Pixtral 12B vs Molmo 72B

Compare Pixtral 12B 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 Pixtral 12B Molmo 72B
CategoryVisionVision
Parameters12B72B
Context Window128K128K
Input Price$0.02/1M tokens$0.04/1M tokens
Output Price$0.04/1M tokens$0.08/1M tokens
Latency~200ms~350ms

Choose Pixtral 12B when:

  • ✓ Simple image tasks
  • ✓ Classification
  • ✓ OCR
Key Strengths:

Low cost vision, Fast, Compact

Choose Molmo 72B when:

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

Fully open, Good pointing/grounding, Transparent

Verdict: Pixtral 12B vs Molmo 72B

For cost efficiency, Pixtral 12B wins at $0.02/1M input tokens. For speed, Pixtral 12B is faster at ~200ms. Pixtral 12B excels at Simple image tasks 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

Pixtral 12B costs $0.02/1M input tokens and $0.04/1M output tokens. Molmo 72B costs $0.04 input and $0.08 output. Pixtral 12B is 2.0x cheaper on input tokens. XALEN offers batch processing at 50% discount on both models.

Performance & Context

Pixtral 12B has a 128K context window with ~200ms latency. Molmo 72B offers 128K context at ~350ms. Both have identical context windows.

Best For

Pixtral 12B (Vision) is optimized for: Simple image tasks, Classification, OCR. 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 Pixtral 12B
response_a = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="pixtral-12b",
    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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Frequently Asked Questions

Which is better, Pixtral 12B or Molmo 72B?

Pixtral 12B (Vision, 12B) offers Low cost vision. Molmo 72B (Vision, 72B) offers Fully open. Choose Pixtral 12B for Simple image tasks or Molmo 72B for Visual grounding.

How much does Pixtral 12B cost vs Molmo 72B?

Pixtral 12B: $0.02/1M input, $0.04/1M 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 Pixtral 12B 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.