API cost decision in 10 seconds

Claude 3.5 Haiku vs GPT-5.5 Pro

Pick Claude 3.5 Haiku for lower cost; pick GPT-5.5 Pro only if the larger context window matters more.

Page updated:  Data confirmed:  Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output

Budget verdict

Pick Claude 3.5 Haiku for lower cost; pick GPT-5.5 Pro only if the larger context window matters more.

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Claude 3.5 Haiku is estimated at $2.8 vs $120 for GPT-5.5 Pro, saving $117.2 (97.7% lower).

Cost-first pickClaude 3.5 Haiku
Context-first pickGPT-5.5 Pro
Sample savings$117.297.7%
10x traffic gap$1172

GPT-5.5 Pro has more context, but Claude 3.5 Haiku saves $117.2 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $1172. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.

Cost sensitivity

Workload Sensitivity

Same prices, different token mixes.

Claude 3.5 Haiku stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.

Workload shapeToken mixBetter pickClaude 3.5 HaikuGPT-5.5 Pro
Input-heavy / RAG5M input + 500K outputClaude 3.5 Haiku$6$240
Balanced workload1M input + 1M outputClaude 3.5 Haiku$4.8$210
Output-heavy chatbot1M input + 5M outputClaude 3.5 Haiku$20.8$930
Cheaper input Claude 3.5 Haiku $0.8 vs $30 / 1M

Claude 3.5 Haiku is $29.2 cheaper per 1M input tokens (97.3% lower; 37.5x difference).

Cheaper output Claude 3.5 Haiku $4 vs $180 / 1M

Claude 3.5 Haiku is $176 cheaper per 1M output tokens (97.8% lower; 45x difference).

Larger context GPT-5.5 Pro 200K vs 1.05M

GPT-5.5 Pro has 850K more context (5.25x larger).

Sample workload Claude 3.5 Haiku $2.8 vs $120

Claude 3.5 Haiku is $117.2 cheaper on the standard workload (97.7% lower).

Estimate your workload cost

Your Workload Cost

Prices are normalized to USD per 1M tokens.
Claude 3.5 Haiku Calculating… Estimated API cost
GPT-5.5 Pro Calculating… Estimated API cost
Cheaper for this workload Calculating… Difference: calculating…

This estimate uses normalized public API pricing per 1M tokens. It is a planning aid, not a billing quote. Verify provider pricing, limits, and terms before production use.

Quick Decision

Verdict

Claude 3.5 Haiku has the lower input price; Claude 3.5 Haiku has the lower output price; GPT-5.5 Pro offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, Claude 3.5 Haiku is cheaper for the standard workload.

For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $2.8 for Claude 3.5 Haiku and $120 for GPT-5.5 Pro.

Best Fit

Choose Claude 3.5 Haiku when you care most about lower input-token price, and lower output-token price.

Choose GPT-5.5 Pro when you care most about larger context window.

Decision Notes
  • On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Claude 3.5 Haiku is estimated at $2.8 vs $120 for GPT-5.5 Pro, saving $117.2 (97.7% lower).
  • Claude 3.5 Haiku is $117.2 cheaper on the standard workload (97.7% lower).
  • Claude 3.5 Haiku is $29.2 cheaper per 1M input tokens (97.3% lower; 37.5x difference).
  • Claude 3.5 Haiku is $176 cheaper per 1M output tokens (97.8% lower; 45x difference).
  • GPT-5.5 Pro has 850K more context (5.25x larger).
Head-to-Head Specs
FeatureClaude 3.5 Haiku
(Anthropic)
GPT-5.5 Pro
(OpenAI)
Input Price
prompt tokens per 1M
$0.8$30
Completion Price
per 1M tokens
$4$180
Sample Workload Cost
1M input + 500K output
$2.8$120
Context Window200K1.05M
Release Date
Popularity#104#122

Use-Case Decision Matrix

Use caseBetter pickWhy
Budget-constrained productionClaude 3.5 HaikuOn the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Claude 3.5 Haiku is estimated at $2.8 vs $120 for GPT-5.5 Pro, saving $117.2 (97.7% lower).
High-volume input processingClaude 3.5 HaikuLower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill.
Long responses and chatbotsClaude 3.5 HaikuLower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens.
RAG or long-document workGPT-5.5 ProA larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files.

Related Alternatives

Same-provider lower-cost swaps
  • Claude 3 Haiku can replace Claude 3.5 Haiku when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.88.
  • gpt-oss-120b (free) can replace GPT-5.5 Pro when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
  • gpt-oss-20b (free) can replace GPT-5.5 Pro when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
  • gpt-oss-20b can replace GPT-5.5 Pro when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.1.
Larger context near this budget

Cheaper alternatives

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Provider catalogs

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Anthropic catalog

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OpenAI catalog

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Claude 3.5 Haiku features offers enhanced capabilities in speed, coding accuracy, and tool use. Engineered to excel in real-time applications, it delivers quick response times that are essential for dynamic...

GPT-5.5 Pro

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