# Together AI vs Meta

> Meta now sells closed Muse models on a preview API with a data-sharing discount tier. Together hosts open weights on a production platform with SLAs and training.

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

## How they compare

Meta has moved toward a closed API. Muse Spark 1.3 offers 1M context at $1.25 in and $4.25 out, the endpoint speaks OpenAI, Anthropic and a stateful agentic format, and the same key reaches Muse Image at $0.01 per image and Muse Voice Transcribe. A Contributor tier drops prices to $0.10 in and $0.20 out if Meta can train on your prompts and completions. Together hosts no first-party model. It serves open weights such as Kimi K3, DeepSeek V4, GLM 5.2 and Qwen 3.8, plus its own image, video and speech lineup.

Maturity is the main gap. Meta's API is still in public preview with a short track record. Together offers provisioned throughput with a 99% SLA, canary and blue-green rollouts, and managed fine-tuning. Meta's open option, Muse Glimmer, is distilled from Muse Spark and meant for self-hosting on vLLM, SGLang or llama.cpp. Pick Meta for cheap experiments where data sharing is acceptable, or for one-key image and transcription. Pick Together for production traffic that needs SLAs and weights you control.

## What each one does

### Together AI

Together AI is the broadest open-model platform in the category. One bill covers per-token serverless inference, batch at up to 50% off, provisioned throughput with a 99% SLA, dedicated deployments, raw GPU clusters, managed fine-tuning and code sandboxes for agents. The text catalog runs past thirty open models, including DeepSeek V4, Kimi K3, GLM 5.2, Qwen 3.8 and MiniMax M3, plus image, video, speech and embedding models. Token prices sit at parity with Fireworks and Baseten.

### 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 Together AI for

- Production traffic that needs an SLA today
- Fine-tuning open models on private data
- Traffic that must never train someone else's model

### Choose Meta for

- Near-free prototyping on the Contributor tier
- Muse Spark through OpenAI or Anthropic SDK formats
- Cheap image generation and transcription on one key

## At a glance

| Attribute | Together AI | Meta |
|---|---|---|
| Model access | Open weights | Closed API; open Muse Glimmer |
| Flagship models | Kimi K3, DeepSeek V4, GLM 5.2, Qwen 3.8 | Muse Spark 1.3, Muse Glimmer |
| Speed | 0.99s TTFT on DeepSeek V4 Pro | ~145–233 tok/s on Muse Spark 1.3 |
| Price | Parity with Fireworks and Baseten | $1.25 in, $4.25 out; Contributor tier cheaper |
| Customization | LoRA and full SFT; RL in beta | Open Muse Glimmer weights to fine-tune |
| Deployment | Serverless, dedicated, GPU clusters | Meta Model API (preview) |
| Long context | 512K on DeepSeek V4 Pro | 1M |

## FAQ

### What is the difference between Together AI and Meta?

Meta now sells closed Muse models on a preview API with a data-sharing discount tier. Together hosts open weights on a production platform with SLAs and training.

### When should I choose Together AI over Meta?

Production traffic that needs an SLA today; Fine-tuning open models on private data; Traffic that must never train someone else's model.

### When should I choose Meta over Together AI?

Near-free prototyping on the Contributor tier; Muse Spark through OpenAI or Anthropic SDK formats; Cheap image generation and transcription on one key.

### Is Together AI or Meta cheaper?

Together AI: Parity with Fireworks and Baseten. Meta: $1.25 in, $4.25 out; Contributor tier cheaper. The cheaper choice depends on the model and workload.

### Which has more context, Together AI or Meta?

Together AI: 512K on DeepSeek V4 Pro. Meta: 1M.

## Running long-horizon agents?

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

Full profiles: [Together AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/providers/together-ai.md), [Meta](https://www.subconscious.dev/providers/meta.md).