Mistral Small 3.1 vs Command R

Compare Mistral Small 3.1 and Command R: 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 Command R
CategoryCompactOpen Source
Parameters24B35B
Context Window128K128K
Input Price$0.02/1M tokens$0.03/1M tokens
Output Price$0.04/1M tokens$0.06/1M tokens
Latency~120ms~250ms

Choose Mistral Small 3.1 when:

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

128K context, Low cost, Fast

Choose Command R when:

  • ✓ RAG applications
  • ✓ Q&A systems
  • ✓ Content generation
Key Strengths:

Good RAG, Cost-efficient, 128K context

Verdict: Mistral Small 3.1 vs Command R

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 Command R is better for RAG applications. 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. Command R costs $0.03 input and $0.06 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. Command R offers 128K context at ~250ms. Both have identical context windows.

Best For

Mistral Small 3.1 (Compact) is optimized for: Lightweight tasks, Classification, Simple generation. Command R (Open Source) works best for: RAG applications, Q&A systems, Content generation.

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 Command R
response_b = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="command-r",
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Your question here"}]
)

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which is better, Mistral Small 3.1 or Command R?

Mistral Small 3.1 (Compact, 24B) offers 128K context. Command R (Open Source, 35B) offers Good RAG. Choose Mistral Small 3.1 for Lightweight tasks or Command R for RAG applications.

How much does Mistral Small 3.1 cost vs Command R?

Mistral Small 3.1: $0.02/1M input, $0.04/1M output. Command R: $0.03/1M input, $0.06/1M 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 Command R 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.