API cost decision in 10 seconds

Claude 3.5 Haiku vs o3 Mini

Pick Claude 3.5 Haiku when budget is the priority.

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

Budget verdict

Pick Claude 3.5 Haiku when budget is the priority.

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Claude 3.5 Haiku is estimated at $2.8 vs $3.3 for o3 Mini, saving $0.5 (15.2% lower).

Cost-first pickClaude 3.5 Haiku
Context-first pickBoth models
Sample savings$0.515.2%
10x traffic gap$5

The reported context window is tied, so cost and provider fit carry more weight. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $5. 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 Haikuo3 Mini
Input-heavy / RAG5M input + 500K outputClaude 3.5 Haiku$6$7.7
Balanced workload1M input + 1M outputClaude 3.5 Haiku$4.8$5.5
Output-heavy chatbot1M input + 5M outputClaude 3.5 Haiku$20.8$23.1
Cheaper input Claude 3.5 Haiku $0.8 vs $1.1 / 1M

Claude 3.5 Haiku is $0.3 cheaper per 1M input tokens (27.3% lower; 1.38x difference).

Cheaper output Claude 3.5 Haiku $4 vs $4.4 / 1M

Claude 3.5 Haiku is $0.4 cheaper per 1M output tokens (9.1% lower; 1.1x difference).

Larger context Tie 200K vs 200K

Both models report the same context window at 200K tokens.

Sample workload Claude 3.5 Haiku $2.8 vs $3.3

Claude 3.5 Haiku is $0.5 cheaper on the standard workload (15.2% lower).

Estimate your workload cost

Your Workload Cost

Prices are normalized to USD per 1M tokens.
Claude 3.5 Haiku Calculating… Estimated API cost
o3 Mini 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; both models report the same 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 $3.3 for o3 Mini.

Best Fit

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

Choose o3 Mini when its provider, model quality, latency, or availability is more important than the numeric price/context winner.

Decision Notes
  • On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Claude 3.5 Haiku is estimated at $2.8 vs $3.3 for o3 Mini, saving $0.5 (15.2% lower).
  • Claude 3.5 Haiku is $0.5 cheaper on the standard workload (15.2% lower).
  • Claude 3.5 Haiku is $0.3 cheaper per 1M input tokens (27.3% lower; 1.38x difference).
  • Claude 3.5 Haiku is $0.4 cheaper per 1M output tokens (9.1% lower; 1.1x difference).
  • Both models report the same context window at 200K tokens.
Head-to-Head Specs
FeatureClaude 3.5 Haiku
(Anthropic)		o3 Mini
(OpenAI)
Input Price
prompt tokens per 1M		$0.8$1.1
Completion Price
per 1M tokens		$4$4.4
Sample Workload Cost
1M input + 500K output		$2.8$3.3
Context Window200K200K
Release Date
Popularity#104#120

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 $3.3 for o3 Mini, saving $0.5 (15.2% 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 workTieA 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 o3 Mini when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
  • gpt-oss-20b (free) can replace o3 Mini when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
  • gpt-oss-20b can replace o3 Mini when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.1.
Larger context near this budget
  • Llama 4 Scout offers 10M context with $0.23 sample workload cost.
  • Grok 4.20 offers 2M context with $2.5 sample workload cost.
  • Owl Alpha offers 1.05M context with $0 sample workload cost.
  • DeepSeek V4 Flash offers 1.05M context with $0.2 sample workload cost.

Cheaper alternatives

Review low-cost models sorted by a standard 1M input plus 500K output workload.

Open cheapest models

Larger context alternatives

Find models with larger context windows for RAG, long documents, and codebase review.

Open largest context models

Provider catalogs

Compare models within provider hubs before choosing a final API vendor.

Open provider hubs

Anthropic catalog

Review all tracked Anthropic models before deciding whether this matchup is the right shortlist.

Open Anthropic models

OpenAI catalog

Check other OpenAI models with comparable pricing, context, or release timing.

Open OpenAI models
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