gpt-oss-20b is $0.18 cheaper per 1M input tokens (85.7% lower; 7x difference).
API cost decision in 10 seconds
DeepSeek V3.1 vs gpt-oss-20b
Pick gpt-oss-20b for lower cost; pick DeepSeek V3.1 only if the larger context window matters more.
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Data confirmed:
Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens
Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output
Budget verdict
Pick gpt-oss-20b for lower cost; pick DeepSeek V3.1 only if the larger context window matters more.
On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, gpt-oss-20b is estimated at $0.1 vs $0.6 for DeepSeek V3.1, saving $0.51 (83.5% lower).
Cost-first pickgpt-oss-20b
Context-first pickDeepSeek V3.1
Sample savings$0.5183.5%
10x traffic gap$5.05
DeepSeek V3.1 has more context, but gpt-oss-20b saves $0.51 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $5.05. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.
Cost sensitivity
Workload Sensitivity
gpt-oss-20b stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.
| Workload shape | Token mix | Better pick | DeepSeek V3.1 | gpt-oss-20b |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Input-heavy / RAG | 5M input + 500K output | gpt-oss-20b | $1.45 | $0.22 |
| Balanced workload | 1M input + 1M output | gpt-oss-20b | $1 | $0.17 |
| Output-heavy chatbot | 1M input + 5M output | gpt-oss-20b | $4.16 | $0.73 |
gpt-oss-20b is $0.65 cheaper per 1M output tokens (82.3% lower; 5.64x difference).
DeepSeek V3.1 has 32.77K more context (1.25x larger).
gpt-oss-20b is $0.51 cheaper on the standard workload (83.5% lower).
Estimate your workload cost
Your Workload Cost
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
gpt-oss-20b has the lower input price; gpt-oss-20b has the lower output price; DeepSeek V3.1 offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, gpt-oss-20b is cheaper for the standard workload.
For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $0.6 for DeepSeek V3.1 and $0.1 for gpt-oss-20b.
Choose DeepSeek V3.1 when you care most about larger context window.
Choose gpt-oss-20b when you care most about lower input-token price, and lower output-token price.
- On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, gpt-oss-20b is estimated at $0.1 vs $0.6 for DeepSeek V3.1, saving $0.51 (83.5% lower).
- gpt-oss-20b is $0.51 cheaper on the standard workload (83.5% lower).
- gpt-oss-20b is $0.18 cheaper per 1M input tokens (85.7% lower; 7x difference).
- gpt-oss-20b is $0.65 cheaper per 1M output tokens (82.3% lower; 5.64x difference).
- DeepSeek V3.1 has 32.77K more context (1.25x larger).
| Feature | DeepSeek V3.1 (DeepSeek) | gpt-oss-20b (OpenAI) |
|---|---|---|
| Input Price prompt tokens per 1M | $0.21 | $0.03 |
| Completion Price per 1M tokens | $0.79 | $0.14 |
| Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output | $0.6 | $0.1 |
| Context Window | 163.84K | 131.07K |
| Release Date | ||
| Popularity | #59 | #67 |
Use-Case Decision Matrix
| Use case | Better pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Budget-constrained production | gpt-oss-20b | On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, gpt-oss-20b is estimated at $0.1 vs $0.6 for DeepSeek V3.1, saving $0.51 (83.5% lower). |
| High-volume input processing | gpt-oss-20b | Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill. |
| Long responses and chatbots | gpt-oss-20b | Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens. |
| RAG or long-document work | DeepSeek V3.1 | A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files. |
Related Alternatives
- DeepSeek V4 Flash (free) can replace DeepSeek V3.1 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash can replace DeepSeek V3.1 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.2.
- R1 Distill Qwen 32B can replace DeepSeek V3.1 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.43.
- DeepSeek V3.2 can replace DeepSeek V3.1 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.44.
- Llama 4 Scout offers 10M context with $0.23 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.
- Gemini 2.5 Flash Lite offers 1.05M context with $0.3 sample workload cost.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash · DeepSeek · #1
- Hy3 preview · Tencent · #2
- Claude Opus 4.7 · Anthropic · #3
- Claude Sonnet 4.6 · Anthropic · #4
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gpt-oss-20b is an open-weight 21B parameter model released by OpenAI under the Apache 2.0 license. It uses a Mixture-of-Experts (MoE) architecture with 3.6B active parameters per forward pass, optimized for...