MiniMax M2 / M2.5 vs Claude Design (Anthropic)
Which one should you pick? Here's the full breakdown.
MiniMax M2 / M2.5
MiniMax's open-weights frontier -- first open model to match Claude Opus 4.6 on SWE-Bench at 10-20× lower cost
Claude Design (Anthropic)
Anthropic's AI-native design tool -- launched 2026-04-17, built on Opus 4.7. Generates full design systems, website prototypes, slide decks, and one-pagers from natural language. Positioned as a Figma / Canva / Adobe starter-replacement (Figma stock dropped 5% on the launch news)
| Category | MiniMax M2 / M2.5 | Claude Design (Anthropic) |
|---|---|---|
| Ease of Use | 6.5 | 9.0 |
| Output Quality | 9.0 | 8.5 |
| Value | 9.5 | 8.0 |
| Features | 8.5 | 8.0 |
| Overall | 8.4 | 8.4 |
Pricing Comparison
| Feature | MiniMax M2 / M2.5 | Claude Design (Anthropic) |
|---|---|---|
| Free Tier | Yes | Yes |
| Starting Price | $0 | $0 |
Benchmark Head-to-Head
MiniMax M2.5 (230B/10B active MoE) benchmarks — Claude Design (Anthropic) has no published benchmarks
| Benchmark | Description | Score |
|---|---|---|
| MMLU-Pro | Harder multi-subject reasoning | 82.1% |
| GPQA Diamond | Graduate-level science questions | 76.8% |
| SWE-Bench Verified | 80.2% | |
| HumanEval | Python code generation | 91% |
| AIME 2025 | 85.3% |
Which Should You Pick?
Pick MiniMax M2 / M2.5 if...
- ✓Better value for money (9.5/10)
Agentic coding and tool-use workflows on a budget. Best price-to-SWE-Bench ratio of any open-weights model in 2026.
Visit MiniMax M2 / M2.5Pick Claude Design (Anthropic) if...
- ✓Easier to use (9 vs 6.5)
Designers who use Claude Pro or Max and want an AI starting point for design systems, prototypes, slide decks, or one-pagers -- especially when the design decisions need to be internally consistent across many screens or slides. Also good for non-designer product managers and founders who need credible deliverables without hiring.
Visit Claude Design (Anthropic)Our Verdict
MiniMax M2 / M2.5 and Claude Design (Anthropic) are extremely close overall. Your choice comes down to specific needs -- MiniMax M2 / M2.5 is better for agentic coding and tool-use workflows on a budget, while Claude Design (Anthropic) works best for designers who use claude pro or max and want an ai starting point for design systems, prototypes, slide decks, or one-pagers -- especially when the design decisions need to be internally consistent across many screens or slides.