Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) is $0.2 cheaper per 1M input tokens (28.6% lower; 1.4x difference).
API cost decision in 10 seconds
R1 vs Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview)
Pick R1 when budget and context both matter.
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Data confirmed:
Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens
Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output
Budget verdict
Pick R1 when budget and context both matter.
On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, R1 is estimated at $1.95 vs $2 for Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview), saving $0.05 (2.5% lower).
Cost-first pickR1
Context-first pickR1
Sample savings$0.052.5%
10x traffic gap$0.5
R1 is cheaper on the standard workload and also has the larger context window. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $0.5. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.
Cost sensitivity
Workload Sensitivity
Cost winner changes by workload shape: input-heavy / RAG favors Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview), balanced workload favors R1, and output-heavy chatbot favors R1.
| Workload shape | Token mix | Better pick | R1 | Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Input-heavy / RAG | 5M input + 500K output | Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) | $4.75 | $4 |
| Balanced workload | 1M input + 1M output | R1 | $3.2 | $3.5 |
| Output-heavy chatbot | 1M input + 5M output | R1 | $13.2 | $15.5 |
R1 is $0.5 cheaper per 1M output tokens (16.7% lower; 1.2x difference).
R1 has 32.77K more context (1.25x larger).
R1 is $0.05 cheaper on the standard workload (2.5% 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
Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) has the lower input price; R1 has the lower output price; R1 offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, R1 is cheaper for the standard workload.
For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $1.95 for R1 and $2 for Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview).
Choose R1 when you care most about lower output-token price, and larger context window.
Choose Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) when you care most about lower input-token price.
- On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, R1 is estimated at $1.95 vs $2 for Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview), saving $0.05 (2.5% lower).
- R1 is $0.05 cheaper on the standard workload (2.5% lower).
- Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) is $0.2 cheaper per 1M input tokens (28.6% lower; 1.4x difference).
- R1 is $0.5 cheaper per 1M output tokens (16.7% lower; 1.2x difference).
- R1 has 32.77K more context (1.25x larger).
| Feature | R1 (DeepSeek) | Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) (Google) |
|---|---|---|
| Input Price prompt tokens per 1M | $0.7 | $0.5 |
| Completion Price per 1M tokens | $2.5 | $3 |
| Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output | $1.95 | $2 |
| Context Window | 163.84K | 131.07K |
| Release Date | ||
| Popularity | #133 | #138 |
Use-Case Decision Matrix
| Use case | Better pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Budget-constrained production | R1 | On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, R1 is estimated at $1.95 vs $2 for Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview), saving $0.05 (2.5% lower). |
| High-volume input processing | Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) | Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill. |
| Long responses and chatbots | R1 | Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens. |
| RAG or long-document work | R1 | A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files. |
Related Alternatives
- DeepSeek V4 Flash (free) can replace R1 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash can replace R1 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.2.
- R1 Distill Qwen 32B can replace R1 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.43.
- DeepSeek V3.2 can replace R1 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.44.
- 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.
- MiMo-V2.5 offers 1.05M context with $0.28 sample workload cost.
- Hy3 preview · Tencent · #1
- MiMo-V2.5 · Xiaomi · #2
- DeepSeek V4 Flash · DeepSeek · #3
- Owl Alpha · OpenRouter · #4
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