Mistral Small 3.1 wins on price ($0.1 vs $0.5/1M input). Gemini 3.1 Flash wins on coding (68 vs 55) and writing quality and context window (1M vs 128K). For most workflows, Gemini 3.1 Flash is the stronger default — best cheap ai for broad day-to-day work — now with 1m context.
The shortest way to see the safest default, the lower-cost option, and the specialist pick before you read deeper.
Gemini 3.1 Flash 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.
Google / Budget / Apr 29, 2026
Best cheap AI for broad day-to-day work — now with 1M context.
Ranks models by the broadest mix of coding, writing, research, and long-context usefulness.
You need premium reasoning depth or the highest coding benchmark scores.
The fastest way to see where the recommendation shifts when your priority changes.
1M token context window at $0.50/$3 per million tokens
2.5× faster time-to-first-token than Gemini 2.5 Flash
Strong multimodal support across text, images, audio, and video
Not as sharp as premium models on hard reasoning or complex coding
May need more validation on nuanced technical tasks
UseRightAI recommendations are based on practical decision factors people actually feel in day-to-day use.
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Gemini 3.1 Flash wins on more categories — budget, writing, images. Mistral Small 3.1 is the better pick when ultra-high-volume classification. The right choice depends on your specific use case.
Mistral Small 3.1 is cheaper at $0.1/1M input and $0.3/1M output. Gemini 3.1 Flash costs $0.5/1M input and $3/1M output.
Gemini 3.1 Flash has the larger context window at 1M tokens vs Mistral Small 3.1's 128K. For large document analysis, Gemini 3.1 Flash is the stronger pick.
Gemini 3.1 Flash is better for coding with a score of 68 vs Mistral Small 3.1's 55. For the highest coding quality available, Claude Sonnet 4.6 (79.6% SWE-bench) or Opus 4.6 (80.8%) remain benchmarks.
Both Mistral Small 3.1 and Gemini 3.1 Flash have similar speed profiles — rated very fast.
Meta: Llama 3.1 8B Instruct is the lower-cost option to start with when you still need useful output at scale.
Mistral Small 3.1 is the better pick when response speed matters more than maximum reasoning depth.
Gemini 3.1 Flash leads on coding with a score of 68 vs 55 for Mistral Small 3.1.
Gemini 3.1 Flash has the larger context window: 1M vs 128K for Mistral Small 3.1.
Mistral Small 3.1 is cheaper at $0.1/1M input tokens vs $0.5/1M for Gemini 3.1 Flash.
Choose Gemini 3.1 Flash for budget and writing — high-volume everyday ai usage where speed and cost both matter.
Choose Mistral Small 3.1 when ultra-high-volume classification.
Mistral Small 3.1 is the more cost-efficient option at $0.1/1M — worth considering if token volume is a concern.
