Claude 3 Opus vs GPT-4
Performance benchmarks + pricing comparison — updated April 2026
Claude 3 Opus
AnthropicFirst generation Opus. Highest reasoning capability in the Claude 3 family.
| Input | $15.00/M |
| Output | $75.00/M |
| Context | 200K tokens |
| Best For | Deep analysis, complex coding tasks |
| Benchmark | 78/100 |
GPT-4
OpenAIOriginal GPT-4. Most expensive OpenAI model, largely superseded by newer options.
| Input | $30.00/M |
| Output | $60.00/M |
| Context | 8K tokens |
| Best For | Legacy applications requiring GPT-4 specifically |
| Benchmark | 68/100 |
Benchmark Performance Comparison
Third-party benchmark scores — higher is better. Data sourced from SWE-bench, LiveCodeBench, HumanEval, and BigCodeBench.
| Benchmark | Claude 3 Opus | GPT-4 | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall Score | 78 | 68 | Claude 3 Opus leads by 10pts |
| SWE-bench Verified | 74 | 60 | Claude 3 Opus leads by 14pts |
| LiveCodeBench | 80 | 70 | Claude 3 Opus leads by 10pts |
| HumanEval | 94 | 86 | Claude 3 Opus leads by 8pts |
| BigCodeBench | 64 | 54 | Claude 3 Opus leads by 10pts |
Cost Comparison by Scenario
Estimated cost per project with 30% cache hit rate. Actual costs may vary based on usage patterns.
| Scenario | Claude 3 Opus | GPT-4 | Savings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small Script (1K lines) | $2.77 | $2.85 | Claude 3 Opus saves $0.07 (3%) |
| Medium Feature (10K lines) | $20.25 | $22.50 | Claude 3 Opus saves $2.25 (10%) |
| Large Project (50K lines) | $101.25 | $112.50 | Claude 3 Opus saves $11.25 (10%) |
| Code Review (5K lines) | $4.50 | $6.75 | Claude 3 Opus saves $2.25 (33%) |
Value Analysis (Price per Benchmark Score Point)
Lower is better — how much you pay for each point of benchmark performance.
| Model | Overall Score | Price per Score Point | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Claude 3 Opus | 78 | $0.192/pt | Better value |
| GPT-4 | 68 | $0.441/pt | Higher cost per point |
Claude 3 Opus delivers the best value at $0.192 per score point.
Strengths & Weaknesses
Claude 3 Opus
- + Strong reasoning
- + Proven track record
- - Older generation
- - Expensive
GPT-4
- + Original breakthrough model
- - Two generations behind
- - Expensive
Verdict
Claude 3 Opus wins on both price and performance — $15.00/M input with a benchmark score of 78/100.
For most developers, this is the clear choice between these two models.
Compare with Other Models
Claude Sonnet 4
AnthropicAnthropic's balanced model for coding and general tasks. Best price-performance ratio in the Claude family.
Claude Opus 4
AnthropicAnthropic's most powerful model. Best for complex reasoning and challenging coding tasks.
Claude 3.5 Sonnet
AnthropicPrevious generation Sonnet. Still excellent for coding tasks at the same price point.
Claude 3.5 Haiku
AnthropicFast, cost-effective model for high-volume tasks. Great for code review and simple queries.
Claude 3 Sonnet
AnthropicFirst generation Sonnet. Balanced performance for general tasks.
Claude 3 Haiku
AnthropicCheapest Claude model. Fast responses for simple tasks and basic coding.