High-volume, cost-sensitive work
Choose Grok Build 0.1
Grok Build 0.1 costs 17% less on a typical mix of three input tokens for every output token ($1.25 against $1.50 per million tokens).
Gemini 3.8 Flash vs Grok Build 0.1: price, context and capabilities
Choose Gemini 3.8 Flash for reused prompts and documents (RAG, agents), very long inputs and the latest release. Choose Grok Build 0.1 for high-volume, cost-sensitive work and writing and code generation.
In short
- Grok Build 0.1 is 17% cheaper than Gemini 3.8 Flash at the headline price ($1.25 / 1M tokens vs $1.50 / 1M tokens).
- Gemini 3.8 Flash reads more per request: 1.05M tokens against 256k.
- Gemini 3.8 Flash is the newer model (September 2026, against May 2026).
Which should you choose?
Each answer below comes straight from the published prices, specifications and independent benchmark results.
Writing and code generation
Choose Grok Build 0.1
Grok Build 0.1 charges $2.00 per million output tokens, against $3.75 for Gemini 3.8 Flash. Output dominates the bill when answers are long.
Reused prompts and documents (RAG, agents)
Choose Gemini 3.8 Flash
Gemini 3.8 Flash charges $0.08 per million cached input tokens, against $0.20 for Grok Build 0.1.
Very long inputs
Choose Gemini 3.8 Flash
Gemini 3.8 Flash reads up to 1.05M tokens per request, against 256k for Grok Build 0.1.
Latest release
Choose Gemini 3.8 Flash
Gemini 3.8 Flash is the newer release (September 2026, against May 2026 for Grok Build 0.1).
Monthly cost at three volumes
| Volume | Gemini 3.8 Flash | Grok Build 0.1 | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prototype: 1M input, 250K output tokens | $1.69 | $1.50 | Grok Build 0.1, $0.19 less |
| Production: 20M input, 5M output tokens | $33.75 | $30.00 | Grok Build 0.1, $3.75 less |
| Scale: 500M input, 100M output tokens | $750.00 | $700.00 | Grok Build 0.1, $50.00 less |
Standard rates, without caching or batch discounts. Volumes are per month.
Specifications side by side
| Gemini 3.8 Flash | Grok Build 0.1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | xAI | |
| Category | Language models | Language models |
| Status | Generally available | Generally available |
| Headline price | $1.50 / 1M tokens | $1.25 / 1M tokens |
| Input | $0.75 / 1M tokens | $1.00 / 1M tokens |
| Output | $3.75 / 1M tokens | $2.00 / 1M tokens |
| Cached input | $0.075 / 1M tokens | $0.20 / 1M tokens |
| Context window | 1.05M | 256k |
| Max output | 66k | No data |
| Released | September 2026 | May 2026 |
| Knowledge cutoff | No data | No data |
| Licence | Proprietary | Proprietary |
| Capabilities | Vision, Reasoning, Tool calling, Structured output, Prompt caching, Batch API | Vision, Reasoning, Tool calling, Structured output, Prompt caching, Batch API |
| API model id | gemini-3.8-flash | grok-build-0.1 |
Benchmarks side by side
Leader in bold.
| Benchmark | Gemini 3.8 Flash | Grok Build 0.1 |
|---|---|---|
| Intelligence Index | 40.9 | No data |
| SciCode | 56.6% | No data |
| GPQA Diamond | 95.3% | No data |
| Humanity's Last Exam | 47.8% | No data |
| MMMU-Pro (visual reasoning) | 85.6% | No data |
| Long-context reasoning (AA-LCR) | 81.3% | No data |
Independent evaluations by Artificial Analysis, run the same way for every model, at the reasoning setting shown. Percentages unless marked as an index.
Frequently asked questions
Should I choose Gemini 3.8 Flash or Grok Build 0.1?
Choose Gemini 3.8 Flash for reused prompts and documents (RAG, agents), very long inputs and the latest release. Choose Grok Build 0.1 for high-volume, cost-sensitive work and writing and code generation.
Which is cheaper, Gemini 3.8 Flash or Grok Build 0.1?
Grok Build 0.1 is 17% cheaper than Gemini 3.8 Flash at the headline price ($1.25 / 1M tokens vs $1.50 / 1M tokens).
Which has the larger context window, Gemini 3.8 Flash or Grok Build 0.1?
Gemini 3.8 Flash reads more per request: 1.05M tokens against 256k.
What is the difference between Gemini 3.8 Flash and Grok Build 0.1?
Gemini 3.8 Flash is made by Google and Grok Build 0.1 by xAI. Grok Build 0.1 is 17% cheaper than Gemini 3.8 Flash at the headline price ($1.25 / 1M tokens vs $1.50 / 1M tokens). Gemini 3.8 Flash reads more per request: 1.05M tokens against 256k. Gemini 3.8 Flash is the newer model (September 2026, against May 2026).
How much do Gemini 3.8 Flash and Grok Build 0.1 cost per month?
At 20 million input and 5 million output tokens a month, Gemini 3.8 Flash costs $33.75 and Grok Build 0.1 costs $30.00, at standard rates.
Which is newer, Gemini 3.8 Flash or Grok Build 0.1?
Gemini 3.8 Flash was released on September 2026 and Grok Build 0.1 on May 2026.