Solar Mini 4 is $0.01 cheaper per 1M input tokens (16.7% lower; 1.2x difference).
API cost decision in 10 seconds
NewSolar Mini 4 vs Ling 3.0 Flash Fin
The standard workload cost is tied; choose by context window, provider fit, latency, or model quality.
Page updated:
Data confirmed:
Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens
Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output
Budget verdict
The standard workload cost is tied; choose by context window, provider fit, latency, or model quality.
Both models are estimated at $0.15 for the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload.
Cost-first pickTie
Context-first pickSolar Mini 4
Sample savings$00%
10x traffic gap$0
Context-window winner: Solar Mini 4. Cost does not separate this pair on the standard workload, so the next decision point is context window and model behavior.
Cost sensitivity
Workload Sensitivity
Cost winner changes by workload shape: input-heavy / RAG favors Solar Mini 4, balanced workload favors Ling 3.0 Flash Fin, and output-heavy chatbot favors Ling 3.0 Flash Fin.
| Workload shape | Token mix | Better pick | Solar Mini 4 | Ling 3.0 Flash Fin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Input-heavy / RAG | 5M input + 500K output | Solar Mini 4 | $0.35 | $0.39 |
| Balanced workload | 1M input + 1M output | Ling 3.0 Flash Fin | $0.25 | $0.24 |
| Output-heavy chatbot | 1M input + 5M output | Ling 3.0 Flash Fin | $1.05 | $0.96 |
Ling 3.0 Flash Fin is $0.02 cheaper per 1M output tokens (10% lower; 1.11x difference).
Solar Mini 4 has 262.14K more context (2x larger).
Ling 3.0 Flash Fin is $0 cheaper on the standard workload (0% 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
Solar Mini 4 has the lower input price; Ling 3.0 Flash Fin has the lower output price; Solar Mini 4 offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, Ling 3.0 Flash Fin is cheaper for the standard workload.
For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $0.15 for Solar Mini 4 and $0.15 for Ling 3.0 Flash Fin.
Choose Solar Mini 4 when you care most about lower input-token price, and larger context window.
Choose Ling 3.0 Flash Fin when you care most about lower output-token price.
- Both models are estimated at $0.15 for the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload.
- Ling 3.0 Flash Fin is $0 cheaper on the standard workload (0% lower).
- Solar Mini 4 is $0.01 cheaper per 1M input tokens (16.7% lower; 1.2x difference).
- Ling 3.0 Flash Fin is $0.02 cheaper per 1M output tokens (10% lower; 1.11x difference).
- Solar Mini 4 has 262.14K more context (2x larger).
| Feature | NewSolar Mini 4 (Upstage) | Ling 3.0 Flash Fin (inclusionAI) |
|---|---|---|
| Input Price prompt tokens per 1M | $0.05 | $0.06 |
| Completion Price per 1M tokens | $0.2 | $0.18 |
| Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output | $0.15 | $0.15 |
| Context Window | 524.29K | 262.14K |
| Release Date |
Use-Case Decision Matrix
| Use case | Better pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Budget-constrained production | Tie | Both models are estimated at $0.15 for the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload. |
| High-volume input processing | Solar Mini 4 | Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill. |
| Long responses and chatbots | Ling 3.0 Flash Fin | Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens. |
| RAG or long-document work | Solar Mini 4 | A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files. |
Related Alternatives
- Ling 3.0 Flash VL (free) can replace Ling 3.0 Flash Fin when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- Ling 3.0 Flash Sante (free) can replace Ling 3.0 Flash Fin when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- Ling 3.0 Flash Fin (free) can replace Ling 3.0 Flash Fin when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- Ling 3.0 Tiny (free) can replace Ling 3.0 Flash Fin when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- 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.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash 0423 offers 1.05M context with $0.18 sample workload cost.
- MiMo-V2.6-Pro · Xiaomi · #1
- GLM 5.3 Flash · Z.ai · #2
- DeepSeek V4.1 Flash · DeepSeek · #3
- Hy4 preview · Tencent · #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 hubsUpstage catalog
Review all tracked Upstage models before deciding whether this matchup is the right shortlist.
Open Upstage modelsinclusionAI catalog
Check other inclusionAI models with comparable pricing, context, or release timing.
Open inclusionAI modelsSolar Mini 4 is Upstage's compact, cost-efficient language model, a 35B-parameter mixture-of-experts with 3B active parameters and a 524K context window. It is built for agentic use cases where response...
Ling 3.0 Flash Fin is a finance-focused mixture-of-experts model from InclusionAI, built on Ling 3.0 Flash with 5.1B active parameters out of 124B total. It is designed for real-world investment...