Llama 4 Maverick wins on context window (256K vs 128K). DeepSeek V3 wins on coding (87 vs 58) and writing quality and price ($0.27 vs $0.6/1M input). For most workflows, DeepSeek V3 is the stronger default — gpt-4o-class coding quality at under $0.30/1m — the best value in the directory.
The shortest way to see the safest default, the lower-cost option, and the specialist pick before you read deeper.
DeepSeek V3 is the safest overall answer here when you want the strongest default instead of the lowest list price.
Switch the scoring lens to see whether the top answer changes when you care more about cost, speed, or long-document work.
DeepSeek / Budget / Mar 24, 2026
GPT-4o-class coding quality at under $0.30/1M — the best value in the directory.
Ranks models by the broadest mix of coding, writing, research, and long-context usefulness.
Your team has data sovereignty requirements or needs enterprise-grade reliability guarantees.
The fastest way to see where the recommendation shifts when your priority changes.
GPT-4o class coding and reasoning at under $0.30/1M input tokens
Open-source weights available for self-hosting
Strong performance on HumanEval and coding benchmarks relative to price
Chinese-origin model raises data sovereignty concerns for some enterprise teams
Slightly weaker on nuanced English writing tone compared to Claude and GPT
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DeepSeek V3 wins on more categories — coding, research, reasoning. Llama 4 Maverick is the better pick when flexible self-hosted deployments and mixed general workloads. The right choice depends on your specific use case.
DeepSeek V3 is cheaper at $0.27/1M input and $1.1/1M output. Llama 4 Maverick costs $0.6/1M input and $1.6/1M output.
Llama 4 Maverick has the larger context window at 256K tokens vs DeepSeek V3's 128K. For large document analysis, Llama 4 Maverick is the stronger pick.
DeepSeek V3 is better for coding with a score of 87 vs Llama 4 Maverick's 58. For the highest coding quality available, Claude Sonnet 4.6 (79.6% SWE-bench) or Opus 4.6 (80.8%) remain benchmarks.
Both Llama 4 Maverick and DeepSeek V3 have similar speed profiles — rated fast.
Meta: Llama 3.1 8B Instruct is the lower-cost option to start with when you still need useful output at scale.
Llama 4 Maverick is the better pick when response speed matters more than maximum reasoning depth.
DeepSeek V3 leads on coding with a score of 87 vs 58 for Llama 4 Maverick.
Llama 4 Maverick has the larger context window: 256K vs 128K for DeepSeek V3.
DeepSeek V3 is cheaper at $0.27/1M input tokens vs $0.6/1M for Llama 4 Maverick.
Choose DeepSeek V3 for coding and research — coding.
Choose Llama 4 Maverick when flexible self-hosted deployments and mixed general workloads.
Both models serve different primary workflows — consider using each where it has a clear edge.
Less reliable for complex multi-step agentic workflows vs frontier models
