reasoning
Gpt 5 vs O4 Mini
Side-by-side pricing, context window, features, and per-use-case verdict. Data sourced from LiteLLM, updated regularly.
Specifications
| Feature | Gpt 5 | O4 Mini |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | openai | openai |
| Model ID | gpt-5 | o4-mini |
| Input / 1M tokens | $1.25 | $1.10 (12% cheaper) |
| Output / 1M tokens | $10.00 | $4.40 (56% cheaper) |
| Cached input / 1M | $0.13 | $0.28 |
| Context window | 272kk tokens | 200kk tokens |
| Max output | 128kk tokens | 100kk tokens |
| Vision | ✅ | ✅ |
| Function calling | ✅ | ✅ |
| Prompt caching | ✅ | ✅ |
| Web search | ✅ | ✅ |
| JSON schema | ✅ | ✅ |
Monthly cost comparison
No cache discount applied — pure token costs at three usage scales.
| Scale | Gpt 5 | O4 Mini | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small 1M in / 0.2M out | $3.25 | $1.98 | O4 Mini saves 39% |
| Medium 10M in / 2M out | $32.50 | $19.80 | O4 Mini saves 39% |
| Large 100M in / 20M out | $325 | $198 | O4 Mini saves 39% |
Category winners
Cheapest input
O4 Mini
$1.10/M
· 12% less than the other
Cheapest output
O4 Mini
$4.40/M
· 56% less than the other
Larger context
Gpt 5
272kk tokens · 36% larger window
More features
Gpt 5
5 / 5 capabilities
(tied)
Better for…
High-volume RAG & repeated context
$0.13/M cached input — prompt caching makes repeated context retrieval significantly cheaper
Gpt 5
Short interactions & high-throughput APIs
$4.40/M output — 56% cheaper on output at scale
O4 Mini
Long-document processing & large codebases
272k context window vs 200k — 36% larger context
Gpt 5
Cost-sensitive production at scale
$198/month at 100M-token scale — 39% cheaper than the alternative
O4 Mini
Deep-dive on each model
Pricing data sourced from LiteLLM and refreshed regularly. Always verify with each provider's official pricing page before making business decisions.