API cost decision in 10 seconds

🔥GPT-5.5 vs 🔥MiniMax M2.7

Pick MiniMax M2.7 for lower cost; pick GPT-5.5 only if the larger context window matters more.

Pricing data updated: 2026-05-21T06:08:05Z Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output

Budget verdict

Pick MiniMax M2.7 for lower cost; pick GPT-5.5 only if the larger context window matters more.

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, MiniMax M2.7 is estimated at $0.88 vs $20 for GPT-5.5, saving $19.12 (95.6% lower).

Cost-first pickMiniMax M2.7

Context-first pickGPT-5.5

Sample savings$19.1295.6%

10x traffic gap$191.21

GPT-5.5 has more context, but MiniMax M2.7 saves $19.12 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $191.21. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.

Cost sensitivity

Workload Sensitivity

Same prices, different token mixes.

MiniMax M2.7 stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.

Workload shape	Token mix	Better pick	GPT-5.5	MiniMax M2.7
Input-heavy / RAG	5M input + 500K output	MiniMax M2.7	$40	$2
Balanced workload	1M input + 1M output	MiniMax M2.7	$35	$1.48
Output-heavy chatbot	1M input + 5M output	MiniMax M2.7	$155	$6.28

Cheaper input MiniMax M2.7 $5 vs $0.279 / 1M

MiniMax M2.7 is $4.72 cheaper per 1M input tokens (94.4% lower; 17.9x difference).

Cheaper output MiniMax M2.7 $30 vs $1.2 / 1M

MiniMax M2.7 is $28.8 cheaper per 1M output tokens (96% lower; 25x difference).

Larger context GPT-5.5 1.05M vs 204.8K

GPT-5.5 has 845.2K more context (5.13x larger).

Sample workload MiniMax M2.7 $20 vs $0.88

MiniMax M2.7 is $19.12 cheaper on the standard workload (95.6% lower).

Estimate your workload cost

Your Workload Cost

Prices are normalized to USD per 1M tokens.

Monthly input tokens Monthly output tokens

GPT-5.5 Calculating… Estimated API cost

MiniMax M2.7 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

MiniMax M2.7 has the lower input price; MiniMax M2.7 has the lower output price; GPT-5.5 offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, MiniMax M2.7 is cheaper for the standard workload.

For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $20 for GPT-5.5 and $0.88 for MiniMax M2.7.

Best Fit

Choose GPT-5.5 when you care most about larger context window.

Choose MiniMax M2.7 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, MiniMax M2.7 is estimated at $0.88 vs $20 for GPT-5.5, saving $19.12 (95.6% lower).
MiniMax M2.7 is $19.12 cheaper on the standard workload (95.6% lower).
MiniMax M2.7 is $4.72 cheaper per 1M input tokens (94.4% lower; 17.9x difference).
MiniMax M2.7 is $28.8 cheaper per 1M output tokens (96% lower; 25x difference).
GPT-5.5 has 845.2K more context (5.13x larger).

Head-to-Head Specs

Feature	🔥GPT-5.5 (OpenAI)	🔥MiniMax M2.7 (MiniMax)
Input Price prompt tokens per 1M	$5	$0.279
Completion Price per 1M tokens	$30	$1.2
Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output	$20	$0.88
Context Window	1.05M	204.8K
Release Date	2026-04-24	2026-03-18
Popularity	#14	#15

Use-Case Decision Matrix

Use case	Better pick	Why
Budget-constrained production	MiniMax M2.7	On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, MiniMax M2.7 is estimated at $0.88 vs $20 for GPT-5.5, saving $19.12 (95.6% lower).
High-volume input processing	MiniMax M2.7	Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill.
Long responses and chatbots	MiniMax M2.7	Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens.
RAG or long-document work	GPT-5.5	A 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-5.5 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
gpt-oss-20b (free) can replace GPT-5.5 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
gpt-oss-20b can replace GPT-5.5 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.1.
gpt-oss-120b can replace GPT-5.5 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.

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Provider catalogs

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OpenAI catalog

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MiniMax catalog

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GPT-5.5

GPT-5.5 is OpenAI’s frontier model designed for complex professional workloads, building on GPT-5.4 with stronger reasoning, higher reliability, and improved token efficiency on hard tasks. It features a 1M+ token...

MiniMax M2.7

MiniMax-M2.7 is a next-generation large language model designed for autonomous, real-world productivity and continuous improvement. Built to actively participate in its own evolution, M2.7 integrates advanced agentic capabilities through multi-agent...