API cost decision in 10 seconds

Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) vs Sonar Pro Search

Pick Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) for lower cost; pick Sonar Pro Search only if the larger context window matters more.

Pricing data updated: 2026-05-26T11:08:00Z Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output

Budget verdict

Pick Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) for lower cost; pick Sonar Pro Search only if the larger context window matters more.

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) is estimated at $2 vs $10.5 for Sonar Pro Search, saving $8.5 (81% lower).

Cost-first pickNano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview)

Context-first pickSonar Pro Search

Sample savings$8.581%

10x traffic gap$85

Sonar Pro Search has more context, but Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) saves $8.5 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $85. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.

Cost sensitivity

Workload Sensitivity

Same prices, different token mixes.

Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.

Workload shape	Token mix	Better pick	Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview)	Sonar Pro Search
Input-heavy / RAG	5M input + 500K output	Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview)	$4	$22.5
Balanced workload	1M input + 1M output	Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview)	$3.5	$18
Output-heavy chatbot	1M input + 5M output	Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview)	$15.5	$78

Cheaper input Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) $0.5 vs $3 / 1M

Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) is $2.5 cheaper per 1M input tokens (83.3% lower; 6x difference).

Cheaper output Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) $3 vs $15 / 1M

Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) is $12 cheaper per 1M output tokens (80% lower; 5x difference).

Larger context Sonar Pro Search 131.07K vs 200K

Sonar Pro Search has 68.93K more context (1.53x larger).

Sample workload Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) $2 vs $10.5

Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) is $8.5 cheaper on the standard workload (81% lower).

Estimate your workload cost

Your Workload Cost

Prices are normalized to USD per 1M tokens.

Monthly input tokens Monthly output tokens

Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) Calculating… Estimated API cost

Sonar Pro Search 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

Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) has the lower input price; Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) has the lower output price; Sonar Pro Search offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) is cheaper for the standard workload.

For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $2 for Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) and $10.5 for Sonar Pro Search.

Best Fit

Choose Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) when you care most about lower input-token price, and lower output-token price.

Choose Sonar Pro Search when you care most about larger context window.

Decision Notes

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) is estimated at $2 vs $10.5 for Sonar Pro Search, saving $8.5 (81% lower).
Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) is $8.5 cheaper on the standard workload (81% lower).
Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) is $2.5 cheaper per 1M input tokens (83.3% lower; 6x difference).
Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) is $12 cheaper per 1M output tokens (80% lower; 5x difference).
Sonar Pro Search has 68.93K more context (1.53x larger).

Head-to-Head Specs

Feature	Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) (Google)	Sonar Pro Search (Perplexity)
Input Price prompt tokens per 1M	$0.5	$3
Completion Price per 1M tokens	$3	$15
Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output	$2	$10.5
Context Window	131.07K	200K
Release Date	2026-02-26	2025-10-30

Use-Case Decision Matrix

Use case	Better pick	Why
Budget-constrained production	Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview)	On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) is estimated at $2 vs $10.5 for Sonar Pro Search, saving $8.5 (81% 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	Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview)	Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens.
RAG or long-document work	Sonar Pro Search	A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files.

Related Alternatives

Same-provider lower-cost swaps

Gemma 4 26B A4B (free) can replace Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
Gemma 4 31B (free) can replace Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
Lyria 3 Pro Preview can replace Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
Lyria 3 Clip Preview can replace Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview) when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.

Larger context near this budget

Llama 4 Scout offers 10M context with $0.23 sample workload cost.
Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent offers 2M context with $5 sample workload cost.
Grok 4.20 offers 2M context with $2.5 sample workload cost.
GPT-5.4 offers 1.05M context with $10 sample workload cost.

Popular competitors

No popular competitor is currently available.

Cheaper alternatives

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

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Larger context alternatives

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

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Provider catalogs

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Google catalog

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

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Perplexity catalog

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

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