MiniMax

Q: What is the current MiniMax flagship model?

MiniMax-M3. It was released June 1, 2026 and is now the current flagship model path for coding, agentic, long-context, and native multimodal evaluation. M2.7 remains visible in pricing/docs but should no longer be treated as the primary new-buyer benchmark.

Q: Does MiniMax-M3 really support 1M context?

MiniMax's official M3 page says the API supports up to 1M tokens with a guaranteed minimum of 512K. The pay-as-you-go pricing page prices >512K input separately at the higher long-input rate. For buyer math, verify your account's actual context tier and service region before designing around 1M.

Q: How does MiniMax relate to Hailuo AI?

Hailuo is MiniMax's text-to-video product, priced separately from M3 text API usage. See the Hailuo page for video-specific buyer guidance.

MiniMax is now an M3-first model-platform story, not an M2.7-first...

7.3/10Useful

Active

Free - $20/mo Token Plan or $0.30/$1.20 per 1M tokens (M3 standard <=512K input)

Best plan

Free - $20/mo Token Plan or $0

Risk: M3 is now the flagship path, but MiniMax docs still...

Try MiniMax free

Editorial · no paid placements

Should you use it?

MiniMax is now an M3-first model-platform story, not an M2.7-first one. Pick it if you want to test MiniMax-M3 for low-cost coding, agentic, long-context, and multimodal API work while keeping Speech 2.8, Hailuo video, Music 3.0, and Talkie in the same vendor orbit. Skip it if you need the most mature English-first assistant ecosystem, US/EU data residency, or independent benchmark certainty before production.

Buy ifDevelopers evaluating low-cost MiniMax-M3 API access
PickFree - $20/mo Token Plan or $0.30/$1.20 per 1M tokens (M3 standard <=512K input)
Skip ifUsers who need the most mature English-first assistant ecosystem

Plan guidance

What to buy

Best planFree - $20/mo Token Plan or $0.30/$1.20 per 1M tokens (M3 standard <=512K input)

Watch: M3 is now the flagship path, but MiniMax docs still...

Price rangeFree - $20/mo Token Plan or $0.30/$1.20 per 1M tokens (M3 standard <=512K input)

$0.01/request

Upgrade only ifNot for users who need the most mature english-first assistant ecosystem

M3 is now the flagship path, but MiniMax docs still...

Current pricing source: MiniMax pay-as-you-go pricing

Fit

Use it for this, skip it for that

Best for

Developers evaluating low-cost MiniMax-M3 API access
Coding-agent and long-context multimodal experiments
Teams building voice or video generation apps under one vendor
Buyers diversifying beyond US model providers

Avoid if

Users who need the most mature English-first assistant ecosystem
Enterprises requiring US or EU data residency by default
Buyers who need independently proven benchmark leadership before adoption

Watch out: M3 is now the flagship path, but MiniMax docs still expose M2.7/M2.5 and separate Token Plan, Audio Subscription, video package, and pay-as-you-go routes. Verify model name, context tier, service tier, quotas, and billing lane before procurement.

Recent changes

Only what affects the decision

Jul 22, 2026
API-vlm pay-as-you-go
MiniMax docs say API-vlm was adjusted to $0.01 per call effective July 22, 2026; endpoints and capabilities were unchanged
MiniMax pay-as-you-go pricing
Jun 8, 2026
MiniMax-M3 standard API
July 30 verification pass. M3 standard pricing is still the buyer anchor; >512K input and Priority remain listed as priced service tiers
MiniMax pay-as-you-go pricing
Jun 1, 2026
MiniMax-M3 launch
MiniMax released M3 with up to 1M context, coding/agentic positioning, native multimodal input, and MiniMax Code as the paired agent surface
MiniMax M3 launch post

Alternatives

Best swaps

ChatGPT

OpenAI's flagship AI assistant, with GPT-5 models, image generation, Codex coding agent, voice, and agent mode across web, mobil

$0-$200/month · 9.5/10 Claude

Anthropic's AI assistant. Strongest on long-context reasoning, agentic coding, and long-form writing.

$0-$200/month · 9.3/10 Ollama

Local open-model runtime plus optional Ollama Cloud inference. Free local runtime; Cloud Pro $20/mo or $200/yr; Max $100/mo; Tea

$0 local / $20-$100/mo cloud · 9/10

Build comparison

Proof and score mathVerified Jul 30

Proof

Why this recommendation is trusted

EvidenceMiniMax M3 model page

Source: Registered source
Freshness: Current
Confidence: High confidence
Verified: Jul 30, 2026
Review: Aug 6, 2026
Volatility: Volatile

High-volatility evidence needs frequent review.

Editorial score

Unweighted average of 4 axes · confidence high

Utility8/10
How much real work it can do for a competent operator, end to end.
Value8/10
What you get for the dollar relative to the closest alternative.
Moat6/10
How hard it would be for a competitor to replicate the underlying advantage.
Longevity7/10
How likely the product is to still be best-in-class 24 months out.

Verified facts

Best ForShanghai AI lab behind MiniMax-M3, MiniMax Code, Hailuo video, Speech 2.8, Music 3.0, MiniMax Agent, and the Talkie companion app. Best for builders evaluating low-cost M3 coding, agentic, long-context, and native multimodal API access plus adjacent voice, video, and music APIs.
highVolatile2026-07-30MiniMax M3 model page
Pricing AnchorMiniMax-M3 standard pay-as-you-go is listed at $0.30/M input tokens and $1.20/M output tokens for <=512K input tokens; >512K input and Priority service tiers cost more, and Priority is enabled through `service_tier`.
highVolatile2026-07-30MiniMax pay-as-you-go pricing
Watch Out ForM3 is now the flagship path, but MiniMax docs still expose M2.7/M2.5 and separate Token Plan, Audio Subscription, video package, and pay-as-you-go routes. Verify model name, context tier, service tier, quotas, and billing lane before procurement.
highVolatile2026-07-30MiniMax pay-as-you-go pricing

Full review notesLong-form details, FAQ, and source history

A Shanghai AI company founded in early 2022. MiniMax builds foundation models, API products, and consumer apps.

The July 2026 portfolio is now led by MiniMax-M3 for text/coding/agentic work, with MiniMax Code as the paired coding-agent surface. The same company also operates Hailuo 2.3 video generation, Speech 2.8 for current voice APIs, Music 3.0 for music, MiniMax Agent for agent workflows, and Talkie for companion-character chat.

System Verdict

Pick MiniMax if you want to benchmark M3 as a low-cost, long-context, multimodal coding/agent model. supports up to a 1M-token context window with a guaranteed minimum of 512K tokens.

Skip it if procurement needs ecosystem maturity, independent benchmark proof, or Western data-residency defaults. MiniMax publishes aggressive M3 benchmark claims, but production buyers should test it against Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, Qwen, Kimi, and GLM on their own tasks before moving workloads.

Do not buy from an old M2.7 mental model. M2.7 still appears in the pricing table and older docs, but M3 is the current flagship path for new model evaluation as of July 30, 2026.

Key Facts


Founded	Early 2022, Shanghai
Current flagship text model	MiniMax-M3
M3 context	Up to 1M tokens; guaranteed minimum 512K tokens in the official M3 API positioning
M3 standard price	<=512K input: $0.30/M input, $1.20/M output, $0.06/M prompt-cache read
M3 >512K input	$0.60/M input, $2.40/M output, $0.12/M prompt-cache read after permanent 50% off pricing
M3 Priority tier	Enabled through `service_tier`; <=512K input: $0.45/M input, $1.80/M output; >512K input: $0.90/M input, $3.60/M output
Older text models still listed	M2.7, M2.7-highspeed, M2.5, M2.5-highspeed, M2.1, M2.1-highspeed, M2
Speech	Speech 2.8 HD/Turbo current in API docs; Speech 2.6, Speech-02, and Speech-01 remain supported in T2A HTTP docs
Video	Hailuo 2.3 / Hailuo 2.3 Fast
Music	Music 3.0 and Music-3.0-free; Music 2.6 remains listed as an older paid/free lane
Consumer apps	MiniMax Agent, MiniMax Code, Hailuo, Audio, and Talkie
Token Plan	Global platform lists Plus $20/mo, Max $50/mo, and Ultra $120/mo; China and global API services use separate regions/keys

What it actually is

Developer API. work, plus older M2 models still visible in pricing/docs. The platform also exposes Speech, Hailuo video, image, music, and MCP-vlm pricing under separate billing routes.

MiniMax Code and MiniMax Agent. The current product push is agentic coding, local assistant workflows, and long-context execution. MiniMax positions M3 as the model behind MiniMax Code. The docs now route OpenClaw setup through MiniMax Global OAuth or region-specific API keys.

Hailuo, Speech, and Music. Adjacent generation APIs under the same company. Hailuo is covered on Hailuo; voice is covered on MiniMax Speech.

Talkie. A character-chat and companion app. It proves consumer appetite, but it also carries moderation and copyright risk around public-figure/persona simulations.

When to pick MiniMax

M3 API evaluation. Benchmark M3 when the brief is low-cost coding, agentic, long-context, or multimodal input work.
Cost-sensitive model diversification. MiniMax belongs beside Qwen, Kimi, GLM, and Mistral in non-OpenAI model evaluations.
Multimodal vendor consolidation. Text, voice, video, music, and MCP/API-vlm pricing sit under one developer platform, though the billing lanes differ.
Voice app builders. Speech 2.8 HD/Turbo, voice cloning, streaming T2A, and long-form async speech generation are strong reasons to shortlist MiniMax.
Companion-chat products. Talkie gives MiniMax direct consumer feedback loops for character and persona workflows.

When to pick something else

Most mature English assistant: ChatGPT or Claude.
Google-stack integration: Gemini for Workspace, Google AI subscriptions, and Google Cloud adjacency.
Open China-model ecosystem: Qwen when Alibaba Cloud, Apache-licensed Qwen3 weights, and Qwen Chat are the strategic fit.
US/EU data-residency default: OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, or Mistral are cleaner starting points for many regulated Western teams.
Premium audiobook or studio voice: ElevenLabs. MiniMax Speech wins on API economics; ElevenLabs still wins on creator workflow maturity and quality ceiling.

Pricing

MiniMax-M3 pay-as-you-go text API (per 1M tokens):

M3 lane	Input	Output	Prompt-cache read	Notes
Standard, <=512K input	$0.30	$1.20	$0.06	Main June 2026 buyer anchor
Standard, >512K input	$0.60	$2.40	$0.12	Higher-cost long-input lane
Priority, <=512K input	$0.45	$1.80	$0.09	Enabled through `service_tier`; 1.5x standard
Priority, >512K input	$0.90	$3.60	$0.18	1.5x standard

Older text-model pricing still listed: M2.7 remains at $0.30/M input and $1.20/M output, while M2.7-highspeed remains at $0.60/M input and $2.40/M output. Treat these as compatibility/fallback lanes unless your workload specifically needs M2 behavior.

Voice, video, music, image, MCP, and server-tool APIs: separate pricing. July 30 pay-as-you-go docs list Speech 2.8 Turbo at $60/M characters and Speech 2.8 HD at $100/M characters. Hailuo 2.3 starts at $0.28 for a 768P 6-second clip, while Hailuo 2.3 Fast starts at $0.19 for the same length and resolution. Music 3.0 is $0.15 per up-to-5-minute generation, and Music-3.0-free is listed at 3 RPM. Image-01 is $0.0035/image. API-vlm is $0.01/request after the July 22 price update, and web_search server tools are $0.01/request.

Prices verified 2026-07-30 via the MiniMax pay-as-you-go pricing docs. Token Plan, Credits, Audio Subscription, Video Packages, and pay-as-you-go are different purchase paths; do not assume credits or quotas move between them.

Against the alternatives

	MiniMax M3	Claude / ChatGPT / Gemini	Qwen	Kimi / GLM
Best reason to test	Low-cost M3 coding, agentic, multimodal, long-context API	Mature Western frontier assistants and ecosystems	Alibaba/Qwen Cloud and open-weight Qwen family	China/Asia model diversification and long-context APIs
Buyer proof needed	Independent task benchmarks, availability, data residency	Plan fit, enterprise controls, price/performance	Cloud fit, model license, API terms	Current model/version path and pricing
Context positioning	Up to 1M, guaranteed minimum 512K in M3 API positioning	Varies by provider/model	Long-context model family	Long-context model families
Voice/video adjacency	Yes: Speech 2.8 and Hailuo	Usually separate products/providers	Mixed ecosystem	Mixed ecosystem
Main risk	Docs and access tiers are moving quickly	Higher cost / product constraints	Procurement and ecosystem fit	Fast-moving versions and regional posture

Failure modes

Vendor benchmark claims need replication. MiniMax’s official M3 pages make strong coding, browsing, multimodal, and agentic benchmark claims. Treat them as vendor claims until your own evaluation confirms them.
512K versus 1M access matters. The official model page says M3 supports up to 1M context with a guaranteed minimum of 512K. The pricing page separately flags >512K input as limited/early access. For production planning, assume 512K until your account proves otherwise.
Priority costs more. The pricing page lists service_tier Priority pricing at 1.5x standard. Do not assume it improves your effective SLA until your own latency and reliability tests confirm it.
Billing surfaces are easy to mix up. Token Plan, Credits, Audio Subscription, Video Packages, and pay-as-you-go are separate routes. Global and China Token Plans also map to separate global and cn service regions in the official CLI guidance.
M2 docs still exist. The API overview and older text-generation docs still expose M2.7/M2.5 lanes. New buyers should start with M3, but integrations may find stale examples.
Data residency is China-first. Enterprise compliance in regulated US and EU sectors requires careful review or a different vendor.
Talkie carries moderation and copyright risk. Companion-character products are commercially useful but legally sensitive, especially around public figures and entertainment IP.
English-language community support is thinner. API docs exist in English, but troubleshooting resources and third-party examples are not as deep as OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, or Mistral.

Methodology

This page was rechecked by the aipedia.wiki editorial workflow on July 30, 2026 against MiniMax official pages, M3 docs, coding-tool docs, pricing docs, speech docs, music docs, and Token Plan docs. Scoring follows the four-dimension rubric at /about/scoring/ (Utility x Value x Moat x Longevity, unweighted average).

FAQ

Is MiniMax free to use? Consumer MiniMax products can be tried through public product surfaces, and the developer platform supports several purchase routes. API procurement should start by choosing between Token Plan/Credits and pay-as-you-go; the July 30 pay-as-you-go table lists MiniMax-M3 standard at $0.30/M input and $1.20/M output for <=512K input tokens.

What is the current MiniMax flagship model? MiniMax-M3. It was released June 1, 2026 and is now the current flagship model path for coding, agentic, long-context, and native multimodal evaluation. M2.7 remains visible in pricing/docs but should no longer be treated as the primary new-buyer benchmark.

Does MiniMax-M3 really support 1M context? MiniMax’s official M3 page says the API supports up to 1M tokens with a guaranteed minimum of 512K. The pay-as-you-go pricing page prices >512K input separately at the higher long-input rate. For buyer math, verify your account’s actual context tier and service region before designing around 1M.

How does MiniMax relate to Hailuo AI? Hailuo is MiniMax’s text-to-video usage. See the Hailuo page for video-specific buyer guidance.

Is MiniMax available outside China? Yes, MiniMax exposes international product and API surfaces at minimax.io and platform.minimax.io. The official CLI docs distinguish Global OAuth/API service from China API service on platform.minimaxi.com, so teams should keep keys, quotas, invoices, and data-residency reviews separate by region.

What is Talkie? Talkie is MiniMax’s character and companion-chat app. It is strategically important because it gives MiniMax consumer-scale persona-chat data and product feedback, but it also carries moderation, safety, and copyright risk.

Sources

MiniMax official site: company founding language and current product lineup (verified 2026-07-30)
MiniMax M3 model page: M3 positioning, context, multimodality, API access, and MiniMax Code path (verified 2026-07-30)
MiniMax M3 launch post: June 1 release details and vendor benchmark claims (verified 2026-07-30)
M3 for AI Coding Tools: coding-tool setup and model naming (verified 2026-07-30)
MiniMax pay-as-you-go pricing: current text, audio, video, music, image, MCP, and server-tool usage rates, including the July 22 API-vlm change (verified 2026-07-30)
MiniMax platform pricing: Token Plan, Credits, Audio Subscription, Video Packages, and pay-as-you-go route overview (verified 2026-07-30)
MiniMax T2A API overview: current Speech 2.8 and voice API surface (verified 2026-07-30)
MiniMax Music Generation docs: Music 3.0 API capability and model naming (verified 2026-07-30)
MiniMax Token Plan pricing: Plus, Max, Ultra, Credits, supported-resource, and Subscription Key details (verified 2026-07-30)

Category: AI Chatbots · AI Research
Siblings: Hailuo · MiniMax Speech
Compare: Claude · ChatGPT · Gemini · Qwen

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aipedia.wiki Editorial. (2026). MiniMax: Editorial Review. aipedia.wiki. Retrieved August 3, 2026, from https://aipedia.wiki/tools/minimax/

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@misc{minimax-editorial-review-2026,
  author = {{aipedia.wiki Editorial}},
  title = {MiniMax: Editorial Review},
  year = {2026},
  publisher = {aipedia.wiki},
  url = {https://aipedia.wiki/tools/minimax/},
  note = {Accessed: 2026-08-02}
}

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