Kimi K2.6 (Reasoning) vs Solar Mini 4
Which is better for the money: Kimi K2.6 (Reasoning) by Kimi or Solar Mini 4 by Upstage? Intelligence, total benchmark cost, and end-to-end time from Artificial Analysis & other sources, snapshot 2026-10-24.
Trade-off
Verdict
Depends on your budget
Kimi K2.6 (Reasoning) scores 2.9 points higher (27.0 vs 24.1) but costs 3.0× as much to run the benchmark ($1528 vs $502; both premium class). They are not alternatives at one budget: pick Kimi K2.6 (Reasoning) when you need intelligence above 24.1, and Solar Mini 4 when 24.1 is enough.
| Metric | Kimi K2.6 (Reasoning) | Solar Mini 4 | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Intelligence (higher is better) | 27.0 | 24.1 | −10.7% Solar Mini 4 is 10.7% less intelligent |
| Total AA cost (lower is better) | $1,528.20 | $502.02 | −67.1% Solar Mini 4 is 67.1% cheaper |
| End-to-end time (lower is better) | 65.20s | 27.46s | −57.9% Solar Mini 4 is 57.9% faster |
| Price per 1M tokens (in / out) | $0.95 / $4.00 | $0.10 / $0.40 | |
| Input modalities | Text, Image, Video | Text |
Solar Mini 4 vs Kimi K2.6 (Reasoning): 10.7% less intelligence, 67.1% less cost to run the AA benchmark, and 57.9% faster end-to-end.
Today's Pareto frontier
Against the frontier
- Kimi K2.6 (Reasoning) is off the frontier: at the same or lower cost, GPT-6.1 Sol (Max) scores 51.80 for $1082.
- Solar Mini 4 is off the frontier: at the same or lower cost, GPT-6.1 Sol (Medium) scores 47.80 for $361.
Kimi K2.6 (Reasoning)Solar Mini 4Today'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/kimi-k2-6/solar-mini4 · Markdown: /api/v1/compare/kimi-k2-6/solar-mini4?format=md · llms.txt · agent skill