Grok API Pricing
Elon Musk's AI lab, founded March 2023 as X.AI Corp. Ships the Grok family — frontier reasoning and coding models trained on the Memphis Colossus supercluster (150 MW peak, plans for 1M+ GPUs). Acquired by SpaceX on Feb 2, 2026 at a $250B xAI valuation ($1.25T combined entity). Brand still operates as xAI; API still at docs.x.ai; Grok still integrated natively into X (Twitter).
Grok 4.20 (0309) Reasoning
Dated 03-09 snapshot of Grok 4.20 in reasoning mode.
Grok 4.20 (0309) Non-Reasoning
Dated 03-09 snapshot of Grok 4.20 in non-reasoning (latency-optimised) mode.
Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent (0309)
Multi-agent orchestration variant of Grok 4.20 — 2M context window (only Grok variant with 2M).
Grok 4.5 LAUNCHED JUL 2026
xAI pricing docs list grok-4.5 at $2.00/M input, $0.50/M cached input, and $6.00/M output.
Grok 4.3 LAUNCHED MAY 2026
Still listed after Grok 4.5 launch.
Grok Build 0.1 LAUNCHED MAY 2026
xAI's fast agentic-coding model, now listed on the standard Code API pricing table at $1/M input and $2/M output (256K context).
Grok 4.1 Fast LAUNCHED NOV 2025
Archive price retained from the verified snapshot: $0.20/M input, $0.05/M cached input, $0.50/M output.
Grok 4 Fast LAUNCHED SEP 2025
Archive price retained from the verified snapshot: $0.20/M input, $0.05/M cached input, $0.50/M output.
Grok 4 LAUNCHED JUL 2025
Archive price retained from the verified snapshot: $3/M input, $0.75/M cached input, $15/M output.
Grok 3 LAUNCHED FEB 2025
Archive price retained from the verified snapshot: $3/M input, $0.75/M cached input, $15/M output.
Grok 3 Mini LAUNCHED FEB 2025
Archive price retained from the verified snapshot: $0.30/M input and $0.50/M output.
Grok 2 (1212) LAUNCHED DEC 2024
Official xAI 1212 launch post announced grok-2-1212 and grok-2-vision-1212 at $2/M input and $10/M output after efficiency improvements.
Grok 2 Vision (1212) LAUNCHED DEC 2024
API ID grok-2-vision-1212.
Grok Code Fast 1 LAUNCHED AUG 2025
Archive price retained from the verified snapshot: $0.20/M input, $0.02/M cached input, $1.50/M output.
Grok Beta LAUNCHED NOV 2024
API ID grok-beta.
Grok Vision Beta LAUNCHED NOV 2024
API ID grok-vision-beta.
| Model | Input /M | Output /M | Cached | Context | Max output | Vision | Tools | Tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grok 4.20 (0309) Reasoning | $1.25 | $2.50 | $0.2−84% | 1M | — | ✗ | ✓ | Frontier |
| Grok 4.20 (0309) Non-Reasoning | $1.25 | $2.50 | $0.2−84% | 1M | — | ✗ | ✓ | Frontier |
| Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent (0309) | $1.25 | $2.50 | $0.2−84% | 2M | — | ✗ | ✓ | Frontier |
| Grok 4.5 FLAGSHIP | $2.00 | $6.00 | $0.5−75% | 500K | — | ✓ | ✓ | Frontier |
| Grok 4.3 | $1.25 | $2.50 | $0.2−84% | 1M | — | ✗ | ✓ | Frontier |
| Grok Build 0.1 | $1.00 | $2.00 | $0.2−80% | 256K | — | ✓ | ✓ | Active |
| Grok 4.1 Fast RETIRED | — | — | — | Retired May 15, 2026 | → grok-4-3 | ✗ | ✗ | Retired |
| Grok 4 Fast RETIRED | — | — | — | Retired May 15, 2026 | → grok-4-3 | ✗ | ✗ | Retired |
| Grok 4 RETIRED | — | — | — | Retired May 15, 2026 | → grok-4-3 | ✗ | ✗ | Retired |
| Grok 3 RETIRED | — | — | — | Retired May 15, 2026 | → grok-4-3 | ✗ | ✗ | Retired |
| Grok 3 Mini RETIRED | — | — | — | Retired Sep 30, 2025 | → grok-4-fast | ✗ | ✗ | Retired |
| Grok 2 (1212) RETIRED | — | — | — | Retired Aug 14, 2025 | → grok-3 | ✗ | ✗ | Retired |
| Grok 2 Vision (1212) RETIRED | — | — | — | Retired Aug 14, 2025 | → grok-3 | ✓ | ✗ | Retired |
| Grok Code Fast 1 RETIRED | — | — | — | Retired May 15, 2026 | → grok-4-3 | ✗ | ✗ | Retired |
| Grok Beta RETIRED | — | — | — | Retired Feb 28, 2025 | → grok-2-1212 | ✗ | ✗ | Retired |
| Grok Vision Beta RETIRED | — | — | — | Retired Feb 28, 2025 | → grok-2-vision-1212 | ✓ | ✗ | Retired |
Pricing across the lineup.
The last 12 months at xAI.
Major releases, retirements, and corporate moves. Sourced from xAI press releases, docs.x.ai migration guides, and recent merger filings.
$2/$6, 500K context, configurable reasoning$1/$2console.x.ai + docs.x.ai — direct API, OpenAI-compatible endpoint, free trial credit on signup. The only path to grok-4.3 and the 4.20 snapshots; no major cloud reseller carries Grok.
CONSUMER · WEB + Xgrok.com for standalone chat, X (Twitter) for in-feed integration. SuperGrok at $30/mo, SuperGrok Heavy at $300/mo (priority access to the largest variant).
INFRA · COMPUTExAI's own supercluster in Memphis, TN. Operational since Dec 2024 — 150 MW peak, plans for 1M+ GPUs. Pure inference + training, not a customer-facing endpoint, but the reason xAI can ship at $1.25/M.
xAI was founded by Elon Musk on March 9, 2023 as X.AI Corp, with 11 founding researchers (including ex-DeepMind's Igor Babuschkin). The pitch: build a maximally truth-seeking AI inside Musk's ecosystem — X (Twitter) for data and distribution, Tesla / SpaceX for compute and capital. CEO: Elon Musk.
The lab moved fast. Grok 1 shipped November 2023 (weights later open-sourced). Grok 2 in August 2024 added image generation. Grok 3 in February 2025 introduced the reflection / reasoning mode that anchors the current line. Grok 4 in July 2025 was the first frontier-tier Grok ($3/$15) and shipped alongside SuperGrok Heavy, a $300/mo consumer tier that exposed early access to the largest variants. Grok 4.3 on May 12, 2026 cut input prices ~40% to $1.25/$2.50 and the next-generation Grok 4.20 family arrived in 03-09 snapshot form.
The defining infrastructure asset is the Memphis Colossus supercluster, brought online in December 2024 after a remarkable 122-day build. Peak draw 150 MW; expansion plans target 1M+ GPUs. This is the reason xAI can offer flagship pricing at $1.25/M input — the per-token economics are subsidised by owning compute rather than renting it.
The corporate structure changed dramatically in 2026. On Feb 2, 2026, SpaceX acquired xAI at a $250B xAI valuation and $1.25T combined-entity valuation — the largest tech merger by valuation on record. Stated rationale: orbital data centres + more capital runway for AI buildout against OpenAI and Anthropic. xAI continues to operate under its own brand and API surface; only the parent changed.
Compared to Anthropic and OpenAI: cheaper per-token at frontier ($1.25/$2.50 vs $5/$30 GPT-5.5), smaller surface (mostly text-focused: Grok Build 0.1 accepts image input for coding workflows, while image generation, video, and voice live in separate Imagine / Voice APIs), tied to X / Twitter brand for better and worse. SWE-bench Verified for Grok 4.3 trails Claude Opus 4.7 by roughly 14pp (~74% vs 87.6%).
OpenAI
Bigger surface area (image / audio / video / embeddings under one roof), bigger consumer brand. 4× more expensive at flagship input ($5 vs $1.25). xAI wins on per-token cost; OpenAI wins on multimodality and ecosystem.
CODING LEADERAnthropic
Leads SWE-bench Verified at 87.6% vs Grok 4.3's ~74%. Zero-retention defaults and Responsible Scaling Policy. 4× more expensive at flagship ($5 vs $1.25) but stronger on coding agents.
CLOUD GIANT2M context on Gemini 2.5 Pro matches xAI's Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent. Native multimodal (text + image + audio + video). Pricier per token but vastly broader ecosystem via Workspace + Vertex.
Meta
Llama 4 405B self-hostable — full weights, Apache-style licensing. xAI open-sourced Grok 1 in 2024 but no recent generations; for self-hosted frontier weights, Meta is the realistic pick.
Alibaba (Qwen)
The Qwen (Tongyi Qianwen) model family from Alibaba Cloud's Tongyi Lab. First released in 2023, Qwen is the most-downloaded open-weight model family in the world — most tiers ship under Apache 2.0 on Hugging Face and ModelScope, while the proprietary Max tier is served through Alibaba Cloud's Model Studio.
CHINA CONSUMER LEADERByteDance (Doubao)
The Doubao model family from ByteDance — parent of TikTok and Douyin. Served through the Volcano Ark (火山方舟) platform on ByteDance's Volcano Engine cloud, Doubao powers China's most-used consumer AI app and undercuts most frontier labs on price.
Frequently asked.
Practical questions about xAI, the Grok lineup, the SpaceX merger, and how text-only frontier pricing actually shakes out.
Q · 01 Which Grok model should I start with? +
$2/$6. Pick Grok 4.3 when you want a cheaper 1M-context Grok option at $1.25/$2.50. Pick Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent if you need the 2M-context window.Q · 02 Does Grok support vision, audio, or image generation? +
Q · 03 Did SpaceX really acquire xAI? +
Feb 2, 2026 at a $250B xAI valuation ($1.25T combined entity). The deal was framed as funding for orbital data centres and giving xAI more capital runway against OpenAI / Anthropic infrastructure spend. The xAI brand, console at console.x.ai, and Grok product line all continue to operate as before; only the parent ownership changed.Q · 04 Does xAI offer EU data residency? +
Q · 05 What happened in the May 15, 2026 retirement wave? +
grok-4.3 and bill at Grok 4.3 pricing ($1.25/$2.50). This consolidated the lineup down to the current 4 active models. Migration guide: docs.x.ai/developers/migration/may-15-retirement.