Nova Micro 1.0 is $0.14 cheaper per 1M input tokens (80.6% lower; 5.14x difference).
API cost decision in 10 seconds
Llama Guard 4 12B vs Nova Micro 1.0
Pick Nova Micro 1.0 for lower cost; pick Llama Guard 4 12B only if the larger context window matters more.
Page updated:
Data confirmed:
Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens
Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output
Budget verdict
Pick Nova Micro 1.0 for lower cost; pick Llama Guard 4 12B only if the larger context window matters more.
On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Nova Micro 1.0 is estimated at $0.11 vs $0.27 for Llama Guard 4 12B, saving $0.17 (61.1% lower).
Cost-first pickNova Micro 1.0
Context-first pickLlama Guard 4 12B
Sample savings$0.1761.1%
10x traffic gap$1.65
Llama Guard 4 12B has more context, but Nova Micro 1.0 saves $0.17 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $1.65. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.
Cost sensitivity
Workload Sensitivity
Nova Micro 1.0 stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.
| Workload shape | Token mix | Better pick | Llama Guard 4 12B | Nova Micro 1.0 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Input-heavy / RAG | 5M input + 500K output | Nova Micro 1.0 | $0.99 | $0.25 |
| Balanced workload | 1M input + 1M output | Nova Micro 1.0 | $0.36 | $0.18 |
| Output-heavy chatbot | 1M input + 5M output | Nova Micro 1.0 | $1.08 | $0.74 |
Nova Micro 1.0 is $0.04 cheaper per 1M output tokens (22.2% lower; 1.29x difference).
Llama Guard 4 12B has 35.84K more context (1.28x larger).
Nova Micro 1.0 is $0.17 cheaper on the standard workload (61.1% 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
Nova Micro 1.0 has the lower input price; Nova Micro 1.0 has the lower output price; Llama Guard 4 12B offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, Nova Micro 1.0 is cheaper for the standard workload.
For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $0.27 for Llama Guard 4 12B and $0.11 for Nova Micro 1.0.
Choose Llama Guard 4 12B when you care most about larger context window.
Choose Nova Micro 1.0 when you care most about lower input-token price, and lower output-token price.
- On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Nova Micro 1.0 is estimated at $0.11 vs $0.27 for Llama Guard 4 12B, saving $0.17 (61.1% lower).
- Nova Micro 1.0 is $0.17 cheaper on the standard workload (61.1% lower).
- Nova Micro 1.0 is $0.14 cheaper per 1M input tokens (80.6% lower; 5.14x difference).
- Nova Micro 1.0 is $0.04 cheaper per 1M output tokens (22.2% lower; 1.29x difference).
- Llama Guard 4 12B has 35.84K more context (1.28x larger).
| Feature | Llama Guard 4 12B (Meta) | Nova Micro 1.0 (Amazon) |
|---|---|---|
| Input Price prompt tokens per 1M | $0.18 | $0.035 |
| Completion Price per 1M tokens | $0.18 | $0.14 |
| Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output | $0.27 | $0.11 |
| Context Window | 163.84K | 128K |
| Release Date | ||
| Popularity | #146 | #148 |
Use-Case Decision Matrix
| Use case | Better pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Budget-constrained production | Nova Micro 1.0 | On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Nova Micro 1.0 is estimated at $0.11 vs $0.27 for Llama Guard 4 12B, saving $0.17 (61.1% lower). |
| High-volume input processing | Nova Micro 1.0 | Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill. |
| Long responses and chatbots | Nova Micro 1.0 | Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens. |
| RAG or long-document work | Llama Guard 4 12B | A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files. |
Related Alternatives
- Llama 3.3 70B Instruct (free) can replace Llama Guard 4 12B when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- Llama 3.2 3B Instruct (free) can replace Llama Guard 4 12B when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- Llama 3.1 8B Instruct can replace Llama Guard 4 12B when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.04.
- Llama 3 8B Instruct can replace Llama Guard 4 12B when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.06.
- Llama 4 Scout offers 10M context with $0.23 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.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash offers 1.05M context with $0.2 sample workload cost.
- Hy3 preview · Tencent · #1
- MiMo-V2.5 · Xiaomi · #2
- DeepSeek V4 Flash · DeepSeek · #3
- Owl Alpha · OpenRouter · #4
Cheaper alternatives
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