Grok 4: How to Access and Use It

Maxwell Timothy
Jul 11, 2025
7 min read

xAI just rolled out Grok 4, its most powerful model yet, and it’s now available to both developers (via API) and everyday users.
This release features significant enhancements to context length, multimodal capabilities, speed, and API pricing.
If you're after performance, scale, and API access without the red tape, Grok 4 is a strong new option worth exploring.
What Is Grok 4?
Grok 4 is a multimodal large language model from xAI, designed to handle both image and text input with high reasoning accuracy and long-context processing.
Compared to Grok 3, this release is a clear upgrade:
- Context length: 256,000 tokens
- Inputs: Text and image
- Output: Text-only
- Reasoning: Always-on (can’t be disabled or toggled)
xAI has positioned Grok 4 as a reasoning-first model. It breaks down queries into sub-steps, processes information more deliberately, and produces structured answers. You can’t view or turn off its internal reasoning mode, but the results are generally more accurate—especially for technical tasks and abstract queries.
Independent testing shows Grok 4 scoring 73 on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index, outperforming:
- OpenAI o3 (score: 70)
- Gemini 2.5 Pro (70)
- Claude 4 Opus (64)
- DeepSeek R1 0528 (68)
It also handled image inputs well. In one real-world test, Grok 4 generated an SVG image of a pelican riding a bicycle, and then successfully described the same image using its image analysis capabilities.
But it’s not all smooth. Grok 4 launched without a model card, and recent issues with Grok 3’s prompt alignment (including an embarrassing MechaHitler incident) suggest xAI still has work to do on safety and trust.
Still, in terms of speed, reasoning, and raw capability, Grok 4 stands out.
How to Access Grok 4
Accessing Grok 4 is flexible, with multiple options designed for both everyday users and developers:
1. SuperGrok Subscription on X(Consumer Access)
Platform: Grok 4 is available directly within X (formerly Twitter). Access: Available to users subscribed to SuperGrok plans. How to Access: Once subscribed, users can interact with Grok 4 directly on the X mobile app or desktop platform. Plans:
- SuperGrok: $30/month or $300/year – access to Grok 4
- SuperGrok Heavy: $300/month or $3,000/year – access to Grok 4 Heavy (a larger variant)
2. Standalone Web Interface
Website: Grok.com offers a dedicated web-based experience. Access: Access may still be limited in some regions (such as the EU or UK), but rollout is ongoing. Functionality: Full access to Grok 4’s capabilities, depending on subscription tier.
3. Mobile Applications
Platforms: Grok 4 is available on iOS and Android. Availability: App availability varies by country, with support expanding progressively. Access: Linked to your X subscription; SuperGrok subscribers can access Grok 4 through the official X app.
4. API Access
xAI has released API access to Grok 4, making it available for developers to integrate into applications and workflows.
Pricing (standard context window ≤ 128K tokens):
- $3 per million input tokens
- $15 per million output tokens
Pricing (extended context > 128K tokens):
- $6 per million input tokens
- $30 per million output tokens
The pricing model is simple and predictable, ideal for scaling projects without cost surprises.
You can start building with Grok 4 right now via Chatbase—no waitlist, no extra setup.
→ Access Grok 4 on Chatbase
With Chatbase, developers can train and fine-tune Grok 4 using custom data before deploying it into production.
Chatbase’s Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) infrastructure helps you build AI assistants that are more accurate, deeply personalized, and ready for real-world use.
Whether you're automating customer support, building internal tools, or integrating AI into your product, Grok 4 is ready to go.
→ Want to train Grok 4 with your own data? Sign up on Chatbase and start building today.
A Timeline to Grok 4: From Grok-1 to Now
xAI hasn’t been around as long as OpenAI or Google DeepMind, but it’s moved quickly. In just over a year, it’s gone from launching its first model to shipping Grok 4, a system now competing head-to-head with the top players in the space.
Despite concerns around prompt safety and the lack of a formal model card at launch, Grok 4 represents xAI’s most complete, production-ready model to date.
- November 2023 – Grok-1 Launches xAI introduced its first model, Grok-1, integrated directly into X (formerly Twitter). It showed promise but lacked the power and refinement of leading models like GPT-4.
- March 2024 – Grok-1 Goes Open Source xAI open-sourced Grok-1 under the Apache-2.0 license. This gave developers the ability to experiment freely and marked a bold move toward transparency and speed.
- August 2024 – Grok-2 Arrives Grok-2 delivered better reasoning and introduced image generation for the first time. It signaled real progress in xAI’s development pipeline.
- October 2024 – Grok-2 Gains Vision Grok-2 was updated to understand images, not just generate them. This made it more competitive in multimodal AI tasks like content analysis and education.
- December 2024 – Platform Expansion Begins Grok started rolling out standalone access via web and iOS apps, beginning with users in Australia. It was no longer just a chatbot inside Twitter—it was becoming a platform.
- February 2025 – Grok 3 Launches Grok 3 was a big leap forward, powered by xAI’s Colossus supercomputer. It introduced advanced reasoning modes like “Think” and “Big Brain,” and user numbers surged.
- July 2025 – Grok 4 Goes Live Grok 4 launched with 256K context length, text+image input, and strong benchmark performance. It’s now available via API, mobile apps, and the SuperGrok subscription plan, marking xAI’s most production-ready model to date.
Why Choose Grok 4?
Grok 4 stands out in a crowded field of LLMs by combining strong performance with developer flexibility and competitive pricing. Here’s what makes it worth considering:
- 256K context length, double that of Grok 3, ideal for handling large documents or deep multi-step prompts
- Multimodal input, allowing you to feed in both text and images for more versatile tasks
- Always-on reasoning, delivering structured, thoughtful responses without needing to toggle special modes
- Live data awareness, with the ability to reference real-time content from X (formerly Twitter), including actual tweets
- Straightforward pricing, starting at $3/million input tokens and $15/million output tokens—with extended context pricing clearly defined
- Flexible access options, from API (OpenRouter, Chatbase) to mobile apps and SuperGrok subscriptions on the X platform
- Production-ready performance, validated by strong benchmark scores, even as xAI continues to address model alignment and safety.
Ready to Get Started with Grok?
Grok 4 might not be the loudest model on the market, but it’s shaping up to be one of the most capable—especially if you care about reasoning quality, input flexibility, and predictable pricing.
It brings real improvements over Grok 3, performs well in independent benchmarks, and is already being used across a growing number of developer platforms.
Whether you’re building AI tools, automating customer support, or experimenting with next-gen assistants, Grok 4 is worth putting into your workflow.
→ Want to start using Grok 4 now? You can try it instantly on Chatbase, where you can train it on your own data and deploy it without setup delays.
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