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Model comparison

DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) vs Kimi K3

Data verified

Head-to-head evidence from 25 shared benchmark results across 5 categories. Overall scores shown here use the public BenchAlign v5 ranking lane.

No comparison
Moonshot AI
80.96/100
0 category wins2 category wins

Public leaderboard positions: DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) unranked (Not scored); Kimi K3 #4 (Supported). Intervals and evidence labels describe ranking uncertainty, not a guarantee for a specific workload.

Evidence parity. DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) and Kimi K3 share 25 comparable benchmark results. 2 of 8 categories are comparable. 20 results are unique to DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max); 32 to Kimi K3.

Updated July 23, 2026
Shared results
25
DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) only
20
Kimi K3 only
32
Comparable categories
2 / 8

Treat this as a split decision. DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) makes more sense if you want the cheaper token bill; Kimi K3 is the better fit if agentic is the priority or you need the larger 1.05M context window.

Confidence note. This is a partial-evidence comparison with 25 shared benchmark results across 5 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 Kimi K3 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.

Kimi K3 is also the more expensive model on tokens at $3.00 input / $15.00 output per 1M tokens, versus $0.14 input / $0.28 output per 1M tokens for DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max). That is roughly 53.6x on output cost alone. Kimi K3 gives you the larger context window at 1.05M, compared with 1M for DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max).

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 scores and score margins for DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) and Kimi K3
CategoryDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)ΔKimi K3
AgenticDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)63.8Margin 25.7Kimi K389.5
KnowledgeDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)55.3Margin 5.7Kimi K361.0
CodingDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)68.8MarginNo overlapKimi K3Not measured
MathDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)94.8MarginNo overlapKimi K3Not measured
MultimodalDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Not measuredMarginNo overlapKimi K378.5

Decisive benchmark drivers

The largest measured benchmark gaps in this matchup, with exact reported values.

More
A · DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)B · Kimi K3
  1. Terminal-Bench 2.0

    Agentic
    Source ↗
    A 56.9%B 88.3%
    Winner: Kimi K3Δ 31.4
    Terminal-Bench 2.0: DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) scored 56.9%; Kimi K3 scored 88.3%. Kimi K3 wins this benchmark.
  2. HLE

    Knowledge
    Source ↗
    A 34.8%B 56%
    Winner: Kimi K3Δ 21.2
    HLE: DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) scored 34.8%; Kimi K3 scored 56%. Kimi K3 wins this benchmark.
  3. BrowseComp

    Agentic
    Source ↗
    A 73.2%B 91.2%
    Winner: Kimi K3Δ 18
    BrowseComp: DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) scored 73.2%; Kimi K3 scored 91.2%. Kimi K3 wins this benchmark.
  4. GPQA

    Knowledge
    Source ↗
    A 88.1%B 93.5%
    Winner: Kimi K3Δ 5.4
    GPQA: DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) scored 88.1%; Kimi K3 scored 93.5%. Kimi K3 wins this benchmark.

Operational comparison

Runtime and commercial metrics are compared only when both models have a complete sourced value.

MetricDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Kimi K3Comparison
Input / output priceUSD per 1M tokensDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)$0.14 input / $0.28 outputKimi K3$3 input / $15 outputDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) has the lower combined listed price.
Generation speedtokens per secondDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Not availableKimi K3Not availableA complete speed comparison is not available.
First-answer latencyseconds to first tokenDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Not availableKimi K3Not availableA complete latency comparison is not available.
Context windowmaximum listed tokensDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)1MKimi K31.05MKimi K3 lists the larger context window.

Benchmark Deep Dive

AgenticKimi K3 wins
BenchmarkDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Kimi K3Result
Terminal-Bench 2.0Source 56.9%88.3%Kimi K3 leads
BrowseCompSource 73.2%91.2%Kimi K3 leads
HLE w/ toolsSource 45.1%Not comparable
MCP AtlasSource 69%84.2%Kimi K3 leads
GDPval-AASource 11891679Kimi K3 leads
ToolathlonSource 47.8%Not comparable
AA Agentic IndexSource 31.1%50.1%Kimi K3 leads
τ²-bench resultsSource 95%Not comparable
GDPval-AASource 34.4%59.0%Kimi K3 leads
AA BriefcaseSource 8311543Kimi K3 leads
AA EnterpriseOps-GymSource 39.6%45.3%Kimi K3 leads
AA Harvey LABSource 81.3%94.6%Kimi K3 leads
AA ITBenchSource 31.5%47.7%Kimi K3 leads
AA Tau3 BankingSource 22.9%33.4%Kimi K3 leads
terminalBenchHardSource 35.6%Not comparable
DeepSearchQASource 95.0%Not comparable
Toolathlon-VerifiedSource 73.2%Not comparable
AutomationBenchSource 30.8%Not comparable
JobBenchSource 52.9%Not comparable
APEX-AgentsSource 37.6%Not comparable
SpreadsheetBench 2Source 34.8%Not comparable
DECK-BenchSource 73.5%Not comparable
AA AutomationBenchSource 52.7%Not comparable
aaTerminalBench21Source 85%Not comparable
APEX-Agents-AASource 41.3%Not comparable
Coding
BenchmarkDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Kimi K3Result
CodeforcesSource 3052.0Not comparable
SWE-bench VerifiedSource 79%Not comparable
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%76.2%Kimi K3 leads
AA-SciCodeSource 44.9%58.7%Kimi K3 leads
deepSweSource 67.5%Not comparable
FrontierSWESource 81.2%Not comparable
ProgramBenchSource 77.8%Not comparable
Kimi Code Bench v2Source 72.9%Not comparable
sweMarathonSource 42%Not comparable
PostTrain BenchSource 36.6%Not comparable
MLS-Bench LiteSource 48.3%Not comparable
Reasoning
BenchmarkDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Kimi K3Result
MRCR 1MSource 78.7%Not comparable
CorpusQA 1MSource 60.5%Not comparable
AA-LCRSource 63.0%74.7%Kimi K3 leads
CritPtSource 7.1%23.4%Kimi K3 leads
KnowledgeKimi K3 wins
BenchmarkDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Kimi K3Result
MMLU-ProSource 86.2%Not comparable
SimpleQASource 34.1%Not comparable
Chinese-SimpleQASource 78.9%Not comparable
GPQASource 88.1%93.5%Kimi K3 leads
GPQA-DSource 88.1%93.5%Kimi K3 leads
HLESource 34.8%56%Kimi K3 leads
Artificial Analysis Intelligence IndexSource 40.3%57.1%Kimi K3 leads
AA-GPQA DiamondSource 89.4%93.5%Kimi K3 leads
AA-HLESource 32.1%44.3%Kimi K3 leads
AA-Omniscience IndexSource -22.9%18.4%Kimi K3 leads
AA-Omniscience AccuracySource 37.2%46.0%Kimi K3 leads
AA-Omniscience Hallucination RateSource 95.8%50.9%Kimi K3 leads
AA Openness IndexSource 50.0%Not comparable
HLE w/o toolsSource 43.5%Not comparable
Math
BenchmarkDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Kimi K3Result
HMMT Feb 2026Source 94.8%Not comparable
IMOAnswerBenchSource 88.4%Not comparable
ApexSource 33.0%Not comparable
Apex ShortlistSource 85.7%Not comparable
Multimodal
BenchmarkDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Kimi K3Result
Design Arena WebsiteSource 12381386Kimi K3 leads
OfficeQA ProSource 63.3%Not comparable
MMMU-ProSource 81.6%Not comparable
MMMU-Pro w/ PythonSource 83.4%Not comparable
CharXiv w/o toolsSource 84.8%Not comparable
CharXivSource 91.3%Not comparable
MathVisionSource 94.3%Not comparable
MathVision w/ PythonSource 97.8%Not comparable
BabyVision w/ PythonSource 85.7%Not comparable
ZeroBenchSource 23.0%Not comparable
ZeroBench w/ PythonSource 41.0%Not comparable
WorldVQA ForceAnswerSource 51.0%Not comparable
OmniDocBenchSource 91.1%Not comparable
PerceptionBenchSource 58.5%Not comparable
AA-MMMU-ProSource 80.5%Not comparable
Inst. Following
BenchmarkDeepSeek V4 Flash (Max)Kimi K3Result
AA-IFBenchSource 79.2%Not comparable
Frequently Asked Questions (3)

Which is better, DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) or Kimi K3?

DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) and Kimi K3 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 Kimi K3?

Kimi K3 has the edge for knowledge tasks in this comparison, averaging 61 versus 55.3. Inside this category, AA-Omniscience Hallucination Rate is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.

Which is better for agentic tasks, DeepSeek V4 Flash (Max) or Kimi K3?

Kimi K3 has the edge for agentic tasks in this comparison, averaging 89.5 versus 63.8. Inside this category, AA Briefcase is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.

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Last updated: July 23, 2026

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