DeepSeek V4 Pro 0424 (Max) vs Inkling Small
Which is better for the money: DeepSeek V4 Pro 0424 (Max) by DeepSeek or Inkling Small by Thinking Machines? Intelligence, total benchmark cost, and end-to-end time from Artificial Analysis & other sources, snapshot 2026-10-25.
Trade-off
Verdict
Depends on your budget
DeepSeek V4 Pro 0424 (Max) scores 4.7 points higher (30.4 vs 25.7) but costs 1.2× as much to run the benchmark ($277 vs $241; both mid-range class). Pick DeepSeek V4 Pro 0424 (Max) when the extra intelligence is worth the premium, otherwise Inkling Small.
| Metric | DeepSeek V4 Pro 0424 (Max) | Inkling Small | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Intelligence (higher is better) | 30.4 | 25.7 | −15.5% Inkling Small is 15.5% less intelligent |
| Total AA cost (lower is better) | $277.30 | $240.85 | −13.1% Inkling Small is 13.1% cheaper |
| End-to-end time (lower is better) | 48.90s | 12.68s | −74.1% Inkling Small is 74.1% faster |
| Price per 1M tokens (in / out) | $0.43 / $0.87 | $0.30 / $1.20 | |
| Input modalities | Text | Text, Image, Speech |
Inkling Small vs DeepSeek V4 Pro 0424 (Max): 15.5% less intelligence, 13.1% less cost to run the AA benchmark, and 74.1% faster end-to-end.
Today's Pareto frontier
Against the frontier
- DeepSeek V4 Pro 0424 (Max) is off the frontier: at the same or lower cost, MiMo-V2.6-Pro scores 46.30 for $207.
- Inkling Small is off the frontier: at the same or lower cost, MiMo-V2.6-Pro scores 46.30 for $207.
DeepSeek V4 Pro 0424 (Max)Inkling SmallToday's Pareto frontierOpen-weights frontierEvery other model
Matchup
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Accept: text/markdown or ?format=md returns this page as Markdown. JSON: /api/v1/compare/deepseek-v4-pro-0424/inkling-small · Markdown: /api/v1/compare/deepseek-v4-pro-0424/inkling-small?format=md · llms.txt · agent skill