Granite 4.2 8B is $0.02 cheaper per 1M input tokens (25% lower; 1.33x difference).
API cost decision in 10 seconds
NewTernary Bonsai 2 9B vs Granite 4.2 8B
Pick Ternary Bonsai 2 9B when budget and context both matter.
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Data confirmed:
Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens
Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output
Budget verdict
Pick Ternary Bonsai 2 9B when budget and context both matter.
On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Ternary Bonsai 2 9B is estimated at $0.15 vs $0.18 for Granite 4.2 8B, saving $0.04 (21.6% lower).
Cost-first pickTernary Bonsai 2 9B
Context-first pickTernary Bonsai 2 9B
Sample savings$0.0421.6%
10x traffic gap$0.4
Ternary Bonsai 2 9B is cheaper on the standard workload and also has the larger context window. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $0.4. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.
Cost sensitivity
Workload Sensitivity
Cost winner changes by workload shape: input-heavy / RAG favors Granite 4.2 8B, balanced workload favors Ternary Bonsai 2 9B, and output-heavy chatbot favors Ternary Bonsai 2 9B.
| Workload shape | Token mix | Better pick | Ternary Bonsai 2 9B | Granite 4.2 8B |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Input-heavy / RAG | 5M input + 500K output | Granite 4.2 8B | $0.47 | $0.42 |
| Balanced workload | 1M input + 1M output | Ternary Bonsai 2 9B | $0.21 | $0.31 |
| Output-heavy chatbot | 1M input + 5M output | Ternary Bonsai 2 9B | $0.73 | $1.31 |
Ternary Bonsai 2 9B is $0.12 cheaper per 1M output tokens (48% lower; 1.92x difference).
Ternary Bonsai 2 9B has 131.07K more context (2x larger).
Ternary Bonsai 2 9B is $0.04 cheaper on the standard workload (21.6% lower).
Estimate your workload cost
Your Workload Cost
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
Granite 4.2 8B has the lower input price; Ternary Bonsai 2 9B has the lower output price; Ternary Bonsai 2 9B offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, Ternary Bonsai 2 9B is cheaper for the standard workload.
For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $0.15 for Ternary Bonsai 2 9B and $0.18 for Granite 4.2 8B.
Choose Ternary Bonsai 2 9B when you care most about lower output-token price, and larger context window.
Choose Granite 4.2 8B when you care most about lower input-token price.
- On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Ternary Bonsai 2 9B is estimated at $0.15 vs $0.18 for Granite 4.2 8B, saving $0.04 (21.6% lower).
- Ternary Bonsai 2 9B is $0.04 cheaper on the standard workload (21.6% lower).
- Granite 4.2 8B is $0.02 cheaper per 1M input tokens (25% lower; 1.33x difference).
- Ternary Bonsai 2 9B is $0.12 cheaper per 1M output tokens (48% lower; 1.92x difference).
- Ternary Bonsai 2 9B has 131.07K more context (2x larger).
| Feature | NewTernary Bonsai 2 9B (PrismML) | Granite 4.2 8B (IBM) |
|---|---|---|
| Input Price prompt tokens per 1M | $0.08 | $0.06 |
| Completion Price per 1M tokens | $0.13 | $0.25 |
| Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output | $0.15 | $0.18 |
| Context Window | 262.14K | 131.07K |
| Release Date |
Use-Case Decision Matrix
| Use case | Better pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Budget-constrained production | Ternary Bonsai 2 9B | On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Ternary Bonsai 2 9B is estimated at $0.15 vs $0.18 for Granite 4.2 8B, saving $0.04 (21.6% lower). |
| High-volume input processing | Granite 4.2 8B | Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill. |
| Long responses and chatbots | Ternary Bonsai 2 9B | Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens. |
| RAG or long-document work | Ternary Bonsai 2 9B | A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files. |
Related Alternatives
- Granite 4.0 Micro can replace Granite 4.2 8B when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.07.
- Granite 4.1 8B can replace Granite 4.2 8B when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.1.
- GPT-6 Luna Pro (batch) offers 1.05M context with $0.17 sample workload cost.
- GPT-6 Luna (batch) offers 1.05M context with $0.17 sample workload cost.
- Owl Alpha offers 1.05M context with $0 sample workload cost.
- GLM 5.3 Flash offers 1.05M context with $0.08 sample workload cost.
- 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 modelsLarger context alternatives
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Open provider hubsPrismML catalog
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Open PrismML modelsIBM catalog
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Open IBM modelsTernary Bonsai 2 9B is PrismML’s compact, open-weight language model for conversational AI, reasoning, and tool use. Built on Qwen3.5, it uses ternary weights packed into 2 bits for efficient...
Granite 4.2 8B is a dense reasoning model from IBM. It is suited for mathematics, code generation, multilingual dialogue, and agentic workflows that need multi-step reasoning. It supports full, low-effort,...