xAI Grok 3
The complete guide

What is Grok? — Elon Musk's AI

Grok is a large language model (LLM) developed by xAI — the AI company Elon Musk founded in 2023. The name "Grok" comes from the science-fiction novel Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein and means "to understand deeply, intuitively". The model is embedded in X (formerly Twitter) and is also offered as a standalone interface at grok.com.

Unlike its competitors, Grok is built from the ground up with access tothe X feed in real time — an advantage no other model offers in the same way. In addition, Grok is known for a less restricted approach, a greater willingness to express direct opinions, and the ability to discuss topics that other commercial models tend to refuse.

Grok 3 vs Grok 2 — what changed?

Grok 3 launched in February 2025 and represented a dramatic leap. xAI trained it on 200,000 Nvidia GPUs — one of the largest training runs in the history of AI. The investment shows in the results:

• Think Mode: Deep reasoning ability that Grok 2 lacked — thinks before it answers
• Improved DeepSearch: searching 50+ sources simultaneously, including X and the wider internet
• Aurora: A built-in image generator added in Grok 3 (not in Grok 2)
• Big Brain Mode: An intensive compute mode for math problems and complex logic
• Benchmark performance: Grok 3 surpassed GPT-4o on MATH and GPQA
• Voice Mode: Real-time voice chat with a natural conversational interface

Grok 3 versions

Grok vs the competition — an initial comparison

Before we dive into the details, here is Grok's positioning in the AI market:

• vs ChatGPT: Grok is better at real-time access to X data. ChatGPT is better at Hebrew and tools like Code Interpreter
• vs Claude: Grok is less content-restricted; Claude excels at code and analyzing long documents
• vs Gemini: Grok wins on X data; Gemini wins on long Context (2M tokens) and Google integration
• vs Perplexity: Both search the internet, but Grok excels specifically at searching X

Accessing Grok — how much does it cost?

Grok has several access points, from free to professional subscriptions:

grok.com — the direct interface

grok.com is Grok's standalone interface. The base version is free but limited in the number of daily messages. Upgrading toSuperGrok ($30/month) removes all the limits.

X Premium ($8/month)

An X Premium subscription grants access to a basic Grok version directly inside the X app. Suited to those already paying for X who want to add AI at no extra cost, though DeepSearch and Think Mode capabilities are limited.

SuperGrok ($30/month) — what's included?

• Unlimited Grok 3 — no rate limits, no daily cap
• Unlimited Think Mode — deep reasoning for every question
• Unlimited DeepSearch — X and internet search on every question
• Aurora Image Generation — AI image generation
• Big Brain Mode — intensive computation for math and science
• Voice Mode — real-time voice chat
• X Premium+ — access to all the benefits of X Premium

xAI API — for developers

Developers can access Grok via thexAI API at api.x.ai/v1. The API is fully compatible with the OpenAI SDK — which makes migration extremely easy. See the detailed section below.

DeepSearch — the feature no one else has

DeepSearch is Grok's deep-search capability — and one of the features that truly sets it apart from the competition. Unlike a regular "internet search", DeepSearch performs a deep search across50+ sources simultaneously, including X and the wider internet, and filters the results into a summary with citations.

How does DeepSearch work?

DeepSearch's workflow:

Best Use Cases for DeepSearch

• Up-to-date research: "What is the current state of the AI market?" — you'll get an up-to-date picture from X and the internet
• Fact-checking: Checking claims against multiple sources
• Current events: News that happened an hour ago — Grok already knows
• Market sentiment: "What do people think about [product/company] on X?"
• Competitor monitoring: What are people writing about your competitors online?

DeepSearch vs Perplexity vs ChatGPT Search

Tips for good DeepSearch queries

play_circle

Grok 3 — a full guide + DeepSearch

YouTube • search for tutorials

open_in_new

Think Mode — deep thinking before answering

Think Mode is Grok 3's reasoning mode — enabling it makes Grok "think out loud" before giving an answer. It shows its inference process: breaking down the problem, checking assumptions, weighing options — and only then reaching a conclusion.

When to use Think Mode?

• Complex math problems: algorithms, proofs, multi-step calculations
• Code with hard bugs: when you need to analyze the logic step by step
• Strategic analysis: comparing options, analyzing trade-offs
• Philosophical or logical questions: when the immediate answer isn't enough
• Debugging faulty reasoning: "Why is this logic wrong?"

Think Mode vs Regular Mode — a quality comparison

Grok Think Mode vs the competition

Grok 3 Think Mode's reasoning capabilities compete directly with Claude Extended Thinking and with OpenAI o1/o3. What's unique about each?

• Grok Think Mode: Combined with DeepSearch — can think and search for information simultaneously
• Claude Extended Thinking: Excels at analyzing code and long documents
• OpenAI o3: The highest performance on scientific benchmarks, but more expensive

Integration with X/Twitter — Grok's secret weapon

The X integration is what sets Grok apart from every other model on the market. Grok doesn't just "know about X" — it lives on X, feeds off its feed in real time, and can reply to your threads directly from the app.

@Grok on X — real-time replies

On X you can tag @Grok in any tweet or thread and ask it to analyze, summarize, fact-check, or expand on the topic. Grok will read the entire thread and answer with full context — a capability ChatGPT and Claude don't have.

Analyzing Trends on X

One of the most powerful questions you can ask Grok: "What are the most-discussed topics on X right now in [X]?". Grok will produce a real-time Sentiment Analysis report for you — good for content prep, audience understanding, and market monitoring.

Aurora — built-in image generation

Aurora is Grok's image generator, available to SuperGrok subscribers. Aurora can create high-quality images from text prompts, directly within Grok's interface. No separate DALL-E needed.

xAI API — using Grok in production

The xAI API lets developers embed Grok directly into applications. The biggest advantage: the API is fully compatible withOpenAI SDK — changing the base URL and the API key is enough to move from GPT-4 to Grok.

Python — basic usage

from openai import OpenAI

client = OpenAI(
    api_key="xai-...",
    base_url="https://api.x.ai/v1"
)

response = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="grok-3-latest",
    messages=[
        {"role": "system", "content": "You are a helpful assistant."},
        {"role": "user", "content": "Explain what's happening in the AI market today"}
    ],
    stream=True
)

for chunk in response:
    if chunk.choices[0].delta.content:
        print(chunk.choices[0].delta.content, end="")

Live Search Grounding — real-time search

One of the API's most powerful features: Live Search — lets API requests search X and the internet in real time and return up-to-date results. This is DeepSearch's grounding engine, available via search_parameters:

response = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="grok-3-latest",
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "What is the price of Bitcoin right now?"}],
    extra_body={"search_parameters": {"mode": "on"}}
)
print(response.choices[0].message.content)

Streaming with Think Mode

response = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="grok-3-latest",
    messages=[
        {"role": "system", "content": "You are a business-strategy expert."},
        {"role": "user", "content": "Analyze the market: which AI area will grow fastest in 2026?"}
    ],
    reasoning_effort="high",  # Think Mode
    stream=True
)

for chunk in response:
    if chunk.choices[0].delta.content:
        print(chunk.choices[0].delta.content, end="")

API pricing (January 2026)

Use cases — what Grok does best

Based on its X integration and DeepSearch capabilities, Grok excels in specific areas where the competition lags behind:

Research Assistant with DeepSearch

Combine DeepSearch with Think Mode for deep, up-to-date research analysis. For example: "Research the current state of AI in medicine in 2026, including studies published this week." Grok will search, filter and summarize — a result that would have taken hours of manual research.

Social Media Monitoring — X Trends + AI Analysis

Real-time X monitoring: what people say about your brand, what the trends are in your industry, what competitors are doing. Grok turns it into a rich Intelligence service:

• Tracking specific Hashtags on X in real time
• Sentiment analysis of conversations around a product
• Identifying relevant Influencers in your niche
• An automatic alert when a certain topic starts to swell

Competitive Intelligence

Combine X monitoring with internet search for a full competitive picture. "What are [company]'s competitors publishing this week? What's the audience's reaction?" — a complete answer in minutes.

A real-time News Digest

Ask Grok: "Give me today's AI news update in 5 main points, including what was discussed on X." — an excellent replacement for a manual newsletter.

Fact-Checking with Citations

Grok excels at fact-checking: send it a claim and DeepSearch will look for corroborating or refuting sources — with direct citations. Excellent for journalists, researchers and content managers.

Grok 3 vs the competition — a full comparison

Where does Grok win and where does it lag? Here is a detailed comparison against the four main competitors:

When to choose Grok?

• X research and Social Intelligence: no competition — Grok is the tool
• Real-time news and trends: Grok wins by a wide margin
• Less filtered content: Grok gives more freedom
• Migration from OpenAI: a fully compatible API — migration in an hour

When not to choose Grok?

• High-quality Hebrew: GPT-4o still leads in Hebrew
• Complex code: Claude 3.7 Sonnet is still the best
• Very long Context: Gemini 2.5 with 2M tokens
• Google Workspace integration: Gemini, clearly

Cheat sheet — Grok 3 Quick Reference

Feature Summary

API Quick Reference

# Base URL
https://api.x.ai/v1

# Models
grok-3-latest      # full model, the strongest
grok-3-turbo       # fast + strong
grok-mini-latest   # cheap and fast

# Think Mode
reasoning_effort = "low" | "high"

# Live Search
extra_body={"search_parameters": {"mode": "on"}}

# pricing (input/output per 1M tokens)
grok-3:       $3 / $15
grok-3-turbo: $5 / $25
grok-mini:    $0.30 / $0.50

DeepSearch Query Tips — 10 templates that work

• Sentiment: "What is people's sentiment on X about [topic] in the last 7 days?"
• Trending: "What are the most-discussed topics on X in [X] right now?"
• Fact-check: "Check this claim against corroborating sources: [claim]"
• News digest: "Give me today's [field] news update in 5 points"
• Competitor: "What is [company] posting on X this week and what's the reaction?"
• Research: "Search for new studies and publications on [X] from 2025-2026"
• Thread analysis: "Find the most-discussed threads on X about [topic]"
• Influencer: "Who are the most active Influencers on X in [X]?"
• Price check: "What is the price of [product/asset] now and what's the weekly trend?"
• Event: "What happened at [event] and how did people react on X?"

When to use Grok vs the alternatives