API cost decision in 10 seconds

NewGemini 3.1 Flash Lite vs Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free)

Pick Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) for lower cost; pick Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite only if the larger context window matters more.

Page updated: 2026-05-26T10:03:26Z Data confirmed: 2026-05-26T13:08:02Z Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output

Budget verdict

Pick Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) for lower cost; pick Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite only if the larger context window matters more.

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) is estimated at $0 vs $1 for Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite, saving $1 (100% lower).

Cost-first pickNemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free)

Context-first pickGemini 3.1 Flash Lite

Sample savings$1100%

10x traffic gap$10

Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite has more context, but Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) saves $1 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $10. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.

Cost sensitivity

Workload Sensitivity

Same prices, different token mixes.

Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.

Workload shape	Token mix	Better pick	Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite	Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free)
Input-heavy / RAG	5M input + 500K output	Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free)	$2	$0
Balanced workload	1M input + 1M output	Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free)	$1.75	$0
Output-heavy chatbot	1M input + 5M output	Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free)	$7.75	$0

Cheaper input Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) $0.25 vs $0 / 1M

Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) is free for input tokens while Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite costs $0.25 per 1M tokens.

Cheaper output Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) $1.5 vs $0 / 1M

Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) is free for output tokens while Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite costs $1.5 per 1M tokens.

Larger context Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite 1.05M vs 256K

Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite has 792.58K more context (4.1x larger).

Sample workload Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) $1 vs $0

Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) is free for the standard workload while the other model is estimated at $1.

Estimate your workload cost

Your Workload Cost

Prices are normalized to USD per 1M tokens.

Monthly input tokens Monthly output tokens

Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Calculating… Estimated API cost

Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) 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

Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) has the lower input price; Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) has the lower output price; Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) is cheaper for the standard workload.

For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $1 for Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite and $0 for Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free).

Best Fit

Choose Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite when you care most about larger context window.

Choose Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) when you care most about lower input-token price, and lower output-token price.

Decision Notes

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) is estimated at $0 vs $1 for Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite, saving $1 (100% lower).
Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) is free for the standard workload while the other model is estimated at $1.
Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) is free for input tokens while Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite costs $0.25 per 1M tokens.
Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) is free for output tokens while Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite costs $1.5 per 1M tokens.
Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite has 792.58K more context (4.1x larger).

Head-to-Head Specs

Feature	NewGemini 3.1 Flash Lite (Google)	Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) (NVIDIA)
Input Price prompt tokens per 1M	$0.25	$0
Completion Price per 1M tokens	$1.5	$0
Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output	$1	$0
Context Window	1.05M	256K
Release Date	2026-05-07	2025-12-14

Use-Case Decision Matrix

Use case	Better pick	Why
Budget-constrained production	Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free)	On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free) is estimated at $0 vs $1 for Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite, saving $1 (100% lower).
High-volume input processing	Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free)	Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill.
Long responses and chatbots	Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free)	Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens.
RAG or long-document work	Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite	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 Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
Gemma 4 31B (free) can replace Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
Lyria 3 Pro Preview can replace Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
Lyria 3 Clip Preview can replace Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite 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.
Owl Alpha offers 1.05M context with $0 sample workload cost.

Popular competitors

DeepSeek V4 Flash · DeepSeek · #1
Hy3 preview · Tencent · #2
Claude Opus 4.7 · Anthropic · #3
Claude Sonnet 4.6 · Anthropic · #4

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

Google catalog

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

Open Google models

NVIDIA catalog

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

Open NVIDIA models

Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite

Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite is Google’s GA high-efficiency multimodal model optimized for low-latency, high-volume workloads. It supports text, image, video, audio, and PDF inputs, and is designed for lightweight agentic...

Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B (free)

NVIDIA Nemotron 3 Nano 30B A3B is a small language MoE model with highest compute efficiency and accuracy for developers to build specialized agentic AI systems. The model is fully...