Hy4 preview is $0.17 cheaper per 1M input tokens (16.6% lower; 1.2x difference).
API cost decision in 10 seconds
NewHy4 preview vs Inkling (batch)
Pick Hy4 preview when budget and context both matter.
Page updated:
Data confirmed:
Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens
Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output
Budget verdict
Pick Hy4 preview when budget and context both matter.
On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Hy4 preview is estimated at $2.08 vs $3.02 for Inkling (batch), saving $0.94 (31.1% lower).
Cost-first pickHy4 preview
Context-first pickHy4 preview
Sample savings$0.9431.1%
10x traffic gap$9.41
Hy4 preview is cheaper on the standard workload and also has the larger context window. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $9.41. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.
Cost sensitivity
Workload Sensitivity
Hy4 preview stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.
| Workload shape | Token mix | Better pick | Hy4 preview | Inkling (batch) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Input-heavy / RAG | 5M input + 500K output | Hy4 preview | $5.42 | $7.03 |
| Balanced workload | 1M input + 1M output | Hy4 preview | $3.33 | $5.05 |
| Output-heavy chatbot | 1M input + 5M output | Hy4 preview | $13.34 | $21.25 |
Hy4 preview is $1.55 cheaper per 1M output tokens (38.2% lower; 1.62x difference).
Hy4 preview has 524.29K more context (2x larger).
Hy4 preview is $0.94 cheaper on the standard workload (31.1% 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
Hy4 preview has the lower input price; Hy4 preview has the lower output price; Hy4 preview offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, Hy4 preview is cheaper for the standard workload.
For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $2.08 for Hy4 preview and $3.02 for Inkling (batch).
Choose Hy4 preview when you care most about lower input-token price, lower output-token price, and larger context window.
Choose Inkling (batch) when its provider, model quality, latency, or availability is more important than the numeric price/context winner.
- On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Hy4 preview is estimated at $2.08 vs $3.02 for Inkling (batch), saving $0.94 (31.1% lower).
- Hy4 preview is $0.94 cheaper on the standard workload (31.1% lower).
- Hy4 preview is $0.17 cheaper per 1M input tokens (16.6% lower; 1.2x difference).
- Hy4 preview is $1.55 cheaper per 1M output tokens (38.2% lower; 1.62x difference).
- Hy4 preview has 524.29K more context (2x larger).
| Feature | NewHy4 preview (Tencent) | Inkling (batch) (Thinking Machines) |
|---|---|---|
| Input Price prompt tokens per 1M | $0.834 | $1 |
| Completion Price per 1M tokens | $2.501 | $4.05 |
| Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output | $2.08 | $3.02 |
| Context Window | 1.05M | 524.29K |
| Release Date |
Use-Case Decision Matrix
| Use case | Better pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Budget-constrained production | Hy4 preview | On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Hy4 preview is estimated at $2.08 vs $3.02 for Inkling (batch), saving $0.94 (31.1% lower). |
| High-volume input processing | Hy4 preview | Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill. |
| Long responses and chatbots | Hy4 preview | Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens. |
| RAG or long-document work | Hy4 preview | A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files. |
Related Alternatives
- Hy3 (free) can replace Hy4 preview when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- Hy-MT2-1.8B can replace Hy4 preview when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.13.
- Hy-MT2-30B-A3B can replace Hy4 preview when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.22.
- Hy-MT2-7B can replace Hy4 preview when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.22.
- Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent offers 2M context with $2.5 sample workload cost.
- Grok 4.20 offers 2M context with $2.5 sample workload cost.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash 0731 offers 1.31M context with $0.14 sample workload cost.
- GLM 5.3 Flash offers 1.31M context with $0.2 sample workload cost.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash 0731 · DeepSeek · #1
- MiMo-V2.5 · Xiaomi · #2
- Hy3 · Tencent · #3
- Nemotron 3 Ultra (free) · NVIDIA · #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 largest context modelsProvider catalogs
Compare models within provider hubs before choosing a final API vendor.
Open provider hubsTencent catalog
Review all tracked Tencent models before deciding whether this matchup is the right shortlist.
Open Tencent modelsThinking Machines catalog
Check other Thinking Machines models with comparable pricing, context, or release timing.
Open Thinking Machines modelsTencent: Hy4 preview is a mixture-of-experts model from Tencent, with 49B active parameters out of 770B total. It is designed for coding agents, complex tool-use workflows, and productivity tasks that...
Inkling is an open-weight multimodal mixture-of-experts model from Thinking Machines Lab, with 41B active parameters out of 975B total. It is designed for general-purpose reasoning, coding, agentic and tool-use systems,...