Union Alpha is free for input tokens while DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch) costs $0.11 per 1M tokens.
API cost decision in 10 seconds
NewUnion Alpha vs DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch)
Pick Union Alpha for lower cost; pick DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch) 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 Union Alpha for lower cost; pick DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch) only if the larger context window matters more.
On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Union Alpha is estimated at $0 vs $0.28 for DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch), saving $0.28 (100% lower).
Cost-first pickUnion Alpha
Context-first pickDeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch)
Sample savings$0.28100%
10x traffic gap$2.8
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch) has more context, but Union Alpha saves $0.28 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $2.8. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.
Cost sensitivity
Workload Sensitivity
Union Alpha stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.
| Workload shape | Token mix | Better pick | Union Alpha | DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Input-heavy / RAG | 5M input + 500K output | Union Alpha | $0 | $0.73 |
| Balanced workload | 1M input + 1M output | Union Alpha | $0 | $0.45 |
| Output-heavy chatbot | 1M input + 5M output | Union Alpha | $0 | $1.79 |
Union Alpha is free for output tokens while DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch) costs $0.34 per 1M tokens.
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch) has 786.43K more context (4x larger).
Union Alpha is free for the standard workload while the other model is estimated at $0.28.
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
Union Alpha has the lower input price; Union Alpha has the lower output price; DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch) 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 for Union Alpha and $0.28 for DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch).
Choose Union Alpha when you care most about lower input-token price, and lower output-token price.
Choose DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch) when you care most about larger context window.
- On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Union Alpha is estimated at $0 vs $0.28 for DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch), saving $0.28 (100% lower).
- Union Alpha is free for the standard workload while the other model is estimated at $0.28.
- Union Alpha is free for input tokens while DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch) costs $0.11 per 1M tokens.
- Union Alpha is free for output tokens while DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch) costs $0.34 per 1M tokens.
- DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch) has 786.43K more context (4x larger).
| Feature | NewUnion Alpha (stealth) | DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch) (DeepSeek) |
|---|---|---|
| Input Price prompt tokens per 1M | $0 | $0.112 |
| Completion Price per 1M tokens | $0 | $0.336 |
| Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output | $0 | $0.28 |
| Context Window | 262.14K | 1.05M |
| Release Date |
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 $0.28 for DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch), saving $0.28 (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 | DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch) | A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files. |
Related Alternatives
- DeepSeek V4 Flash 0731 (free) can replace DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch) when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash (free) can replace DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch) when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash 0423 can replace DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch) when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.1.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash Vision Exp (batch) can replace DeepSeek V4.1 Flash (batch) when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.28.
- GLM Flash Latest offers 1.31M context with $0.2 sample workload cost.
- Llama 4 Scout offers 1.31M context with $0.25 sample workload cost.
- MiMo-V2.5 offers 1.05M context with $0.28 sample workload cost.
- Owl Alpha offers 1.05M context with $0 sample workload cost.
- MiMo-V2.6-Pro · Xiaomi · #1
- Qwen3.8 Max (0902) · Qwen · #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
Find models with larger context windows for RAG, long documents, and codebase review.
Open largest context modelsProvider catalogs
Compare models within provider hubs before choosing a final API vendor.
Open provider hubsstealth catalog
Review all tracked stealth models before deciding whether this matchup is the right shortlist.
Open stealth modelsDeepSeek catalog
Check other DeepSeek models with comparable pricing, context, or release timing.
Open DeepSeek modelsUnion 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....
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash is a sparse mixture-of-experts model from DeepSeek, and the first built on the company's Causal Encoder-Decoder (CED) architecture. It activates 8B parameters on input and 16B on...