Grok 2 vs Llama 3.1 70B
Pricing, context window, and benchmark comparison · Last updated April 2026
Llama 3.1 70B is cheaper than Grok 2 at $0.35/1M/1M vs $2.00/1M/1M input tokens — a 5.7x cost difference. Grok 2 scores higher on quality benchmarks (ELO 1290). Choose Llama 3.1 70B for cost-sensitive workloads; choose Grok 2 for maximum quality.
Which is cheaper: Grok 2 or Llama 3.1 70B?
Llama 3.1 70B is the cheaper option at $0.35/1M per 1M input tokens, compared to $2.00/1M for Grok 2. That is a 5.7x cost difference on input tokens. Output pricing follows a similar pattern: Grok 2 charges $10.00/1M/1M vs $0.40/1M/1M for Llama 3.1 70B.
Which has better quality: Grok 2 or Llama 3.1 70B?
Based on LMSYS Chatbot Arena rankings, Grok 2 achieves a higher ELO score (1290 vs 1247), suggesting stronger performance on open-ended tasks. Grok 2 excels at real-time x (twitter) data access. Llama 3.1 70B is known for excellent price-to-quality ratio.
Which should you choose: Grok 2 or Llama 3.1 70B?
- → Real-time X (Twitter) data access
- → Strong at current events and trending topics
- → Good humor and conversational ability
- → Excellent price-to-quality ratio
- → Open source and self-hostable
- → Good at coding and instruction following
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is cheaper: Grok 2 or Llama 3.1 70B?
Llama 3.1 70B is cheaper at $0.35/1M per 1M input tokens, making it 5.7x more affordable.
Which has better quality: Grok 2 or Llama 3.1 70B?
Grok 2 scores higher on the LMSYS Chatbot Arena with an ELO of 1290, suggesting better overall quality for most tasks.
Which has a larger context window: Grok 2 or Llama 3.1 70B?
Both Grok 2 and Llama 3.1 70B have the same context window.
Should I choose Grok 2 or Llama 3.1 70B?
Choose Llama 3.1 70B if cost is the priority. Choose Grok 2 if benchmark quality is most important. Consider your specific use case: Grok 2 is best for research and creative-writing, while Llama 3.1 70B excels at coding and low-cost.
Is Grok 2 or Llama 3.1 70B open source?
Grok 2 is proprietary. Llama 3.1 70B is open source.