# DeepSeek vs Meta

> DeepSeek offers open MIT flagships at low per-token rates. Meta offers a closed Muse Spark API in preview, compatible with OpenAI and Anthropic formats, plus a near-free tier that trains on your data.

Canonical: https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/deepseek-vs-meta · By The Subconscious Team · Updated September 30, 2026

## How they compare

The licensing runs opposite to what their histories suggest. DeepSeek ships its flagship weights under MIT on Hugging Face. Meta has moved from open Llama releases to a closed API, keeping only the distilled Muse Glimmer as open weights. On price, Meta's Muse Spark 1.3 is $1.25 in and $4.25 out with cached input at $0.15, close to DeepSeek V4 Pro's $1.32 and $3.96 at peak, and DeepSeek halves that off-peak. Both offer 1M context. Meta's Contributor tier drops to $0.10 in and $0.20 out in exchange for training on your prompts.

Meta's endpoint speaks OpenAI Chat Completions, Anthropic Messages and a stateful agentic format, and the same key reaches Muse Image at $0.01 per image and transcription at $0.18 per audio hour. DeepSeek offers image understanding on V4.1 Flash but no generation. Data handling is the sharpest split. DeepSeek stores hosted data in China, while Meta's Contributor tier hands your data to Meta. Meta's API is also still in preview. Self-hosters and off-peak batch users fit DeepSeek better. Teams that want one key for text, images and speech fit Meta.

## What each one does

### DeepSeek

DeepSeek is the Chinese lab whose open-weight models reset price expectations for the whole market. Its API now serves two models, both with 1M context and 384K max output. V4.1 Flash shipped September 10, 2026 with built-in image understanding at $0.30 in and $1.20 out at peak. V4 Pro, generally available since August 13, costs $1.32 in and $3.96 out at peak. Cache hits cost a few cents per million or less, and the weights ship on Hugging Face under an MIT license.

### Meta

Meta has moved from open Llama releases toward its own closed API. Meta Superintelligence Labs builds the Muse family, and in July 2026 Meta opened a public preview of the Meta Model API with Muse Spark 1.1, a multimodal reasoning model aimed at agentic coding, tool use and computer use. The current lineup runs through Muse Spark 1.3 with a 1M token context. Standard pricing is $1.25 in and $4.25 out per million tokens, with cached input at $0.15, and the endpoint speaks OpenAI Chat Completions, Anthropic Messages and a stateful agentic format.

## Which is best, and when

### Choose DeepSeek for

- Self-hosting a flagship under MIT
- Off-peak batch work at half price
- Output-heavy tasks up to 384K tokens

### Choose Meta for

- Drop-in Anthropic or OpenAI format compatibility
- Image generation and transcription on one key
- Near-free prototyping where data sharing is acceptable

## At a glance

| Attribute | DeepSeek | Meta |
|---|---|---|
| Model access | Open weights (MIT) | Closed API; open Muse Glimmer |
| Flagship models | DeepSeek V4.1 Flash, V4 Pro | Muse Spark 1.3, Muse Glimmer |
| Speed | ~35 tok/s on V4 Pro | ~145–233 tok/s on Muse Spark 1.3 |
| Price | Off-peak hours at half price | $1.25 in, $4.25 out; Contributor tier cheaper |
| Customization | Open weights to fine-tune | Open Muse Glimmer weights to fine-tune |
| Deployment | First-party API, Hugging Face weights | Meta Model API (preview) |
| Long context | 1M, 384K max output | 1M |

## FAQ

### What is the difference between DeepSeek and Meta?

DeepSeek offers open MIT flagships at low per-token rates. Meta offers a closed Muse Spark API in preview, compatible with OpenAI and Anthropic formats, plus a near-free tier that trains on your data.

### When should I choose DeepSeek over Meta?

Self-hosting a flagship under MIT; Off-peak batch work at half price; Output-heavy tasks up to 384K tokens.

### When should I choose Meta over DeepSeek?

Drop-in Anthropic or OpenAI format compatibility; Image generation and transcription on one key; Near-free prototyping where data sharing is acceptable.

### Is DeepSeek or Meta cheaper?

DeepSeek: Off-peak hours at half price. Meta: $1.25 in, $4.25 out; Contributor tier cheaper. The cheaper choice depends on the model and workload.

### Which has more context, DeepSeek or Meta?

DeepSeek: 1M, 384K max output. Meta: 1M.

## Running long-horizon agents?

If your agents run past 200K tokens, compare both against Subconscious: [Subconscious vs DeepSeek](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/subconscious-vs-deepseek.md), [Subconscious vs Meta](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/subconscious-vs-meta.md).

Full profiles: [DeepSeek](https://www.subconscious.dev/providers/deepseek.md), [Meta](https://www.subconscious.dev/providers/meta.md).