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38Small and fastProvisional score
Grok 4.20
Grok 4.20
xAI's fast tier: quick, cheap, and priced by how much context you actually use.
Updated
Grok 4.20
The read
Grok 4.20 is the volume model in the line-up, and its pricing is the interesting part: it charges one rate below a long-context threshold and a higher one above it, so short calls stay genuinely cheap. Throughput is among the best measured anywhere. It is a clear step down from 4.5 on anything that needs sustained reasoning, which is the deal.
Where it shines
- Among the highest measured output speeds of any hosted model
- Tiered context pricing keeps short calls very cheap
- Same directness as the larger Grok models
Worth knowing first
- Long prompts cross into a materially higher price band
- Well behind 4.5 on sustained multi-step reasoning
Index score
76.9
Provisional. This score is read from the product's public capability, not from the one-prompt rebuild the fully reviewed entries went through, so treat it as a placing rather than a verdict.
Craft71
Speed93
Control78
Value84
- Rank
- 38 of 53
- Builds
- LLMs
- Category
- Small and fast
- Output
- Text and code over an API
- Pricing
- Paid only
- Best for
- High-throughput work with mostly short prompts
Scores are our own editorial judgement, weighted craft 55, speed 10, control 15 and value 20.
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