API cost decision in 10 seconds

NewParticle-1 vs Union Alpha

Pick Union Alpha for lower cost; pick Particle-1 only if the larger context window matters more.

Page updated: 2026-10-28T20:08:21Z Data confirmed: 2026-10-28T21:08:07Z Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output

Budget verdict

Pick Union Alpha for lower cost; pick Particle-1 only if the larger context window matters more.

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Union Alpha is estimated at $0 vs $0.75 for Particle-1, saving $0.75 (100% lower).

Cost-first pickUnion Alpha

Context-first pickParticle-1

Sample savings$0.75100%

10x traffic gap$7.5

Particle-1 has more context, but Union Alpha saves $0.75 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $7.5. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.

Cost sensitivity

Workload Sensitivity

Same prices, different token mixes.

Union Alpha stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.

Workload shape	Token mix	Better pick	Particle-1	Union Alpha
Input-heavy / RAG	5M input + 500K output	Union Alpha	$1.75	$0
Balanced workload	1M input + 1M output	Union Alpha	$1.25	$0
Output-heavy chatbot	1M input + 5M output	Union Alpha	$5.25	$0

Cheaper input Union Alpha $0.25 vs $0 / 1M

Union Alpha is free for input tokens while Particle-1 costs $0.25 per 1M tokens.

Cheaper output Union Alpha $1 vs $0 / 1M

Union Alpha is free for output tokens while Particle-1 costs $1 per 1M tokens.

Larger context Particle-1 1.05M vs 262.14K

Particle-1 has 786.43K more context (4x larger).

Sample workload Union Alpha $0.75 vs $0

Union Alpha is free for the standard workload while the other model is estimated at $0.75.

Estimate your workload cost

Your Workload Cost

Prices are normalized to USD per 1M tokens.

Monthly input tokens Monthly output tokens

Particle-1 Calculating… Estimated API cost

Union Alpha 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

Union Alpha has the lower input price; Union Alpha has the lower output price; Particle-1 offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, Union Alpha is cheaper for the standard workload.

For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $0.75 for Particle-1 and $0 for Union Alpha.

Best Fit

Choose Particle-1 when you care most about larger context window.

Choose Union Alpha 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, Union Alpha is estimated at $0 vs $0.75 for Particle-1, saving $0.75 (100% lower).
Union Alpha is free for the standard workload while the other model is estimated at $0.75.
Union Alpha is free for input tokens while Particle-1 costs $0.25 per 1M tokens.
Union Alpha is free for output tokens while Particle-1 costs $1 per 1M tokens.
Particle-1 has 786.43K more context (4x larger).

Head-to-Head Specs

Feature	NewParticle-1 (Particle AI)	Union Alpha (stealth)
Input Price prompt tokens per 1M	$0.25	$0
Completion Price per 1M tokens	$1	$0
Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output	$0.75	$0
Context Window	1.05M	262.14K
Release Date	2026-10-28	2026-09-16

Use-Case Decision Matrix

Use case	Better pick	Why
Budget-constrained production	Union Alpha	On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Union Alpha is estimated at $0 vs $0.75 for Particle-1, saving $0.75 (100% lower).
High-volume input processing	Union Alpha	Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill.
Long responses and chatbots	Union Alpha	Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens.
RAG or long-document work	Particle-1	A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files.

Related Alternatives

Same-provider lower-cost swaps

No lower-cost same-provider swap is currently tracked for this pair.

Larger context near this budget

Llama 4 Scout offers 1.31M context with $0.25 sample workload cost.
GPT-6 Luna offers 1.05M context with $0.35 sample workload cost.
MiMo-V2.6-Flash offers 1.05M context with $0.28 sample workload cost.
GPT-6 Luna Pro offers 1.05M context with $0.35 sample workload cost.

Popular competitors

Kimi K3.1 Pro · MoonshotAI · #1
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 · DeepSeek · #2
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash · DeepSeek · #3
GLM 5.3 Flash · Z.ai · #4

Cheaper alternatives

Review low-cost models sorted by a standard 1M input plus 500K output workload.

Open cheapest models

Larger context alternatives

Find models with larger context windows for RAG, long documents, and codebase review.

Open largest context models

Provider catalogs

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

Open provider hubs

Particle AI catalog

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

Open Particle AI models

stealth catalog

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

Open stealth models

Particle-1

Particle-1 is a token-efficient agentic coding model from Particle AI, post-trained on DeepSeek V4.1 Flash. It is suited for software engineering work such as terminal workflows, codebase changes, and data...

Union Alpha

Union Alpha is a multimodal model built for research, coding, and agentic workflows, while delivering frontier-level performance across a broad range of general-purpose tasks. Union Alpha is a stealth model....