Lightning v3.1 measured on 2 of 3 Text to speech benchmarks2
BenchmarkByScoreRank
No benchmark matches
$25per 1M characters
1,022arena Elo
Mar 2026released
Exact native tariff; see source for billing scope.Price covers
Ranking?
Full ranking →···
42Noiz TTS91743Lightning v3.188544XTTS v2827Strong at
Alternatives?
ModelScoreCostPriceWhat changes
CheaperQwen Audio 3.1 TTS Pluswins 85%-23%$19.30SBetterSimba 3.2wins 76%-74%$6.60AOpenMing 3.0 TTSwins 74%——CheaperQwen Audio 3.0 TTS Pluswins 80%-23%$19.30
CheaperVoxtral 3 TTSwins 74%-48%$13ModelScoreCostPriceWhat changes
Qwen Audio 3.1 TTS Pluswins 85%-23%$19.30Qwen Audio 3.0 TTS Pluswins 80%-23%$19.30SSimba 3.2wins 76%-74%$6.60Voxtral 3 TTSwins 74%-48%$13IRealtime TTS-2 Flashwins 74%-58%$10.40ModelScoreCostPriceWhat changes
SSimba 3.2wins 76%-74%$6.60SSimba 3.0wins 70%-74%$6.60IRealtime TTS-2 Flashwins 74%-58%$10.40Voxtral 3 TTSwins 74%-48%$13SSoniox TTS Real-Time v2wins 58%-43%$14.20
FAQ
How much does Lightning v3.1 cost?›
$25 per 1M characters.
Is Lightning v3.1 free to use?›
There is no free API; it costs $25 per 1M characters.
How good is Lightning v3.1, and what is it best at?›
#78 of 96 in Text to speech.
Is Lightning v3.1 better than Noiz TTS?›
On AA TTS controlled voice, Lightning v3.1 scores 885 vs 917 — lower.
When was Lightning v3.1 released? Is there a newer version?›
Released 2026-03-24. It is the current version in its line.
Is Lightning v3.1 open source?›
No, Lightning v3.1 is a closed model available through an API. The closest open-weights option here is Ming 3.0 TTS.
What is Lightning v3.1?›
Lightning v3.1 is a closed speech & voice model from Smallest.ai, released Mar 2026.
What are the best alternatives to Lightning v3.1?›
Qwen Audio 3.1 TTS Plus (cheaper), Simba 3.2 (better), Ming 3.0 TTS (open weights).