Calculator · Text AI
Text AI cost calculator.Find the cheapest model for your usage.
Text AI cost calculator
Enter your usage and find the cheapest model. Subscription vs API comparison across all major providers.
Messages or requests per day20/day
1 light200 heavy
Async / batch workloadEnables 50% Batch API discount
Confidential dataFilters out DeepSeek and similar
How text AI pricing works
Flat subscriptions charge a fixed monthly fee. APIs charge per token — roughly per word. Whether one beats the other depends entirely on your usage volume.
130M
Break-even for ChatGPT Plus
Tokens per month where $20/month equals GPT-4.1 mini API cost. Most solo users send under 2M tokens.
50%
Batch API discount
Both OpenAI and Anthropic offer 50% off for async requests. Document processing, classification, and analysis all qualify.
10×
Price gap: budget vs premium
GPT-4.1 mini at $0.4/1M input vs Claude Sonnet at $3/1M. Same tasks often produce identical output.
| Model | Input /1M tokens | Output /1M tokens | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| GPT-4.1 mini | $0.4 | $1.6 | General tasks, high volume |
| Gemini 2.5 Flash | $0.3 | $2.5 | Input-heavy, documents |
| Claude Haiku 4.5 | $1 | $5 | Anthropic ecosystem |
| Claude Sonnet 4.6 | $3 | $15 | Complex reasoning |
Break-even by plan
At what monthly token volume does the flat plan become cheaper than the API?
| Plan | Monthly cost | Break-even (GPT-4.1 mini) | Typical solo user |
|---|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT Plus | $20/mo | ~50M tokens/month | Under 2M — API wins |
| Claude Pro | $20/mo | ~1.3M output tokens | Most users: break-even depends on model mix |
| API only | Usage-based | N/A | Always cheapest at typical usage |
Frequently asked questions
Is ChatGPT Plus worth it?
For most solo users, no. ChatGPT Plus at $20/month breaks even at roughly 50 million tokens per month on GPT-4.1 mini pricing. Most casual users send under 2 million tokens — meaning the API costs under $1/month.
What is the cheapest capable AI model?
GPT-4.1 mini at $0.4/1M input tokens is currently the cheapest model from a major provider for general tasks. Gemini 2.5 Flash at $0.3/1M is cheaper on input for document-heavy workloads.
What is the Batch API discount?
Both OpenAI and Anthropic offer 50% off for async batch requests — requests processed within 24 hours rather than instantly. Document processing, classification, and data extraction all qualify. Enable it in your API settings.
Claude Pro vs API — which is cheaper?
Claude Pro at $20/month includes unlimited (rate-limited) Sonnet access. Via API, Haiku costs $1/$5 per 1M tokens. For light usage, the API costs under $2/month. For heavy Sonnet use, Pro is better value.
Prices updated daily · Last fetch: Mar 27, 2026
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