API cost decision in 10 seconds

NewLaguna M.1 (free) vs GPT-4.1 Nano

Pick Laguna M.1 (free) for lower cost; pick GPT-4.1 Nano only if the larger context window matters more.

Page updated: 2026-05-26T15:08:08Z Data confirmed: 2026-05-26T19:08:13Z Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output

Budget verdict

Pick Laguna M.1 (free) for lower cost; pick GPT-4.1 Nano 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 $0.3 for GPT-4.1 Nano, saving $0.3 (100% lower).

Cost-first pickLaguna M.1 (free)

Context-first pickGPT-4.1 Nano

Sample savings$0.3100%

10x traffic gap$3

GPT-4.1 Nano has more context, but Laguna M.1 (free) saves $0.3 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $3. 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)	GPT-4.1 Nano
Input-heavy / RAG	5M input + 500K output	Laguna M.1 (free)	$0	$0.7
Balanced workload	1M input + 1M output	Laguna M.1 (free)	$0	$0.5
Output-heavy chatbot	1M input + 5M output	Laguna M.1 (free)	$0	$2.1

Cheaper input Laguna M.1 (free) $0 vs $0.1 / 1M

Laguna M.1 (free) is free for input tokens while GPT-4.1 Nano costs $0.1 per 1M tokens.

Cheaper output Laguna M.1 (free) $0 vs $0.4 / 1M

Laguna M.1 (free) is free for output tokens while GPT-4.1 Nano costs $0.4 per 1M tokens.

Larger context GPT-4.1 Nano 262.14K vs 1.05M

GPT-4.1 Nano has 785.43K more context (4x larger).

Sample workload Laguna M.1 (free) $0 vs $0.3

Laguna M.1 (free) is free for the standard workload while the other model is estimated at $0.3.

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

GPT-4.1 Nano 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; GPT-4.1 Nano 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 $0.3 for GPT-4.1 Nano.

Best Fit

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

Choose GPT-4.1 Nano 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 $0.3 for GPT-4.1 Nano, saving $0.3 (100% lower).
Laguna M.1 (free) is free for the standard workload while the other model is estimated at $0.3.
Laguna M.1 (free) is free for input tokens while GPT-4.1 Nano costs $0.1 per 1M tokens.
Laguna M.1 (free) is free for output tokens while GPT-4.1 Nano costs $0.4 per 1M tokens.
GPT-4.1 Nano has 785.43K more context (4x larger).

Head-to-Head Specs

Feature	NewLaguna M.1 (free) (Poolside)	GPT-4.1 Nano (OpenAI)
Input Price prompt tokens per 1M	$0	$0.1
Completion Price per 1M tokens	$0	$0.4
Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output	$0	$0.3
Context Window	262.14K	1.05M
Release Date	2026-04-28	2025-04-14
Popularity	#21	#73

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 $0.3 for GPT-4.1 Nano, saving $0.3 (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	GPT-4.1 Nano	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-4.1 Nano when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
gpt-oss-20b (free) can replace GPT-4.1 Nano when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
gpt-oss-20b can replace GPT-4.1 Nano when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.1.
gpt-oss-120b can replace GPT-4.1 Nano 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.
Owl Alpha offers 1.05M context with $0 sample workload cost.
DeepSeek V4 Flash offers 1.05M context with $0.2 sample workload cost.
Gemini 2.5 Flash Lite offers 1.05M context with $0.3 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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OpenAI catalog

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GPT-4.1 Nano

For tasks that demand low latency, GPT‑4.1 nano is the fastest and cheapest model in the GPT-4.1 series. It delivers exceptional performance at a small size with its 1 million...