DeepSeek V4.1 Flash is $0.05 cheaper per 1M input tokens (25% lower; 1.33x difference).
API cost decision in 10 seconds
NewDeepSeek V4.1 Flash vs Mercury 2.5 Preview
Pick DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 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 DeepSeek V4.1 Flash when budget and context both matter.
On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, DeepSeek V4.1 Flash is estimated at $0.45 vs $0.57 for Mercury 2.5 Preview, saving $0.12 (21.7% lower).
Cost-first pickDeepSeek V4.1 Flash
Context-first pickDeepSeek V4.1 Flash
Sample savings$0.1221.7%
10x traffic gap$1.25
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash is cheaper on the standard workload and also has the larger context window. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $1.25. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.
Cost sensitivity
Workload Sensitivity
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.
| Workload shape | Token mix | Better pick | DeepSeek V4.1 Flash | Mercury 2.5 Preview |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Input-heavy / RAG | 5M input + 500K output | DeepSeek V4.1 Flash | $1.05 | $1.38 |
| Balanced workload | 1M input + 1M output | DeepSeek V4.1 Flash | $0.75 | $0.95 |
| Output-heavy chatbot | 1M input + 5M output | DeepSeek V4.1 Flash | $3.15 | $3.95 |
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash is $0.15 cheaper per 1M output tokens (20% lower; 1.25x difference).
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash has 788.58K more context (4.03x larger).
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash is $0.12 cheaper on the standard workload (21.7% 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
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash has the lower input price; DeepSeek V4.1 Flash has the lower output price; DeepSeek V4.1 Flash offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, DeepSeek V4.1 Flash is cheaper for the standard workload.
For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $0.45 for DeepSeek V4.1 Flash and $0.57 for Mercury 2.5 Preview.
Choose DeepSeek V4.1 Flash when you care most about lower input-token price, lower output-token price, and larger context window.
Choose Mercury 2.5 Preview when its provider, model quality, latency, or availability is more important than the numeric price/context winner.
- On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, DeepSeek V4.1 Flash is estimated at $0.45 vs $0.57 for Mercury 2.5 Preview, saving $0.12 (21.7% lower).
- DeepSeek V4.1 Flash is $0.12 cheaper on the standard workload (21.7% lower).
- DeepSeek V4.1 Flash is $0.05 cheaper per 1M input tokens (25% lower; 1.33x difference).
- DeepSeek V4.1 Flash is $0.15 cheaper per 1M output tokens (20% lower; 1.25x difference).
- DeepSeek V4.1 Flash has 788.58K more context (4.03x larger).
| Feature | NewDeepSeek V4.1 Flash (DeepSeek) | Mercury 2.5 Preview (Inception) |
|---|---|---|
| Input Price prompt tokens per 1M | $0.15 | $0.2 |
| Completion Price per 1M tokens | $0.6 | $0.75 |
| Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output | $0.45 | $0.57 |
| Context Window | 1.05M | 260K |
| Release Date |
Use-Case Decision Matrix
| Use case | Better pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Budget-constrained production | DeepSeek V4.1 Flash | On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, DeepSeek V4.1 Flash is estimated at $0.45 vs $0.57 for Mercury 2.5 Preview, saving $0.12 (21.7% lower). |
| High-volume input processing | DeepSeek V4.1 Flash | Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill. |
| Long responses and chatbots | DeepSeek V4.1 Flash | Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens. |
| RAG or long-document work | DeepSeek V4.1 Flash | A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files. |
Related Alternatives
- DeepSeek V4 Flash (free) can replace DeepSeek V4.1 Flash when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash 0731 can replace DeepSeek V4.1 Flash when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.08.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash 0423 can replace DeepSeek V4.1 Flash when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.13.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash Vision Exp (batch) can replace DeepSeek V4.1 Flash when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.28.
- GLM 5.3 Flash offers 1.31M context with $0.4 sample workload cost.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash 0731 offers 1.31M context with $0.08 sample workload cost.
- GLM Flash Latest offers 1.31M context with $0.2 sample workload cost.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash Latest offers 1.31M context with $0.08 sample workload cost.
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- GPT-5.6 Luna · OpenAI · #2
- GLM 5.3 Flash · Z.ai · #3
- DeepSeek V4 Flash 0731 · DeepSeek · #4
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