API cost decision in 10 seconds

GPT-5.2 Pro vs Claude Opus 4.5

Pick Claude Opus 4.5 for lower cost; pick GPT-5.2 Pro 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 Claude Opus 4.5 for lower cost; pick GPT-5.2 Pro only if the larger context window matters more.

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Claude Opus 4.5 is estimated at $17.5 vs $105 for GPT-5.2 Pro, saving $87.5 (83.3% lower).

Cost-first pickClaude Opus 4.5
Context-first pickGPT-5.2 Pro
Sample savings$87.583.3%
10x traffic gap$875

GPT-5.2 Pro has more context, but Claude Opus 4.5 saves $87.5 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $875. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.

Cost sensitivity

Workload Sensitivity

Same prices, different token mixes.

Claude Opus 4.5 stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.

Workload shapeToken mixBetter pickGPT-5.2 ProClaude Opus 4.5
Input-heavy / RAG5M input + 500K outputClaude Opus 4.5$189$37.5
Balanced workload1M input + 1M outputClaude Opus 4.5$189$30
Output-heavy chatbot1M input + 5M outputClaude Opus 4.5$861$130
Cheaper input Claude Opus 4.5 $21 vs $5 / 1M

Claude Opus 4.5 is $16 cheaper per 1M input tokens (76.2% lower; 4.2x difference).

Cheaper output Claude Opus 4.5 $168 vs $25 / 1M

Claude Opus 4.5 is $143 cheaper per 1M output tokens (85.1% lower; 6.72x difference).

Larger context GPT-5.2 Pro 400K vs 200K

GPT-5.2 Pro has 200K more context (2x larger).

Sample workload Claude Opus 4.5 $105 vs $17.5

Claude Opus 4.5 is $87.5 cheaper on the standard workload (83.3% lower).

Estimate your workload cost

Your Workload Cost

Prices are normalized to USD per 1M tokens.
GPT-5.2 Pro Calculating… Estimated API cost
Claude Opus 4.5 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

Claude Opus 4.5 has the lower input price; Claude Opus 4.5 has the lower output price; GPT-5.2 Pro offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, Claude Opus 4.5 is cheaper for the standard workload.

For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $105 for GPT-5.2 Pro and $17.5 for Claude Opus 4.5.

Best Fit

Choose GPT-5.2 Pro when you care most about larger context window.

Choose Claude Opus 4.5 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, Claude Opus 4.5 is estimated at $17.5 vs $105 for GPT-5.2 Pro, saving $87.5 (83.3% lower).
  • Claude Opus 4.5 is $87.5 cheaper on the standard workload (83.3% lower).
  • Claude Opus 4.5 is $16 cheaper per 1M input tokens (76.2% lower; 4.2x difference).
  • Claude Opus 4.5 is $143 cheaper per 1M output tokens (85.1% lower; 6.72x difference).
  • GPT-5.2 Pro has 200K more context (2x larger).
Head-to-Head Specs
FeatureGPT-5.2 Pro
(OpenAI)		Claude Opus 4.5
(Anthropic)
Input Price
prompt tokens per 1M		$21$5
Completion Price
per 1M tokens		$168$25
Sample Workload Cost
1M input + 500K output		$105$17.5
Context Window400K200K
Release Date

Use-Case Decision Matrix

Use caseBetter pickWhy
Budget-constrained productionClaude Opus 4.5On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Claude Opus 4.5 is estimated at $17.5 vs $105 for GPT-5.2 Pro, saving $87.5 (83.3% lower).
High-volume input processingClaude Opus 4.5Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill.
Long responses and chatbotsClaude Opus 4.5Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens.
RAG or long-document workGPT-5.2 ProA larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files.

Related Alternatives

Same-provider lower-cost swaps
  • gpt-oss-120b (free) can replace GPT-5.2 Pro when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
  • gpt-oss-20b (free) can replace GPT-5.2 Pro when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
  • gpt-oss-20b can replace GPT-5.2 Pro when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.1.
  • gpt-oss-120b can replace GPT-5.2 Pro when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.13.
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-5.5 offers 1.05M context with $20 sample workload cost.

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

Compare models within provider hubs before choosing a final API vendor.

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OpenAI catalog

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

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Anthropic catalog

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

Open Anthropic models
GPT-5.2 Pro

GPT-5.2 Pro is OpenAI’s most advanced model, offering major improvements in agentic coding and long context performance over GPT-5 Pro. It is optimized for complex tasks that require step-by-step reasoning,...

Claude Opus 4.5

Claude Opus 4.5 is Anthropic’s frontier reasoning model optimized for complex software engineering, agentic workflows, and long-horizon computer use. It offers strong multimodal capabilities, competitive performance across real-world coding and...