DeepSeek R1 vs Llama 3.1 405B
Pricing, context window, and benchmark comparison · Last updated April 2026
DeepSeek R1 is cheaper than Llama 3.1 405B at $0.55/1M/1M vs $2.70/1M/1M input tokens — a 4.9x cost difference. DeepSeek R1 scores higher on quality benchmarks (ELO 1360). Choose DeepSeek R1 for cost-sensitive workloads; both are strong choices depending on your budget.
Which is cheaper: DeepSeek R1 or Llama 3.1 405B?
DeepSeek R1 is the cheaper option at $0.55/1M per 1M input tokens, compared to $2.70/1M for Llama 3.1 405B. That is a 4.9x cost difference on input tokens. Output pricing follows a similar pattern: DeepSeek R1 charges $2.19/1M/1M vs $2.70/1M/1M for Llama 3.1 405B.
Which has better quality: DeepSeek R1 or Llama 3.1 405B?
Based on LMSYS Chatbot Arena rankings, DeepSeek R1 achieves a higher ELO score (1360 vs 1267), suggesting stronger performance on open-ended tasks. DeepSeek R1 excels at o1-level reasoning at 20x lower cost than openai o1. Llama 3.1 405B is known for open source — can be self-hosted for data privacy.
Which should you choose: DeepSeek R1 or Llama 3.1 405B?
- → o1-level reasoning at 20x lower cost than OpenAI o1
- → Open source reasoning model
- → Chain-of-thought reasoning visible to users
- → Open source — can be self-hosted for data privacy
- → Competitive with GPT-4o on many benchmarks
- → Strong multilingual capabilities
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is cheaper: DeepSeek R1 or Llama 3.1 405B?
DeepSeek R1 is cheaper at $0.55/1M per 1M input tokens, making it 4.9x more affordable.
Which has better quality: DeepSeek R1 or Llama 3.1 405B?
DeepSeek R1 scores higher on the LMSYS Chatbot Arena with an ELO of 1360, suggesting better overall quality for most tasks.
Which has a larger context window: DeepSeek R1 or Llama 3.1 405B?
Both DeepSeek R1 and Llama 3.1 405B have the same context window.
Should I choose DeepSeek R1 or Llama 3.1 405B?
Choose DeepSeek R1 if cost is the priority. Choose DeepSeek R1 if benchmark quality is most important. Consider your specific use case: DeepSeek R1 is best for reasoning and math, while Llama 3.1 405B excels at coding and research.
Is DeepSeek R1 or Llama 3.1 405B open source?
DeepSeek R1 is open source. Llama 3.1 405B is open source.