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Claude Sonnet 4.6 vs o3 Mini: Which Is Better? [2026 Comparison]
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  1. Home
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  3. Claude Sonnet 4.6 vs o3 Mini
Updated Feb 17, 2026

Claude Sonnet 4.6 vs o3 Mini

Compare Claude Sonnet 4.6 by Anthropic against o3 Mini by OpenAI, context windows of 1.0M vs 64K, tested across 53 shared challenges. Updated April 2026.

Which is better, Claude Sonnet 4.6 or o3 Mini?

Claude Sonnet 4.6 and o3 Mini are both competitive models. Claude Sonnet 4.6 costs $3/M input tokens vs $1.1/M for o3 Mini. Context windows: 1000K vs 64K tokens. Compare their real outputs side by side below.

Key Differences Between Claude Sonnet 4.6 and o3 Mini

Claude Sonnet 4.6 is made by anthropic while o3 Mini is from openai. Claude Sonnet 4.6 has a 1000K token context window compared to o3 Mini's 64K. On pricing, Claude Sonnet 4.6 costs $3/M input tokens vs $1.1/M for o3 Mini.

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Claude Sonnet 4.6vso3 Mini

48 fights queued

Claude Sonnet 4.6 logo

Why Claude Sonnet 4.6?

15.6x more context1.0M
14 months newerFeb 2026
o3 Mini logo

Why o3 Mini?

3.3x cheaper overall$1.10/M in · $4.40/M out
Claude Sonnet 4.6o3 Mini
Input price
$3.00/M
$1.10/M
Output price
$15.00/M
$4.40/M
Context
1.0M
64K
Released
Feb 2026
Dec 2024

Favorites

Claude Sonnet 4.6o3 Mini
Movie
2001: A Space Odyssey

2001: A Space Odyssey

19688.1
The Shawshank Redemption

The Shawshank Redemption

19948.7
Album
Kind of Blue

Kind of Blue

Miles Davis
—
Book
Middlemarch

Middlemarch

George Eliot
—
City
Kyoto

Kyoto

Japan
—
Game
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

Adventure, Action4.4
—
12 / 48
01

Estimate Complexityreasoning

Tests an AI's ability to make educated estimates based on technical knowledge

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Anthropic · Feb 2026text
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
o3 Mini

o3 Mini

Openai · Dec 2024text
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
Vote
2 / 48
02

AI Board Game Logicreasoning

Tests an AI's ability to understand game rules and strategy

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Anthropic · Feb 2026svg
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
o3 Mini

o3 Mini

Openai · Dec 2024svg
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
Vote
3 / 48
03

Logic Puzzlereasoning

Tests an AI's ability to solve a simple but potentially confusing logic puzzle

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Anthropic · Feb 2026text
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
o3 Mini

o3 Mini

Openai · Dec 2024text
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
Vote
4 / 48
04

Stochastic Consistency Testanalysis

Tests an AI's randomness and creativity

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Anthropic · Feb 2026text
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
o3 Mini

o3 Mini

Openai · Dec 2024text
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
Vote
5 / 48
05

SVG Layout Challengeimage generation

Tests an AI's ability to generate vector graphics

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Anthropic · Feb 2026svg
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
o3 Mini

o3 Mini

Openai · Dec 2024svg
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
Vote
6 / 48
06

Xbox Controller SVG Artimage generation

Tests an AI's ability to create detailed SVG illustrations of gaming hardware

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Anthropic · Feb 2026svg
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
o3 Mini

o3 Mini

Openai · Dec 2024svg
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
Vote
Sponsored
7 / 48
07

Generate a Stand-Up Routineconversation

Tests an AI's humor and creative writing ability

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Anthropic · Feb 2026text
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
o3 Mini

o3 Mini

Openai · Dec 2024text
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
Vote
8 / 48
08

Realistic AI Interviewconversation

Tests an AI's ability to simulate personalities and predict future trends

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Anthropic · Feb 2026text
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
o3 Mini

o3 Mini

Openai · Dec 2024text
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
Vote
9 / 48
09

Satirical Fake News Headlineconversation

Tests an AI's humor and understanding of current events

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Anthropic · Feb 2026text
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
o3 Mini

o3 Mini

Openai · Dec 2024text
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
Vote
10 / 48
10

Character Voice Testconversation

Tests an AI's ability to write in distinct character voices

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Anthropic · Feb 2026text
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
o3 Mini

o3 Mini

Openai · Dec 2024text
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
Vote
11 / 48
11

Minimalist Landing Pageweb design

Tests an AI's ability to generate a complete, working landing page

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Anthropic · Feb 2026website
Try this prompt
o3 Mini

o3 Mini

Openai · Dec 2024website
Try this prompt
Vote
12 / 48
12

Pokémon Battle UI Recreationweb design

Recreate an interactive, nostalgic Pokémon battle UI in a single HTML file.

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Anthropic · Feb 2026website
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
o3 Mini

o3 Mini

Openai · Dec 2024website
Nothing here. The model returned empty. We stared at it for a while.
Try this prompt
Vote

This matchup has more rounds

36+ more head-to-head results. Free. Not a trick.

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Our Verdict
Claude Sonnet 4.6
Claude Sonnet 4.6
o3 Mini
o3 MiniRunner-up

No community votes yet. On paper, Claude Sonnet 4.6 has the edge — bigger model tier, newer, bigger context window.

o3 Mini is 3.4x cheaper per token — worth considering if cost matters.

Slight edge
Writing DNA

Style Comparison

Similarity
87%

Claude Sonnet 4.6 uses 19.1x more emoji

Claude Sonnet 4.6
o3 Mini
56%Vocabulary65%
36wSentence Length17w
0.53Hedging0.74
5.1Bold3.9
3.4Lists1.7
0.19Emoji0.00
2.10Headings0.47
0.02Transitions0.38
Based on 23 + 12 text responses
vs

Ask them anything yourself

Claude Sonnet 4.6o3 Mini

Some models write identically. You are paying for the brand.

178 models fingerprinted across 32 writing dimensions. Free research.

Model Similarity Index

185x

price gap between models that write identically

178

models

12

clone pairs

32

dimensions

Devstral M / S
95.7%
Qwen3 Coder / Flash
95.6%
GPT-5.4 / Mini
93.3%
Read the full reportor download the 14-slide PDF

279 AI models invented the same fake scientist.

We read every word. 250 models. 2.14 million words. This is what we found.

AI Hallucination Index 2026
Free preview13 of 58 slides
Download the free previewor get all 58 slides for $49
FAQ

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We compare AI models for a living. On purpose. We chose this.

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© 2026 Rival · Built at hours no one should be awake, on hardware we don't own
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