← Back to Models
⚖️

Mixtral 8x7BvsMixtral 8x22B

Mistral AI vs Mistral AI — Side-by-side model comparison

Mixtral 8x22B leads 5/5 categories

Head-to-Head Comparison

MetricMixtral 8x7BMixtral 8x22B
Provider
Arena Rank
#16
Context Window
32K
64K
Input Pricing
Free (open)/1M tokens
$0.90/1M tokens
Output Pricing
Free (open)/1M tokens
$2.70/1M tokens
Parameters
56B (13B active)
176B (39B active)
Open Source
Yes
Yes
Best For
Efficient inference, multilingual, coding
Efficient reasoning, multilingual, coding
Release Date
Dec 11, 2023
Apr 17, 2024

Mixtral 8x7B

Mixtral 8x7B is Mistral AI's pioneering mixture-of-experts model that proved sparse architectures could deliver GPT-3.5 level performance while using only 13 billion active parameters per token. Its release via torrent was a landmark moment for open-source AI, demonstrating that a European startup could produce models competitive with Silicon Valley's best.

View Mistral AI profile →

Mixtral 8x22B

Mixtral 8x22B is Mistral AI's large mixture-of-experts model that uses a sparse architecture to achieve strong performance while activating only a fraction of its total parameters per token. With 176 billion total parameters but only 39 billion active per forward pass, it delivers efficiency that makes it practical to deploy despite its size. It features a 64K context window and excels at multilingual tasks, coding, and mathematical reasoning.

View Mistral AI profile →

Key Differences: Mixtral 8x7B vs Mixtral 8x22B

1

Mixtral 8x22B supports a larger context window (64K), allowing it to process longer documents in a single request.

2

Mixtral 8x7B has 56B (13B active) parameters vs Mixtral 8x22B's 176B (39B active), which affects inference speed and capability.

M

When to use Mixtral 8x7B

  • +Your use case involves efficient inference, multilingual, coding
View full Mixtral 8x7B specs →
M

When to use Mixtral 8x22B

  • +You need to process long documents (64K context)
  • +Your use case involves efficient reasoning, multilingual, coding
View full Mixtral 8x22B specs →

The Verdict

Mixtral 8x22B wins our head-to-head comparison with 5 out of 5 category wins. It's the stronger choice for efficient reasoning, multilingual, coding, though Mixtral 8x7B holds an edge in efficient inference, multilingual, coding.

Last compared: March 2026 · Data sourced from public benchmarks and official pricing pages

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is better, Mixtral 8x7B or Mixtral 8x22B?
In our head-to-head comparison, Mixtral 8x22B leads in 5 out of 5 categories (arena rank, context window, input pricing, output pricing, and parameters). Mixtral 8x22B excels at efficient reasoning, multilingual, coding, while Mixtral 8x7B is better suited for efficient inference, multilingual, coding. The best choice depends on your specific requirements, budget, and use case.
How does Mixtral 8x7B pricing compare to Mixtral 8x22B?
Mixtral 8x7B charges Free (open) per 1M input tokens and Free (open) per 1M output tokens. Mixtral 8x22B charges $0.90 per 1M input tokens and $2.70 per 1M output tokens. For high-volume production workloads, the pricing difference can significantly impact total cost of ownership.
What is the context window difference between Mixtral 8x7B and Mixtral 8x22B?
Mixtral 8x7B supports a 32K token context window, while Mixtral 8x22B supports 64K tokens. Mixtral 8x22B can process longer documents, codebases, and conversations in a single request. Context window size matters most for tasks involving long documents, large codebases, or extended conversations.
Can I use Mixtral 8x7B or Mixtral 8x22B for free?
Mixtral 8x7B is a paid API model starting at Free (open) per 1M input tokens. Mixtral 8x22B is a paid API model starting at $0.90 per 1M input tokens. Open-source models can be self-hosted for free but require your own GPU infrastructure.
Which model has better benchmarks, Mixtral 8x7B or Mixtral 8x22B?
Mixtral 8x7B's arena rank is not yet available, while Mixtral 8x22B holds rank #16. Note that benchmarks don't capture every use case — we recommend testing both models on your specific tasks.
Is Mixtral 8x7B or Mixtral 8x22B better for coding?
Mixtral 8x7B is specifically optimized for coding tasks. Mixtral 8x22B is specifically optimized for coding tasks. For coding specifically, arena rank and code-specific benchmarks are the best indicators of performance.