GPT-6.1 Terra vs MiniMax M3

vs

Which one, when

For prompts up to 272000 input tokens, minimax-m3 costs less, accepts video and supports much longer responses. Choose gpt-6.1-terra when structured outputs or its slightly larger context window matter more than generation cost.

Pricing

GPT-6.1 Terra MiniMax M3 Δ
Input / 1M tokens $1 $0.3 3.3×
Output / 1M tokens $5 $1.2 4.2×
Cache read / 1M tokens $0.05 $0.06 0.83×
Cache write 1.25x (30m) / 2.5x (12h) no separate charge -

Rates from the live catalogue at build time; each model page carries the current rate card.

Where they sit · input price per 1M tokens across all 80 chat models on this billing unit (log scale)

GPT-6.1 Terra · $1 MiniMax M3 · $0.3
$0.05 · Qwen3 VL Flash $30 · GPT-5.4 Pro

Capabilities

GPT-6.1 Terra MiniMax M3
Tool calling yes yes
Thinking control configurable configurable
Structured output yes -
Prompt caching implicit + explicit implicit (automatic)
Cache lifetime at least 30m by default, 12h option on the Responses API not published
Minimum cached prefix 1,024 tokens 512 tokens

Specs

GPT-6.1 Terra MiniMax M3
Input modalities text image text image video
Output modalities text text
Released 2026-10-26 2026-06-01
Knowledge cutoff 2026-06 -
Context window 1.1M 1M
Max output 128K 524K
Thinking parameter reasoning.effort
  • thinking.type
  • reasoning_split
Accepted values
reasoning.effort
  • none
  • low
  • medium
  • high
  • xhigh
  • max
thinking.type
  • adaptive
  • disabled
reasoning_split
  • boolean
Default medium adaptive: thinking on, with the model deciding when extra reasoning helps

Specs are transcribed from each vendor’s documentation; a row a vendor does not publish is left out rather than inferred. Full sources: GPT-6.1 Terra · MiniMax M3

One prompt, both models, measured through the gateway

PROMPT Explain to a CFO, in exactly three sentences, why our LLM bill doubled after we enabled reasoning. CHECK exactly 3 sentences

GPT-6.1 Terra passed · 3 sentences

Enabling reasoning caused the model to process additional internal tokens before producing each answer, even though those tokens are not visible to users. Those tokens are generally billable, increasing the cost per request and potentially doubling the bill even if usage stayed the same. To confirm the cause, compare request counts, model pricing, and token usage—including reasoning tokens—before and after the change.

out 196 tok (+115 thinking) latency 4.6 s

MiniMax M3 passed · 3 sentences

Reasoning models don't just answer — they first generate extensive internal "thinking" tokens to work through the problem step-by-step, and you're billed for all of those tokens even though users never see them. A query that previously cost ~200 tokens may now cost 2,000–10,000 once reasoning is enabled, multiplying per-query spend by roughly 5–50x while the visible output stayed the same size — that's the doubling. The lever is tuning: cap reasoning effort on simple queries, cache the reasoning traces, and reserve the full reasoning model for only your hardest 10–20% of requests, which typically restores 60–80% of the savings.

out 764 tok (+629 thinking) latency 3.5 s

Instruction following (exactly three sentences, so countable), audience shaping (CFO register), and the hidden-thinking billing gap the token meters below expose.

PROMPT This function is supposed to return the longest run of consecutive equal items, but callers report it is off by one on single-element inputs and misses runs that end at the last index. Fix it and explain the bug in one paragraph. CHECK fix passes tests

GPT-6.1 Terra passed · 8/8 cases

```python def longest_run(xs): if len(xs) == 0: return 0 best = cur = 1 for i in range(1, len(xs)): if xs[i] == xs[i - 1]: cur += 1 else: cur = 1 best = max(best, cur) return best ``` The original code counted matching *adjacent pairs* rather than items, so every nonempty run was undercounted by one, including a single-element input. It did update `best` for matches at the last index, but still undercounted those runs. The fix starts each run at length one and updates `best` as the run grows.

out 331 tok (+172 thinking) latency 6.3 s

MiniMax M3 passed · 8/8 cases

The bug is that the loop starts at index 1 and treats `cur` as the number of *equal transitions* rather than the run length, so a run of *k* consecutive equal items is reported as `k − 1`, and a single-element list (where the loop body never executes) returns 0 instead of 1. A correct version tracks the actual run length by seeding `cur = 1` and resetting it to 1 (not 0) on a mismatch: ```python def longest_run(xs): if not xs: return 0 best = cur = 1 for i in range(1, len(xs)): if xs[i] == xs[i - 1]: cur += 1 else: cur = 1 if cur > best: best = cur return best ``` Now `[5]` returns `1`, `[1,1,1]` returns `3`, and a run like `[1,2,2,2]` that ends at the last index is correctly captured as `3` because `cur` is updated before `best` is compared on every iteration, including the final one.

out 845 tok (+596 thinking) latency 3.5 s

Whether the fix is actually correct (runnable), explanation density, and token efficiency on a bounded task.

PROMPT Extract a JSON object with fields {company, quarter, revenue_usd_m, growth_pct, guidance} from this text. Use null for anything not stated; add no other fields. CHECK valid JSON, schema exact

GPT-6.1 Terra passed · 5/5 fields, guidance "Withheld pending the Q4 close"

{ "company": "Meridian Robotics", "quarter": "September quarter", "revenue_usd_m": null, "growth_pct": null, "guidance": "Withheld pending the Q4 close" }

out 317 tok (+261 thinking) latency 6.9 s

MiniMax M3 passed · 5/5 fields, guidance null

```json { "company": null, "quarter": "Q3", "revenue_usd_m": 412, "growth_pct": null, "guidance": null } ```

out 1002 tok (+955 thinking) latency 3.6 s

Schema obedience (no invented fields), hallucination pressure (guidance is explicitly withheld), and structured-output path differences.

PROMPT Write a 120-word product announcement for an API gateway feature that caches prompts across providers. Forbidden words: "seamless", "unlock", "game-changer", "revolutionize", "empower". Exactly one sentence must be a question. CHECK 120 words, 0 banned words

GPT-6.1 Terra passed · 120 words, 0 banned, 1 question

Meet Prompt Cache, a new API gateway feature that stores reusable prompts across providers, helping teams reduce latency and control costs without changing how they build. When a request matches a cached prompt, the gateway retrieves the stored result instead of sending the same work again. Need to route traffic between models or vendors? Prompt Cache works across supported providers, giving your applications a consistent caching layer as your stack evolves. Set expiration policies, monitor cache performance, and choose which requests qualify through familiar gateway controls. Your team can spend less time repeating requests and more time improving the experiences customers rely on. Start using Prompt Cache today and make every request work harder for your application and your budget.

out 579 tok (+440 thinking) latency 9.1 s

MiniMax M3 passed · 121 words, 0 banned, 1 question

Introducing PromptCache, our intelligent caching layer for the API gateway. Tired of paying twice for identical requests? The feature stores prompt-response pairs across every connected provider, returning cached results instead of hitting costly endpoints. Deployment requires only a single configuration flag, and semantic similarity detection happens automatically. Latency drops up to 70% on repeated traffic while costs follow the same downward curve. Developers access detailed cache hit metrics, eviction logs, and provider breakdowns through the dashboard. Whether routing to OpenAI, Anthropic, or local models, every cached token saves time and money. The cache respects TTL policies, supports manual purging, and encrypts stored content. Available today for Pro and Enterprise tiers—enable PromptCache on existing endpoints and watch inference bills shrink immediately.

out 2808 tok (+2656 thinking) latency 6.0 s

Constraint obedience (word budget, banned-word list, the single question), style fingerprint, and length control.

Switch between them with one line

Both ids are in every tab below; the highlighted pair of lines is the only edit. Same endpoint, same key, same request shape.

from openai import OpenAI

client = OpenAI(
    base_url="https://synthorai.io/v1",
    api_key="sk-syn-...",
)

resp = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="gpt-6.1-terra",
    # model="minimax-m3",  # uncomment this line, comment the one above
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Summarize this diff"}],
    reasoning_effort="medium",
)
print(resp.choices[0].message.content)

Get your API key →

FAQ

Which is cheaper, GPT-6.1 Terra or MiniMax M3?

MiniMax M3 is cheaper on the "Input / 1M tokens" row ($0.3 vs $1, 3.3× apart). Other rows may point the other way; the table above carries the full rate card, and real cost depends on your mix.

Can I A/B test GPT-6.1 Terra against MiniMax M3 without two integrations?

Yes. Both are served through the same OpenAI-compatible endpoint with one API key. Switching is a one-line change to the model id, so you can route a fraction of traffic to each and compare bills directly.

Do GPT-6.1 Terra and MiniMax M3 support prompt caching?

Yes. Both bill cache reads below their input rate, so warm-prefix workloads cost less than the list rates suggest. The exact cache-read rows are in the pricing table above.

Related comparisons

From our measured studies