Kimi Linear 48B A3B Instruct
vs
Kimi K2 Thinking

Compare performance metrics, pricing, and capabilities of these AI models.

Key Differences
Context Length
Better
Kimi Linear 48B A3B Instruct: 1.0M (advantage)
Kimi K2 Thinking: 262K (disadvantage)
Cost Efficiency
Lower Cost
Prompt: $0.30M vs $0.55M
Completion: $0.60M vs $2.25M

Capabilities

Kimi Linear 48B A3B Instruct
Modality: text->text
Inputs: text
Kimi K2 Thinking
Modality: text->text
Inputs: text
M
Kimi Linear 48B A3B Instruct
moonshotai/kimi-linear-48b-a3b-instruct

Kimi Linear is a hybrid linear attention architecture that outperforms traditional full attention methods across various contexts, including short, lo...

Context Length1.0M
Prompt Price$0.30M
ReleasedNovember 8, 2025
Supports:
text->text
M
Kimi K2 Thinking
moonshotai/kimi-k2-thinking

Kimi K2 Thinking is Moonshot AI’s most advanced open reasoning model to date, extending the K2 series into agentic, long-horizon reasoning. Built on t...

Context Length262K
Prompt Price$0.55M
ReleasedNovember 6, 2025
Supports:
text->text
Detailed Comparison
Feature
Kimi Linear 48B A3B Instruct
Kimi K2 Thinking
Context Length1.0M262K
Prompt Price$0.30M$0.55M
Completion Price$0.60M$2.25M
Modalitytext->texttext->text
Release DateNovember 8, 2025November 6, 2025
Analysis & Recommendations

Quick Summary

This comparison reveals key trade-offs between Kimi Linear 48B A3B Instruct and Kimi K2 Thinking. Kimi Linear 48B A3B Instruct offers a larger context window of 1.0M compared to Kimi K2 Thinking's 262K, though Kimi K2 Thinking comes at a higher cost.

Kimi Linear 48B A3B Instruct Strengths

  • Larger context window (1.0M) for processing longer documents
  • More cost-effective per token
  • Specialized for text tasks
  • Latest generation model

Kimi K2 Thinking Strengths

  • Competitive context size (262K)
  • Premium pricing for high-quality output
  • Specialized for text tasks
  • Proven and stable model

When to Use Each Model

Choose Kimi Linear 48B A3B Instruct when:
  • • You need the larger context window for complex tasks
  • • Cost efficiency is important in your use case
  • • Working with text-based tasks that benefit from deep analysis
Choose Kimi K2 Thinking when:
  • • You need competitive context capability for long-form content
  • • Cost efficiency is not the primary concern for your budget
  • • Working with text-based tasks that require advanced processing
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