OpenAI o1-mini vs OpenAI o4-mini
Performance benchmarks + pricing comparison — updated April 2026
OpenAI o1-mini
OpenAICost-effective reasoning model. Good for coding tasks that require logical reasoning.
| Input | $1.10/M |
| Output | $4.40/M |
| Context | 128K tokens |
| Best For | Coding logic, debugging, algorithm design |
| Benchmark | 70/100 |
OpenAI o4-mini
OpenAIUpdated mini reasoning model. Similar pricing to o3-mini with updated capabilities.
| Input | $1.10/M |
| Output | $4.40/M |
| Context | 200K tokens |
| Best For | General reasoning, coding tasks |
| Benchmark | 72/100 |
Benchmark Performance Comparison
Third-party benchmark scores — higher is better. Data sourced from SWE-bench, LiveCodeBench, HumanEval, and BigCodeBench.
| Benchmark | OpenAI o1-mini | OpenAI o4-mini | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall Score | 70 | 72 | o4-mini leads by 2pts |
| SWE-bench Verified | 64 | 66 | o4-mini leads by 2pts |
| LiveCodeBench | 72 | 74 | o4-mini leads by 2pts |
| HumanEval | 90 | 92 | o4-mini leads by 2pts |
| BigCodeBench | 54 | 56 | o4-mini leads by 2pts |
Cost Comparison by Scenario
Estimated cost per project with 30% cache hit rate. Actual costs may vary based on usage patterns.
| Scenario | OpenAI o1-mini | OpenAI o4-mini | Savings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small Script (1K lines) | $0.17 | $0.17 | OpenAI o1-mini saves <$0.01 (0%) |
| Medium Feature (10K lines) | $1.27 | $1.27 | OpenAI o1-mini saves <$0.01 (0%) |
| Large Project (50K lines) | $6.33 | $6.33 | OpenAI o1-mini saves <$0.01 (0%) |
| Code Review (5K lines) | $0.30 | $0.30 | OpenAI o1-mini saves <$0.01 (0%) |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAI o1-mini | 70 | $0.016/pt | Higher cost per point |
| OpenAI o4-mini | 72 | $0.015/pt | Better value |
OpenAI o4-mini delivers the best value at $0.015 per score point.
Strengths & Weaknesses
OpenAI o1-mini
- + Reasoning at lower cost
- + Good for competitive programming
- - Slower than standard models
OpenAI o4-mini
- + Improved reasoning at mini price
- - New model, limited data
Verdict
OpenAI o1-mini is cheaper at $1.10/M, but OpenAI o4-mini scores higher on benchmarks (72 vs 70).
Choose OpenAI o1-mini for cost-sensitive projects, OpenAI o4-mini when performance matters most.
Compare with Other Models
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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
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Claude 3.5 Haiku
AnthropicFast, cost-effective model for high-volume tasks. Great for code review and simple queries.
Claude 3 Opus
AnthropicFirst generation Opus. Highest reasoning capability in the Claude 3 family.
Claude 3 Sonnet
AnthropicFirst generation Sonnet. Balanced performance for general tasks.