mistral Small 3.1
response_a = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="mistral-small-3-1",
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Your question here"}]
)

# Use Codestral
response_b = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="codestral",
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Your question here"}]
)

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Get API Key Try in Playground

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is better, Mistral Small 3.1 or Codestral?

Mistral Small 3.1 (Compact, 24B) offers 128K context. Codestral (Code, 22B) offers 256K context for code. Choose Mistral Small 3.1 for Lightweight tasks or Codestral for API integration code.

How much does Mistral Small 3.1 cost vs Codestral?

Mistral Small 3.1: $0.02/1M input, $0.04/1M output. Codestral: $0.03/1M input, $0.05/1M 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 Mistral Small 3.1 and Codestral 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.