API cost decision in 10 seconds

Gemma 4 31B vs GPT-4.1 Nano

Pick GPT-4.1 Nano when budget and context both matter.

Page updated: 2026-05-26T15:08:08Z Data confirmed: 2026-05-26T18:08:02Z Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output

Budget verdict

Pick GPT-4.1 Nano when budget and context both matter.

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, GPT-4.1 Nano is estimated at $0.3 vs $0.3 for Gemma 4 31B, saving $0.005 (1.6% lower).

Cost-first pickGPT-4.1 Nano

Context-first pickGPT-4.1 Nano

Sample savings$0.0051.6%

10x traffic gap$0.05

GPT-4.1 Nano is cheaper on the standard workload and also has the larger context window. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $0.05. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.

Cost sensitivity

Workload Sensitivity

Same prices, different token mixes.

Cost winner changes by workload shape: input-heavy / RAG favors GPT-4.1 Nano, balanced workload favors Gemma 4 31B, and output-heavy chatbot favors Gemma 4 31B.

Workload shape	Token mix	Better pick	Gemma 4 31B	GPT-4.1 Nano
Input-heavy / RAG	5M input + 500K output	GPT-4.1 Nano	$0.78	$0.7
Balanced workload	1M input + 1M output	Gemma 4 31B	$0.49	$0.5
Output-heavy chatbot	1M input + 5M output	Gemma 4 31B	$1.97	$2.1

Cheaper input GPT-4.1 Nano $0.12 vs $0.1 / 1M

GPT-4.1 Nano is $0.02 cheaper per 1M input tokens (16.7% lower; 1.2x difference).

Cheaper output Gemma 4 31B $0.37 vs $0.4 / 1M

Gemma 4 31B is $0.03 cheaper per 1M output tokens (7.5% lower; 1.08x difference).

Larger context GPT-4.1 Nano 262.14K vs 1.05M

GPT-4.1 Nano has 785.43K more context (4x larger).

Sample workload GPT-4.1 Nano $0.3 vs $0.3

GPT-4.1 Nano is $0.005 cheaper on the standard workload (1.6% lower).

Estimate your workload cost

Your Workload Cost

Prices are normalized to USD per 1M tokens.

Monthly input tokens Monthly output tokens

Gemma 4 31B Calculating… Estimated API cost

GPT-4.1 Nano 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

GPT-4.1 Nano has the lower input price; Gemma 4 31B has the lower output price; GPT-4.1 Nano offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, GPT-4.1 Nano is cheaper for the standard workload.

For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $0.3 for Gemma 4 31B and $0.3 for GPT-4.1 Nano.

Best Fit

Choose Gemma 4 31B when you care most about lower output-token price.

Choose GPT-4.1 Nano when you care most about lower input-token price, and larger context window.

Decision Notes

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, GPT-4.1 Nano is estimated at $0.3 vs $0.3 for Gemma 4 31B, saving $0.005 (1.6% lower).
GPT-4.1 Nano is $0.005 cheaper on the standard workload (1.6% lower).
GPT-4.1 Nano is $0.02 cheaper per 1M input tokens (16.7% lower; 1.2x difference).
Gemma 4 31B is $0.03 cheaper per 1M output tokens (7.5% lower; 1.08x difference).
GPT-4.1 Nano has 785.43K more context (4x larger).

Head-to-Head Specs

Feature	Gemma 4 31B (Google)	GPT-4.1 Nano (OpenAI)
Input Price prompt tokens per 1M	$0.12	$0.1
Completion Price per 1M tokens	$0.37	$0.4
Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output	$0.3	$0.3
Context Window	262.14K	1.05M
Release Date	2026-04-02	2025-04-14
Popularity	#27	#73

Use-Case Decision Matrix

Use case	Better pick	Why
Budget-constrained production	GPT-4.1 Nano	On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, GPT-4.1 Nano is estimated at $0.3 vs $0.3 for Gemma 4 31B, saving $0.005 (1.6% lower).
High-volume input processing	GPT-4.1 Nano	Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill.
Long responses and chatbots	Gemma 4 31B	Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens.
RAG or long-document work	GPT-4.1 Nano	A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files.

Related Alternatives

Same-provider lower-cost swaps

Gemma 4 31B (free) can replace Gemma 4 31B when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
Gemma 4 26B A4B (free) can replace Gemma 4 31B when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
Lyria 3 Clip Preview can replace Gemma 4 31B when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
Lyria 3 Pro Preview can replace Gemma 4 31B 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.
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.

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

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Larger context alternatives

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Provider catalogs

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Google catalog

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OpenAI catalog

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