o3 Mini vs Molmo 72B

Compare o3 Mini and Molmo 72B: 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 o3 Mini Molmo 72B
CategoryReasoningVision
Parameters~200B72B
Context Window200K128K
Input Price$0.04/1M tokens$0.04/1M tokens
Output Price$0.16/1M tokens$0.08/1M tokens
Latency~1000ms~350ms

Choose o3 Mini when:

  • ✓ Structured analysis
  • ✓ Quick reasoning
  • ✓ Scoring tasks
Key Strengths:

Fast reasoning, Good logic chains, Cost-efficient

Choose Molmo 72B when:

  • ✓ Visual grounding
  • ✓ Object detection
  • ✓ Research
Key Strengths:

Fully open, Good pointing/grounding, Transparent

Verdict: o3 Mini vs Molmo 72B

For cost efficiency, Molmo 72B wins at $0.04/1M input tokens. For speed, o3 Mini is faster at ~1000ms. o3 Mini excels at Structured analysis while Molmo 72B is better for Visual grounding. Both are available on XALEN through a single API — try them in the Playground to see which fits your workload.

Detailed Analysis

Pricing Comparison

o3 Mini costs $0.04/1M input tokens and $0.16/1M output tokens. Molmo 72B costs $0.04 input and $0.08 output. Both models are similarly priced. XALEN offers batch processing at 50% discount on both models.

Performance & Context

o3 Mini has a 200K context window with ~1000ms latency. Molmo 72B offers 128K context at ~350ms. o3 Mini has the larger context window.

Best For

o3 Mini (Reasoning) is optimized for: Structured analysis, Quick reasoning, Scoring tasks. Molmo 72B (Vision) works best for: Visual grounding, Object detection, Research.

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 o3 Mini
response_a = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="o3-mini",
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Your question here"}]
)

# Use Molmo 72B
response_b = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="molmo-72b",
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Your question here"}]
)

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Get API Key Try in Playground

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is better, o3 Mini or Molmo 72B?

o3 Mini (Reasoning, ~200B) offers Fast reasoning. Molmo 72B (Vision, 72B) offers Fully open. Choose o3 Mini for Structured analysis or Molmo 72B for Visual grounding.

How much does o3 Mini cost vs Molmo 72B?

o3 Mini: $0.04/1M input, $0.16/1M output. Molmo 72B: $0.04/1M input, $0.08/1M 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 o3 Mini and Molmo 72B 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.