Model comparison
DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) vs o3-mini
Head-to-head evidence from 7 shared benchmark results across 3 categories. Overall scores shown here use the public BenchAlign v5 ranking lane.
Public leaderboard positions: DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) unranked (Not scored); o3-mini #136 (Supported). Intervals and evidence labels describe ranking uncertainty, not a guarantee for a specific workload.
Evidence parity. DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) and o3-mini share 7 comparable benchmark results. 2 of 8 categories are comparable. 38 results are unique to DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max); 3 to o3-mini.
Updated July 23, 2026- Shared results
- 7
- DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) only
- 38
- o3-mini only
- 3
- Comparable categories
- 2 / 8
Treat this as a split decision. DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) makes more sense if coding is the priority or you want the cheaper token bill; o3-mini is the better fit if knowledge is the priority.
Confidence note. This is a partial-evidence comparison with 7 shared benchmark results across 3 evidence categories; 2 of 8 categories currently have scoreable aggregates for both models. Treat the verdict as directional until coverage is more balanced.
Why this result
DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) and o3-mini finish on the same BenchAlign overall score, so this is less about a single winner and more about where the edge shows up. The BenchAlign headline says tie; the benchmark table is where the real choice happens.
o3-mini is also the more expensive model on tokens at $1.10 input / $4.40 output per 1M tokens, versus $0.14 input / $0.28 output per 1M tokens for DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max). That is roughly 15.7x on output cost alone. DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) gives you the larger context window at 1M, compared with 200K for o3-mini.
Category breakdown
Exact category averages are shown below. Not measured means BenchLM does not have enough sourced public coverage for that model and category.
| Category | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) | Δ | o3-mini |
|---|---|---|---|
| Knowledge | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)55.3 | Margin→ 21.9 | o3-mini77.2 |
| Coding | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)68.8 | Margin← 19.5 | o3-mini49.3 |
| Agentic | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)63.8 | MarginNo overlap | o3-miniNot measured |
| Math | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)94.8 | MarginNo overlap | o3-miniNot measured |
| Inst. Following | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Not measured | MarginNo overlap | o3-mini93.9 |
Decisive benchmark drivers
The largest measured benchmark gaps in this matchup, with exact reported values.
More
- Source ↗
SWE-bench Verified
CodingA 79%B 49.3%Winner: DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Δ 29.7SWE-bench Verified: DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) scored 79%; o3-mini scored 49.3%. DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) wins this benchmark. - Source ↗
GPQA
KnowledgeA 88.1%B 77.2%Winner: DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Δ 10.9GPQA: DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) scored 88.1%; o3-mini scored 77.2%. DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) wins this benchmark.
Operational comparison
Runtime and commercial metrics are compared only when both models have a complete sourced value.
| Metric | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) | o3-mini | Comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| Input / output priceUSD per 1M tokens | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)$0.14 input / $0.28 output | o3-mini$1.1 input / $4.4 output | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) has the lower combined listed price. |
| Generation speedtokens per second | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Not available | o3-mini160 tok/s | A complete speed comparison is not available. |
| First-answer latencyseconds to first token | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Not available | o3-mini7.12 s | A complete latency comparison is not available. |
| Context windowmaximum listed tokens | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)1M | o3-mini200K | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) lists the larger context window. |
Benchmark Deep Dive
Agentic15 benchmarks
| Benchmark | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) | o3-mini | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Terminal-Bench 2.0Source | 56.9% | — | Not comparable |
| BrowseCompSource | 73.2% | — | Not comparable |
| HLE w/ toolsSource | 45.1% | — | Not comparable |
| MCP AtlasSource | 69% | — | Not comparable |
| GDPval-AASource | 1189 | — | Not comparable |
| ToolathlonSource | 47.8% | — | Not comparable |
| AA Agentic IndexSource | 31.1% | — | Not comparable |
| τ²-bench resultsSource | 95% | 28.7% | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads |
| GDPval-AASource | 34.4% | — | Not comparable |
| AA BriefcaseSource | 831 | — | Not comparable |
| AA EnterpriseOps-GymSource | 39.6% | — | Not comparable |
| AA Harvey LABSource | 81.3% | — | Not comparable |
| AA ITBenchSource | 31.5% | — | Not comparable |
| AA Tau3 BankingSource | 22.9% | — | Not comparable |
| terminalBenchHardSource | 35.6% | — | Not comparable |
CodingDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) wins7 benchmarks
| Benchmark | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) | o3-mini | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| CodeforcesSource | 3052.0 | — | Not comparable |
| SWE-bench VerifiedSource | 79% | 49.3% | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads |
| SWE-bench ProSource | 52.6% | — | Not comparable |
| SWE MultilingualSource | 73.3% | — | Not comparable |
| Terminal-Bench 2.0Source | 56.9% | — | Not comparable |
| AA Coding IndexSource | 56.2% | — | Not comparable |
| AA-SciCodeSource | 44.9% | 39.9% | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads |
Reasoning4 benchmarks
Knowledgeo3-mini wins14 benchmarks
| Benchmark | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) | o3-mini | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| MMLU-ProSource | 86.2% | — | Not comparable |
| SimpleQASource | 34.1% | — | Not comparable |
| Chinese-SimpleQASource | 78.9% | — | Not comparable |
| GPQASource | 88.1% | 77.2% | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads |
| GPQA-DSource | 88.1% | — | Not comparable |
| HLESource | 34.8% | — | Not comparable |
| Artificial Analysis Intelligence IndexSource | 40.3% | 19.0% | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads |
| AA-GPQA DiamondSource | 89.4% | 74.8% | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads |
| AA-HLESource | 32.1% | 8.7% | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) leads |
| AA-Omniscience IndexSource | -22.9% | — | Not comparable |
| AA-Omniscience AccuracySource | 37.2% | — | Not comparable |
| AA-Omniscience Hallucination RateSource | 95.8% | — | Not comparable |
| AA Openness IndexSource | 50.0% | — | Not comparable |
| MMLUSource | — | 86.9% | Not comparable |
Math5 benchmarks
Multimodal1 benchmarks
| Benchmark | DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) | o3-mini | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Design Arena WebsiteSource | 1238 | — | Not comparable |
Frequently Asked Questions (3)
Which is better, DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) or o3-mini?
DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) and o3-mini are tied on the BenchAlign overall score, so the right pick depends on which category matters most for your use case.
Which is better for knowledge tasks, DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) or o3-mini?
o3-mini has the edge for knowledge tasks in this comparison, averaging 77.2 versus 55.3. Inside this category, AA-HLE is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.
Which is better for coding, DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) or o3-mini?
DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) has the edge for coding in this comparison, averaging 68.8 versus 49.3. Inside this category, SWE-bench Verified is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.
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