API cost decision in 10 seconds

GPT-5 Nano vs Llama 3 8B Lunaris

Pick Llama 3 8B Lunaris for lower cost; pick GPT-5 Nano 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 Llama 3 8B Lunaris for lower cost; pick GPT-5 Nano only if the larger context window matters more.

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Llama 3 8B Lunaris is estimated at $0.07 vs $0.25 for GPT-5 Nano, saving $0.18 (74% lower).

Cost-first pickLlama 3 8B Lunaris
Context-first pickGPT-5 Nano
Sample savings$0.1874%
10x traffic gap$1.85

GPT-5 Nano has more context, but Llama 3 8B Lunaris saves $0.18 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $1.85. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.

Cost sensitivity

Workload Sensitivity

Same prices, different token mixes.

Llama 3 8B Lunaris stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.

Workload shapeToken mixBetter pickGPT-5 NanoLlama 3 8B Lunaris
Input-heavy / RAG5M input + 500K outputLlama 3 8B Lunaris$0.45$0.23
Balanced workload1M input + 1M outputLlama 3 8B Lunaris$0.45$0.09
Output-heavy chatbot1M input + 5M outputLlama 3 8B Lunaris$2.05$0.29
Cheaper input Llama 3 8B Lunaris $0.05 vs $0.04 / 1M

Llama 3 8B Lunaris is $0.01 cheaper per 1M input tokens (20% lower; 1.25x difference).

Cheaper output Llama 3 8B Lunaris $0.4 vs $0.05 / 1M

Llama 3 8B Lunaris is $0.35 cheaper per 1M output tokens (87.5% lower; 8x difference).

Larger context GPT-5 Nano 400K vs 8.19K

GPT-5 Nano has 391.81K more context (48.8x larger).

Sample workload Llama 3 8B Lunaris $0.25 vs $0.07

Llama 3 8B Lunaris is $0.18 cheaper on the standard workload (74% lower).

Estimate your workload cost

Your Workload Cost

Prices are normalized to USD per 1M tokens.
GPT-5 Nano Calculating… Estimated API cost
Llama 3 8B Lunaris 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

Llama 3 8B Lunaris has the lower input price; Llama 3 8B Lunaris has the lower output price; GPT-5 Nano offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, Llama 3 8B Lunaris is cheaper for the standard workload.

For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $0.25 for GPT-5 Nano and $0.07 for Llama 3 8B Lunaris.

Best Fit

Choose GPT-5 Nano when you care most about larger context window.

Choose Llama 3 8B Lunaris 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, Llama 3 8B Lunaris is estimated at $0.07 vs $0.25 for GPT-5 Nano, saving $0.18 (74% lower).
  • Llama 3 8B Lunaris is $0.18 cheaper on the standard workload (74% lower).
  • Llama 3 8B Lunaris is $0.01 cheaper per 1M input tokens (20% lower; 1.25x difference).
  • Llama 3 8B Lunaris is $0.35 cheaper per 1M output tokens (87.5% lower; 8x difference).
  • GPT-5 Nano has 391.81K more context (48.8x larger).
Head-to-Head Specs
FeatureGPT-5 Nano
(OpenAI)
Llama 3 8B Lunaris
(Sao10K)
Input Price
prompt tokens per 1M
$0.05$0.04
Completion Price
per 1M tokens
$0.4$0.05
Sample Workload Cost
1M input + 500K output
$0.25$0.07
Context Window400K8.19K
Release Date
Popularity#68#115

Use-Case Decision Matrix

Use caseBetter pickWhy
Budget-constrained productionLlama 3 8B LunarisOn the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Llama 3 8B Lunaris is estimated at $0.07 vs $0.25 for GPT-5 Nano, saving $0.18 (74% lower).
High-volume input processingLlama 3 8B LunarisLower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill.
Long responses and chatbotsLlama 3 8B LunarisLower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens.
RAG or long-document workGPT-5 NanoA 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 Nano when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
  • gpt-oss-20b (free) can replace GPT-5 Nano when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
  • gpt-oss-20b can replace GPT-5 Nano when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.1.
  • gpt-oss-120b can replace GPT-5 Nano when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.13.
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Cheaper alternatives

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Provider catalogs

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OpenAI catalog

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Sao10K catalog

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