API cost decision in 10 seconds

NewLaguna M.1 (free) vs NewGemini 3.1 Flash Lite

Pick Laguna M.1 (free) for lower cost; pick Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite only if the larger context window matters more.

Page updated: 2026-05-26T15:08:08Z Data confirmed: 2026-05-26T18:08:02Z Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output

Budget verdict

Pick Laguna M.1 (free) for lower cost; pick Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite only if the larger context window matters more.

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Laguna M.1 (free) is estimated at $0 vs $1 for Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite, saving $1 (100% lower).

Cost-first pickLaguna M.1 (free)

Context-first pickGemini 3.1 Flash Lite

Sample savings$1100%

10x traffic gap$10

Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite has more context, but Laguna M.1 (free) saves $1 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $10. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.

Cost sensitivity

Workload Sensitivity

Same prices, different token mixes.

Laguna M.1 (free) stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.

Workload shape	Token mix	Better pick	Laguna M.1 (free)	Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite
Input-heavy / RAG	5M input + 500K output	Laguna M.1 (free)	$0	$2
Balanced workload	1M input + 1M output	Laguna M.1 (free)	$0	$1.75
Output-heavy chatbot	1M input + 5M output	Laguna M.1 (free)	$0	$7.75

Cheaper input Laguna M.1 (free) $0 vs $0.25 / 1M

Laguna M.1 (free) is free for input tokens while Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite costs $0.25 per 1M tokens.

Cheaper output Laguna M.1 (free) $0 vs $1.5 / 1M

Laguna M.1 (free) is free for output tokens while Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite costs $1.5 per 1M tokens.

Larger context Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite 262.14K vs 1.05M

Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite has 786.43K more context (4x larger).

Sample workload Laguna M.1 (free) $0 vs $1

Laguna M.1 (free) is free for the standard workload while the other model is estimated at $1.

Estimate your workload cost

Your Workload Cost

Prices are normalized to USD per 1M tokens.

Monthly input tokens Monthly output tokens

Laguna M.1 (free) Calculating… Estimated API cost

Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite 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

Laguna M.1 (free) has the lower input price; Laguna M.1 (free) has the lower output price; Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, Laguna M.1 (free) is cheaper for the standard workload.

For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $0 for Laguna M.1 (free) and $1 for Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite.

Best Fit

Choose Laguna M.1 (free) when you care most about lower input-token price, and lower output-token price.

Choose Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite when you care most about larger context window.

Decision Notes

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Laguna M.1 (free) is estimated at $0 vs $1 for Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite, saving $1 (100% lower).
Laguna M.1 (free) is free for the standard workload while the other model is estimated at $1.
Laguna M.1 (free) is free for input tokens while Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite costs $0.25 per 1M tokens.
Laguna M.1 (free) is free for output tokens while Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite costs $1.5 per 1M tokens.
Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite has 786.43K more context (4x larger).

Head-to-Head Specs

Feature	NewLaguna M.1 (free) (Poolside)	NewGemini 3.1 Flash Lite (Google)
Input Price prompt tokens per 1M	$0	$0.25
Completion Price per 1M tokens	$0	$1.5
Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output	$0	$1
Context Window	262.14K	1.05M
Release Date	2026-04-28	2026-05-07
Popularity	#21	#24

Use-Case Decision Matrix

Use case	Better pick	Why
Budget-constrained production	Laguna M.1 (free)	On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Laguna M.1 (free) is estimated at $0 vs $1 for Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite, saving $1 (100% lower).
High-volume input processing	Laguna M.1 (free)	Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill.
Long responses and chatbots	Laguna M.1 (free)	Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens.
RAG or long-document work	Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite	A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files.

Related Alternatives

Same-provider lower-cost swaps

Gemma 4 31B (free) can replace Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
Gemma 4 26B A4B (free) can replace Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
Lyria 3 Clip Preview can replace Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
Lyria 3 Pro Preview can replace Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.

Larger context near this budget

Llama 4 Scout offers 10M context with $0.23 sample workload cost.
Owl Alpha offers 1.05M context with $0 sample workload cost.

Popular competitors

DeepSeek V4 Flash · DeepSeek · #1
Hy3 preview · Tencent · #2
Claude Opus 4.7 · Anthropic · #3
Claude Sonnet 4.6 · Anthropic · #4

Cheaper alternatives

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Larger context alternatives

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Provider catalogs

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Poolside catalog

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Google catalog

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

Open Google models

Laguna M.1 (free)

Laguna M.1 is the flagship coding agent model from [Poolside](https://poolside.ai), optimized for complex software engineering tasks. Designed for agentic coding workflows, it supports tool calling and reasoning, with a 128K...

Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite

Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite is Google’s GA high-efficiency multimodal model optimized for low-latency, high-volume workloads. It supports text, image, video, audio, and PDF inputs, and is designed for lightweight agentic...