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OpenAI - API
OpenAI's developer platform providing programmatic access to GPT, o-series reasoning models, and multimodal AI capabilities

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<ul><li><strong>Pricing Model:</strong> Usage-based pricing</li><li><strong>Packaging Model:</strong> À la carte</li><li><strong>Credit Model:</strong> Prepaid credits</li></ul>
December 22, 2025
Last update:
<p>OpenAI&#039;s API enables developers to integrate advanced AI models into their own applications, providing programmatic access to the company&#039;s full suite of language, vision, and audio capabilities. The API supports multiple model families including GPT-5 (latest flagship), GPT-4.1 (coding-optimized with 1M context), GPT-4o (proven multimodal), and specialized reasoning models (o-series) for tasks ranging from text generation to complex problem-solving.<br /> <br /> The API&#039;s value proposition centers on enterprise-grade infrastructure designed for production workloads: 99.9% uptime SLA, SOC 2 Type II compliance, and flexible pricing models that scale from individual developers to large enterprises. The platform offers context windows up to 1 million tokens, enabling analysis of entire codebases and extensive documents through API calls.</p>
<h3>Pricing Snapshot</h3><div class="tableResponsive"><table cellpadding="6" cellspacing="0"><tr><th>Model</th><th>Input Price</th><th>Output Price</th><th>Context Window</th><th>Status</th></tr><tr><td>GPT-5</td><td>$1.25</td><td>$10.00</td><td>400,000</td><td>Current</td></tr><tr><td>GPT-5 Mini</td><td>$0.25</td><td>$2.00</td><td>400,000</td><td>Current</td></tr><tr><td>GPT-5 Nano</td><td>$0.05</td><td>$0.40</td><td>400,000</td><td>Current</td></tr><tr><td>GPT-4.1</td><td>$2.00</td><td>$8.00</td><td>1,000,000</td><td>Current</td></tr><tr><td>GPT-4.1 Mini</td><td>$0.40</td><td>$1.60</td><td>1,000,000</td><td>Current</td></tr><tr><td>GPT-4.1 Nano</td><td>$0.10</td><td>$0.40</td><td>1,000,000</td><td>Current</td></tr><tr><td>GPT-4o</td><td>$2.50</td><td>$10.00</td><td>128,000</td><td>Current</td></tr><tr><td>GPT-4o Mini</td><td>$0.15</td><td>$0.60</td><td>128,000</td><td>Current</td></tr><tr><td>o1</td><td>$15.00</td><td>$60.00</td><td>200,000</td><td>Current</td></tr><tr><td>o1-pro</td><td>$150.00</td><td>$600.00</td><td>200,000</td><td>Current</td></tr><tr><td>o3</td><td>$2.00</td><td>$8.00</td><td>200,000</td><td>Current</td></tr><tr><td>o3-pro</td><td>$20.00</td><td>$80.00</td><td>200,000</td><td>Current</td></tr><tr><td>o4-mini</td><td>$1.10</td><td>$4.40</td><td>200,000</td><td>Current</td></tr><tr><td>o1-mini</td><td>$1.10</td><td>$4.40</td><td>128,000</td><td>Retiring Oct 27, 2025</td></tr><tr><td>GPT-3.5 Turbo</td><td>$0.50</td><td>$1.50</td><td>16,384</td><td>Retiring Nov 11, 2025</td></tr></table></div>
<h3>Key Features & Capabilities</h3><p>OpenAI API provides enterprise-grade infrastructure with SOC 2 Type II compliance, batch processing discounts, realtime speech-to-speech capabilities, and built-in tools including code interpreter, file search, image generation, and web search.</p><ul><li>Enterprise Security &amp; Compliance: SOC 2 Type II, HIPAA BAA, GDPR compliance, AES-256 encryption, zero data retention policy, MFA</li><li>Processing Options: Batch API with 50% cost reduction for async workloads, Realtime API for speech-to-speech, Private Link secure connectivity</li><li>Built-in Tools: Code Interpreter ($0.03/container), File Search ($0.10/GB/day), DALL-E 3 ($0.04/image), Whisper ($0.006/min), Web Search ($10-25/1k calls)</li><li>Model Range: GPT-5 family (flagship), GPT-4.1 (1M context), GPT-4o (multimodal), o-series (reasoning) with context windows up to 1M tokens</li></ul>
<h3>Pricing Model Analysis</h3><p>OpenAI uses usage-based pricing where customers pay based on actual consumption of tokens processed:</p><div class="tableResponsive"><table cellpadding="6" cellspacing="0"><tr><th>Metric Type</th><th>What Measured</th><th>Why It Matters</th></tr><tr><td>Value Metric</td><td>Model capability and context size</td><td>Justifies premium pricing for advanced reasoning</td></tr><tr><td>Usage Metric</td><td>Input/output tokens processed</td><td>Direct correlation between computational effort and billing</td></tr><tr><td>Billable Metric</td><td>Tokens</td><td>Granular control over costs with flexible scaling</td></tr></table></div>
<h3>Pricing Evolution Timeline</h3><div class="tableResponsive"><table cellpadding="6" cellspacing="0"><tr><th>Date</th><th>Milestone</th><th>Source</th></tr><tr><td>June 11, 2020</td><td>GPT-3 launch at $60/$60 per 1M tokens</td><td><a href='https://openai.com/index/openai-api/' target='_blank'>OpenAI <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 16 16" fill="none"> <path d="M14 6.5C14 6.63261 13.9473 6.75979 13.8536 6.85355C13.7598 6.94732 13.6326 7 13.5 7C13.3674 7 13.2402 6.94732 13.1464 6.85355C13.0527 6.75979 13 6.63261 13 6.5V3.7075L8.85437 7.85375C8.76055 7.94757 8.63331 8.00028 8.50062 8.00028C8.36794 8.00028 8.2407 7.94757 8.14688 7.85375C8.05305 7.75993 8.00035 7.63268 8.00035 7.5C8.00035 7.36732 8.05305 7.24007 8.14688 7.14625L12.2925 3H9.5C9.36739 3 9.24021 2.94732 9.14645 2.85355C9.05268 2.75979 9 2.63261 9 2.5C9 2.36739 9.05268 2.24021 9.14645 2.14645C9.24021 2.05268 9.36739 2 9.5 2H13.5C13.6326 2 13.7598 2.05268 13.8536 2.14645C13.9473 2.24021 14 2.36739 14 2.5V6.5ZM11.5 8C11.3674 8 11.2402 8.05268 11.1464 8.14645C11.0527 8.24021 11 8.36739 11 8.5V13H3V5H7.5C7.63261 5 7.75979 4.94732 7.85355 4.85355C7.94732 4.75979 8 4.63261 8 4.5C8 4.36739 7.94732 4.24021 7.85355 4.14645C7.75979 4.05268 7.63261 4 7.5 4H3C2.73478 4 2.48043 4.10536 2.29289 4.29289C2.10536 4.48043 2 4.73478 2 5V13C2 13.2652 2.10536 13.5196 2.29289 13.7071C2.48043 13.8946 2.73478 14 3 14H11C11.2652 14 11.5196 13.8946 11.7071 13.7071C11.8946 13.5196 12 13.2652 12 13V8.5C12 8.36739 11.9473 8.24021 11.8536 8.14645C11.7598 8.05268 11.6326 8 11.5 8Z" fill="#95988B"/> </svg></a></td></tr><tr><td>September 22, 2020</td><td>Microsoft licenses GPT-3 exclusively</td><td><a href='https://openai.com/index/openai-licenses-gpt-3-technology-to-microsoft/' target='_blank'>OpenAI <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 16 16" fill="none"> <path d="M14 6.5C14 6.63261 13.9473 6.75979 13.8536 6.85355C13.7598 6.94732 13.6326 7 13.5 7C13.3674 7 13.2402 6.94732 13.1464 6.85355C13.0527 6.75979 13 6.63261 13 6.5V3.7075L8.85437 7.85375C8.76055 7.94757 8.63331 8.00028 8.50062 8.00028C8.36794 8.00028 8.2407 7.94757 8.14688 7.85375C8.05305 7.75993 8.00035 7.63268 8.00035 7.5C8.00035 7.36732 8.05305 7.24007 8.14688 7.14625L12.2925 3H9.5C9.36739 3 9.24021 2.94732 9.14645 2.85355C9.05268 2.75979 9 2.63261 9 2.5C9 2.36739 9.05268 2.24021 9.14645 2.14645C9.24021 2.05268 9.36739 2 9.5 2H13.5C13.6326 2 13.7598 2.05268 13.8536 2.14645C13.9473 2.24021 14 2.36739 14 2.5V6.5ZM11.5 8C11.3674 8 11.2402 8.05268 11.1464 8.14645C11.0527 8.24021 11 8.36739 11 8.5V13H3V5H7.5C7.63261 5 7.75979 4.94732 7.85355 4.85355C7.94732 4.75979 8 4.63261 8 4.5C8 4.36739 7.94732 4.24021 7.85355 4.14645C7.75979 4.05268 7.63261 4 7.5 4H3C2.73478 4 2.48043 4.10536 2.29289 4.29289C2.10536 4.48043 2 4.73478 2 5V13C2 13.2652 2.10536 13.5196 2.29289 13.7071C2.48043 13.8946 2.73478 14 3 14H11C11.2652 14 11.5196 13.8946 11.7071 13.7071C11.8946 13.5196 12 13.2652 12 13V8.5C12 8.36739 11.9473 8.24021 11.8536 8.14645C11.7598 8.05268 11.6326 8 11.5 8Z" fill="#95988B"/> </svg></a></td></tr><tr><td>September 1, 2022</td><td>GPT-3 price reduction (67% cut) to $20/$20 per 1M tokens</td><td><a href='https://the-decoder.com/openai-cuts-prices-for-gpt-3-by-two-thirds/' target='_blank'>The Decoder <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 16 16" fill="none"> <path d="M14 6.5C14 6.63261 13.9473 6.75979 13.8536 6.85355C13.7598 6.94732 13.6326 7 13.5 7C13.3674 7 13.2402 6.94732 13.1464 6.85355C13.0527 6.75979 13 6.63261 13 6.5V3.7075L8.85437 7.85375C8.76055 7.94757 8.63331 8.00028 8.50062 8.00028C8.36794 8.00028 8.2407 7.94757 8.14688 7.85375C8.05305 7.75993 8.00035 7.63268 8.00035 7.5C8.00035 7.36732 8.05305 7.24007 8.14688 7.14625L12.2925 3H9.5C9.36739 3 9.24021 2.94732 9.14645 2.85355C9.05268 2.75979 9 2.63261 9 2.5C9 2.36739 9.05268 2.24021 9.14645 2.14645C9.24021 2.05268 9.36739 2 9.5 2H13.5C13.6326 2 13.7598 2.05268 13.8536 2.14645C13.9473 2.24021 14 2.36739 14 2.5V6.5ZM11.5 8C11.3674 8 11.2402 8.05268 11.1464 8.14645C11.0527 8.24021 11 8.36739 11 8.5V13H3V5H7.5C7.63261 5 7.75979 4.94732 7.85355 4.85355C7.94732 4.75979 8 4.63261 8 4.5C8 4.36739 7.94732 4.24021 7.85355 4.14645C7.75979 4.05268 7.63261 4 7.5 4H3C2.73478 4 2.48043 4.10536 2.29289 4.29289C2.10536 4.48043 2 4.73478 2 5V13C2 13.2652 2.10536 13.5196 2.29289 13.7071C2.48043 13.8946 2.73478 14 3 14H11C11.2652 14 11.5196 13.8946 11.7071 13.7071C11.8946 13.5196 12 13.2652 12 13V8.5C12 8.36739 11.9473 8.24021 11.8536 8.14645C11.7598 8.05268 11.6326 8 11.5 8Z" fill="#95988B"/> </svg></a></td></tr><tr><td>November 30, 2022</td><td>ChatGPT/GPT-3.5 free web interface launch</td><td><a href='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GPT-3' target='_blank'>Wikipedia <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 16 16" fill="none"> <path d="M14 6.5C14 6.63261 13.9473 6.75979 13.8536 6.85355C13.7598 6.94732 13.6326 7 13.5 7C13.3674 7 13.2402 6.94732 13.1464 6.85355C13.0527 6.75979 13 6.63261 13 6.5V3.7075L8.85437 7.85375C8.76055 7.94757 8.63331 8.00028 8.50062 8.00028C8.36794 8.00028 8.2407 7.94757 8.14688 7.85375C8.05305 7.75993 8.00035 7.63268 8.00035 7.5C8.00035 7.36732 8.05305 7.24007 8.14688 7.14625L12.2925 3H9.5C9.36739 3 9.24021 2.94732 9.14645 2.85355C9.05268 2.75979 9 2.63261 9 2.5C9 2.36739 9.05268 2.24021 9.14645 2.14645C9.24021 2.05268 9.36739 2 9.5 2H13.5C13.6326 2 13.7598 2.05268 13.8536 2.14645C13.9473 2.24021 14 2.36739 14 2.5V6.5ZM11.5 8C11.3674 8 11.2402 8.05268 11.1464 8.14645C11.0527 8.24021 11 8.36739 11 8.5V13H3V5H7.5C7.63261 5 7.75979 4.94732 7.85355 4.85355C7.94732 4.75979 8 4.63261 8 4.5C8 4.36739 7.94732 4.24021 7.85355 4.14645C7.75979 4.05268 7.63261 4 7.5 4H3C2.73478 4 2.48043 4.10536 2.29289 4.29289C2.10536 4.48043 2 4.73478 2 5V13C2 13.2652 2.10536 13.5196 2.29289 13.7071C2.48043 13.8946 2.73478 14 3 14H11C11.2652 14 11.5196 13.8946 11.7071 13.7071C11.8946 13.5196 12 13.2652 12 13V8.5C12 8.36739 11.9473 8.24021 11.8536 8.14645C11.7598 8.05268 11.6326 8 11.5 8Z" fill="#95988B"/> </svg></a></td></tr><tr><td>March 1, 2023</td><td>GPT-3.5 Turbo API at $2/$2 per 1M tokens</td><td><a href='https://community.openai.com/t/gpt4-and-gpt-3-5-turb-api-cost-comparison-and-understanding/106192' target='_blank'>OpenAI Community <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 16 16" fill="none"> <path d="M14 6.5C14 6.63261 13.9473 6.75979 13.8536 6.85355C13.7598 6.94732 13.6326 7 13.5 7C13.3674 7 13.2402 6.94732 13.1464 6.85355C13.0527 6.75979 13 6.63261 13 6.5V3.7075L8.85437 7.85375C8.76055 7.94757 8.63331 8.00028 8.50062 8.00028C8.36794 8.00028 8.2407 7.94757 8.14688 7.85375C8.05305 7.75993 8.00035 7.63268 8.00035 7.5C8.00035 7.36732 8.05305 7.24007 8.14688 7.14625L12.2925 3H9.5C9.36739 3 9.24021 2.94732 9.14645 2.85355C9.05268 2.75979 9 2.63261 9 2.5C9 2.36739 9.05268 2.24021 9.14645 2.14645C9.24021 2.05268 9.36739 2 9.5 2H13.5C13.6326 2 13.7598 2.05268 13.8536 2.14645C13.9473 2.24021 14 2.36739 14 2.5V6.5ZM11.5 8C11.3674 8 11.2402 8.05268 11.1464 8.14645C11.0527 8.24021 11 8.36739 11 8.5V13H3V5H7.5C7.63261 5 7.75979 4.94732 7.85355 4.85355C7.94732 4.75979 8 4.63261 8 4.5C8 4.36739 7.94732 4.24021 7.85355 4.14645C7.75979 4.05268 7.63261 4 7.5 4H3C2.73478 4 2.48043 4.10536 2.29289 4.29289C2.10536 4.48043 2 4.73478 2 5V13C2 13.2652 2.10536 13.5196 2.29289 13.7071C2.48043 13.8946 2.73478 14 3 14H11C11.2652 14 11.5196 13.8946 11.7071 13.7071C11.8946 13.5196 12 13.2652 12 13V8.5C12 8.36739 11.9473 8.24021 11.8536 8.14645C11.7598 8.05268 11.6326 8 11.5 8Z" fill="#95988B"/> </svg></a></td></tr><tr><td>March 14, 2023</td><td>GPT-4 launch at $30/$60 per 1M tokens (8K), $60/$120 (32K)</td><td><a href='https://openai.com/index/gpt-4-research/' target='_blank'>OpenAI <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 16 16" fill="none"> <path d="M14 6.5C14 6.63261 13.9473 6.75979 13.8536 6.85355C13.7598 6.94732 13.6326 7 13.5 7C13.3674 7 13.2402 6.94732 13.1464 6.85355C13.0527 6.75979 13 6.63261 13 6.5V3.7075L8.85437 7.85375C8.76055 7.94757 8.63331 8.00028 8.50062 8.00028C8.36794 8.00028 8.2407 7.94757 8.14688 7.85375C8.05305 7.75993 8.00035 7.63268 8.00035 7.5C8.00035 7.36732 8.05305 7.24007 8.14688 7.14625L12.2925 3H9.5C9.36739 3 9.24021 2.94732 9.14645 2.85355C9.05268 2.75979 9 2.63261 9 2.5C9 2.36739 9.05268 2.24021 9.14645 2.14645C9.24021 2.05268 9.36739 2 9.5 2H13.5C13.6326 2 13.7598 2.05268 13.8536 2.14645C13.9473 2.24021 14 2.36739 14 2.5V6.5ZM11.5 8C11.3674 8 11.2402 8.05268 11.1464 8.14645C11.0527 8.24021 11 8.36739 11 8.5V13H3V5H7.5C7.63261 5 7.75979 4.94732 7.85355 4.85355C7.94732 4.75979 8 4.63261 8 4.5C8 4.36739 7.94732 4.24021 7.85355 4.14645C7.75979 4.05268 7.63261 4 7.5 4H3C2.73478 4 2.48043 4.10536 2.29289 4.29289C2.10536 4.48043 2 4.73478 2 5V13C2 13.2652 2.10536 13.5196 2.29289 13.7071C2.48043 13.8946 2.73478 14 3 14H11C11.2652 14 11.5196 13.8946 11.7071 13.7071C11.8946 13.5196 12 13.2652 12 13V8.5C12 8.36739 11.9473 8.24021 11.8536 8.14645C11.7598 8.05268 11.6326 8 11.5 8Z" fill="#95988B"/> </svg></a></td></tr><tr><td>November 6, 2023</td><td>GPT-4 Turbo launch at $10/$30 per 1M tokens</td><td><a href='https://openai.com/index/new-models-and-developer-products-announced-at-devday/' target='_blank'>OpenAI DevDay <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 16 16" fill="none"> <path d="M14 6.5C14 6.63261 13.9473 6.75979 13.8536 6.85355C13.7598 6.94732 13.6326 7 13.5 7C13.3674 7 13.2402 6.94732 13.1464 6.85355C13.0527 6.75979 13 6.63261 13 6.5V3.7075L8.85437 7.85375C8.76055 7.94757 8.63331 8.00028 8.50062 8.00028C8.36794 8.00028 8.2407 7.94757 8.14688 7.85375C8.05305 7.75993 8.00035 7.63268 8.00035 7.5C8.00035 7.36732 8.05305 7.24007 8.14688 7.14625L12.2925 3H9.5C9.36739 3 9.24021 2.94732 9.14645 2.85355C9.05268 2.75979 9 2.63261 9 2.5C9 2.36739 9.05268 2.24021 9.14645 2.14645C9.24021 2.05268 9.36739 2 9.5 2H13.5C13.6326 2 13.7598 2.05268 13.8536 2.14645C13.9473 2.24021 14 2.36739 14 2.5V6.5ZM11.5 8C11.3674 8 11.2402 8.05268 11.1464 8.14645C11.0527 8.24021 11 8.36739 11 8.5V13H3V5H7.5C7.63261 5 7.75979 4.94732 7.85355 4.85355C7.94732 4.75979 8 4.63261 8 4.5C8 4.36739 7.94732 4.24021 7.85355 4.14645C7.75979 4.05268 7.63261 4 7.5 4H3C2.73478 4 2.48043 4.10536 2.29289 4.29289C2.10536 4.48043 2 4.73478 2 5V13C2 13.2652 2.10536 13.5196 2.29289 13.7071C2.48043 13.8946 2.73478 14 3 14H11C11.2652 14 11.5196 13.8946 11.7071 13.7071C11.8946 13.5196 12 13.2652 12 13V8.5C12 8.36739 11.9473 8.24021 11.8536 8.14645C11.7598 8.05268 11.6326 8 11.5 8Z" fill="#95988B"/> </svg></a></td></tr><tr><td>February 1, 2024</td><td>GPT-3.5 Turbo price cut to $1/$1.5 per 1M tokens</td><td><a href='https://www.byteplus.com/en/topic/408736' target='_blank'>BytePlus <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 16 16" fill="none"> <path d="M14 6.5C14 6.63261 13.9473 6.75979 13.8536 6.85355C13.7598 6.94732 13.6326 7 13.5 7C13.3674 7 13.2402 6.94732 13.1464 6.85355C13.0527 6.75979 13 6.63261 13 6.5V3.7075L8.85437 7.85375C8.76055 7.94757 8.63331 8.00028 8.50062 8.00028C8.36794 8.00028 8.2407 7.94757 8.14688 7.85375C8.05305 7.75993 8.00035 7.63268 8.00035 7.5C8.00035 7.36732 8.05305 7.24007 8.14688 7.14625L12.2925 3H9.5C9.36739 3 9.24021 2.94732 9.14645 2.85355C9.05268 2.75979 9 2.63261 9 2.5C9 2.36739 9.05268 2.24021 9.14645 2.14645C9.24021 2.05268 9.36739 2 9.5 2H13.5C13.6326 2 13.7598 2.05268 13.8536 2.14645C13.9473 2.24021 14 2.36739 14 2.5V6.5ZM11.5 8C11.3674 8 11.2402 8.05268 11.1464 8.14645C11.0527 8.24021 11 8.36739 11 8.5V13H3V5H7.5C7.63261 5 7.75979 4.94732 7.85355 4.85355C7.94732 4.75979 8 4.63261 8 4.5C8 4.36739 7.94732 4.24021 7.85355 4.14645C7.75979 4.05268 7.63261 4 7.5 4H3C2.73478 4 2.48043 4.10536 2.29289 4.29289C2.10536 4.48043 2 4.73478 2 5V13C2 13.2652 2.10536 13.5196 2.29289 13.7071C2.48043 13.8946 2.73478 14 3 14H11C11.2652 14 11.5196 13.8946 11.7071 13.7071C11.8946 13.5196 12 13.2652 12 13V8.5C12 8.36739 11.9473 8.24021 11.8536 8.14645C11.7598 8.05268 11.6326 8 11.5 8Z" fill="#95988B"/> </svg></a></td></tr><tr><td>March 8, 2024</td><td>Switch to prepaid billing system</td><td><a href='https://community.openai.com/t/oai-api-switching-to-pre-paid-billing/659398' target='_blank'>OpenAI Community <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 16 16" fill="none"> <path d="M14 6.5C14 6.63261 13.9473 6.75979 13.8536 6.85355C13.7598 6.94732 13.6326 7 13.5 7C13.3674 7 13.2402 6.94732 13.1464 6.85355C13.0527 6.75979 13 6.63261 13 6.5V3.7075L8.85437 7.85375C8.76055 7.94757 8.63331 8.00028 8.50062 8.00028C8.36794 8.00028 8.2407 7.94757 8.14688 7.85375C8.05305 7.75993 8.00035 7.63268 8.00035 7.5C8.00035 7.36732 8.05305 7.24007 8.14688 7.14625L12.2925 3H9.5C9.36739 3 9.24021 2.94732 9.14645 2.85355C9.05268 2.75979 9 2.63261 9 2.5C9 2.36739 9.05268 2.24021 9.14645 2.14645C9.24021 2.05268 9.36739 2 9.5 2H13.5C13.6326 2 13.7598 2.05268 13.8536 2.14645C13.9473 2.24021 14 2.36739 14 2.5V6.5ZM11.5 8C11.3674 8 11.2402 8.05268 11.1464 8.14645C11.0527 8.24021 11 8.36739 11 8.5V13H3V5H7.5C7.63261 5 7.75979 4.94732 7.85355 4.85355C7.94732 4.75979 8 4.63261 8 4.5C8 4.36739 7.94732 4.24021 7.85355 4.14645C7.75979 4.05268 7.63261 4 7.5 4H3C2.73478 4 2.48043 4.10536 2.29289 4.29289C2.10536 4.48043 2 4.73478 2 5V13C2 13.2652 2.10536 13.5196 2.29289 13.7071C2.48043 13.8946 2.73478 14 3 14H11C11.2652 14 11.5196 13.8946 11.7071 13.7071C11.8946 13.5196 12 13.2652 12 13V8.5C12 8.36739 11.9473 8.24021 11.8536 8.14645C11.7598 8.05268 11.6326 8 11.5 8Z" fill="#95988B"/> </svg></a></td></tr><tr><td>May 13, 2024</td><td>GPT-4o release at $5/$15 per 1M tokens</td><td><a href='https://www.cnbc.com/2024/05/13/openai-launches-new-ai-model-and-desktop-version-of-chatgpt.html' target='_blank'>CNBC <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 16 16" fill="none"> <path d="M14 6.5C14 6.63261 13.9473 6.75979 13.8536 6.85355C13.7598 6.94732 13.6326 7 13.5 7C13.3674 7 13.2402 6.94732 13.1464 6.85355C13.0527 6.75979 13 6.63261 13 6.5V3.7075L8.85437 7.85375C8.76055 7.94757 8.63331 8.00028 8.50062 8.00028C8.36794 8.00028 8.2407 7.94757 8.14688 7.85375C8.05305 7.75993 8.00035 7.63268 8.00035 7.5C8.00035 7.36732 8.05305 7.24007 8.14688 7.14625L12.2925 3H9.5C9.36739 3 9.24021 2.94732 9.14645 2.85355C9.05268 2.75979 9 2.63261 9 2.5C9 2.36739 9.05268 2.24021 9.14645 2.14645C9.24021 2.05268 9.36739 2 9.5 2H13.5C13.6326 2 13.7598 2.05268 13.8536 2.14645C13.9473 2.24021 14 2.36739 14 2.5V6.5ZM11.5 8C11.3674 8 11.2402 8.05268 11.1464 8.14645C11.0527 8.24021 11 8.36739 11 8.5V13H3V5H7.5C7.63261 5 7.75979 4.94732 7.85355 4.85355C7.94732 4.75979 8 4.63261 8 4.5C8 4.36739 7.94732 4.24021 7.85355 4.14645C7.75979 4.05268 7.63261 4 7.5 4H3C2.73478 4 2.48043 4.10536 2.29289 4.29289C2.10536 4.48043 2 4.73478 2 5V13C2 13.2652 2.10536 13.5196 2.29289 13.7071C2.48043 13.8946 2.73478 14 3 14H11C11.2652 14 11.5196 13.8946 11.7071 13.7071C11.8946 13.5196 12 13.2652 12 13V8.5C12 8.36739 11.9473 8.24021 11.8536 8.14645C11.7598 8.05268 11.6326 8 11.5 8Z" fill="#95988B"/> </svg></a></td></tr><tr><td>July 18, 2024</td><td>GPT-4o mini launch at $0.15/$0.60 per 1M tokens</td><td><a href='https://openai.com/index/gpt-4o-mini-advancing-cost-efficient-intelligence/' target='_blank'>OpenAI <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 16 16" fill="none"> <path d="M14 6.5C14 6.63261 13.9473 6.75979 13.8536 6.85355C13.7598 6.94732 13.6326 7 13.5 7C13.3674 7 13.2402 6.94732 13.1464 6.85355C13.0527 6.75979 13 6.63261 13 6.5V3.7075L8.85437 7.85375C8.76055 7.94757 8.63331 8.00028 8.50062 8.00028C8.36794 8.00028 8.2407 7.94757 8.14688 7.85375C8.05305 7.75993 8.00035 7.63268 8.00035 7.5C8.00035 7.36732 8.05305 7.24007 8.14688 7.14625L12.2925 3H9.5C9.36739 3 9.24021 2.94732 9.14645 2.85355C9.05268 2.75979 9 2.63261 9 2.5C9 2.36739 9.05268 2.24021 9.14645 2.14645C9.24021 2.05268 9.36739 2 9.5 2H13.5C13.6326 2 13.7598 2.05268 13.8536 2.14645C13.9473 2.24021 14 2.36739 14 2.5V6.5ZM11.5 8C11.3674 8 11.2402 8.05268 11.1464 8.14645C11.0527 8.24021 11 8.36739 11 8.5V13H3V5H7.5C7.63261 5 7.75979 4.94732 7.85355 4.85355C7.94732 4.75979 8 4.63261 8 4.5C8 4.36739 7.94732 4.24021 7.85355 4.14645C7.75979 4.05268 7.63261 4 7.5 4H3C2.73478 4 2.48043 4.10536 2.29289 4.29289C2.10536 4.48043 2 4.73478 2 5V13C2 13.2652 2.10536 13.5196 2.29289 13.7071C2.48043 13.8946 2.73478 14 3 14H11C11.2652 14 11.5196 13.8946 11.7071 13.7071C11.8946 13.5196 12 13.2652 12 13V8.5C12 8.36739 11.9473 8.24021 11.8536 8.14645C11.7598 8.05268 11.6326 8 11.5 8Z" fill="#95988B"/> </svg></a></td></tr><tr><td>September 12, 2024</td><td>o1-preview at $15/$60 and o1-mini at $3/$12 per 1M tokens</td><td><a href='https://openai.com/index/introducing-openai-o1-preview/' target='_blank'>OpenAI <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 16 16" fill="none"> <path d="M14 6.5C14 6.63261 13.9473 6.75979 13.8536 6.85355C13.7598 6.94732 13.6326 7 13.5 7C13.3674 7 13.2402 6.94732 13.1464 6.85355C13.0527 6.75979 13 6.63261 13 6.5V3.7075L8.85437 7.85375C8.76055 7.94757 8.63331 8.00028 8.50062 8.00028C8.36794 8.00028 8.2407 7.94757 8.14688 7.85375C8.05305 7.75993 8.00035 7.63268 8.00035 7.5C8.00035 7.36732 8.05305 7.24007 8.14688 7.14625L12.2925 3H9.5C9.36739 3 9.24021 2.94732 9.14645 2.85355C9.05268 2.75979 9 2.63261 9 2.5C9 2.36739 9.05268 2.24021 9.14645 2.14645C9.24021 2.05268 9.36739 2 9.5 2H13.5C13.6326 2 13.7598 2.05268 13.8536 2.14645C13.9473 2.24021 14 2.36739 14 2.5V6.5ZM11.5 8C11.3674 8 11.2402 8.05268 11.1464 8.14645C11.0527 8.24021 11 8.36739 11 8.5V13H3V5H7.5C7.63261 5 7.75979 4.94732 7.85355 4.85355C7.94732 4.75979 8 4.63261 8 4.5C8 4.36739 7.94732 4.24021 7.85355 4.14645C7.75979 4.05268 7.63261 4 7.5 4H3C2.73478 4 2.48043 4.10536 2.29289 4.29289C2.10536 4.48043 2 4.73478 2 5V13C2 13.2652 2.10536 13.5196 2.29289 13.7071C2.48043 13.8946 2.73478 14 3 14H11C11.2652 14 11.5196 13.8946 11.7071 13.7071C11.8946 13.5196 12 13.2652 12 13V8.5C12 8.36739 11.9473 8.24021 11.8536 8.14645C11.7598 8.05268 11.6326 8 11.5 8Z" fill="#95988B"/> </svg></a></td></tr><tr><td>October 1, 2024</td><td>Realtime API launch: text $5/$20, audio $100/$200 per 1M tokens</td><td><a href='https://openai.com/index/introducing-the-realtime-api/' target='_blank'>OpenAI DevDay <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 16 16" fill="none"> <path d="M14 6.5C14 6.63261 13.9473 6.75979 13.8536 6.85355C13.7598 6.94732 13.6326 7 13.5 7C13.3674 7 13.2402 6.94732 13.1464 6.85355C13.0527 6.75979 13 6.63261 13 6.5V3.7075L8.85437 7.85375C8.76055 7.94757 8.63331 8.00028 8.50062 8.00028C8.36794 8.00028 8.2407 7.94757 8.14688 7.85375C8.05305 7.75993 8.00035 7.63268 8.00035 7.5C8.00035 7.36732 8.05305 7.24007 8.14688 7.14625L12.2925 3H9.5C9.36739 3 9.24021 2.94732 9.14645 2.85355C9.05268 2.75979 9 2.63261 9 2.5C9 2.36739 9.05268 2.24021 9.14645 2.14645C9.24021 2.05268 9.36739 2 9.5 2H13.5C13.6326 2 13.7598 2.05268 13.8536 2.14645C13.9473 2.24021 14 2.36739 14 2.5V6.5ZM11.5 8C11.3674 8 11.2402 8.05268 11.1464 8.14645C11.0527 8.24021 11 8.36739 11 8.5V13H3V5H7.5C7.63261 5 7.75979 4.94732 7.85355 4.85355C7.94732 4.75979 8 4.63261 8 4.5C8 4.36739 7.94732 4.24021 7.85355 4.14645C7.75979 4.05268 7.63261 4 7.5 4H3C2.73478 4 2.48043 4.10536 2.29289 4.29289C2.10536 4.48043 2 4.73478 2 5V13C2 13.2652 2.10536 13.5196 2.29289 13.7071C2.48043 13.8946 2.73478 14 3 14H11C11.2652 14 11.5196 13.8946 11.7071 13.7071C11.8946 13.5196 12 13.2652 12 13V8.5C12 8.36739 11.9473 8.24021 11.8536 8.14645C11.7598 8.05268 11.6326 8 11.5 8Z" fill="#95988B"/> </svg></a></td></tr><tr><td>June 10, 2025</td><td>o3 80% price drop to $2/$8, o3-pro launch at $20/$80 per 1M tokens</td><td><a href='https://venturebeat.com/ai/openai-announces-80-price-drop-for-o3-its-most-powerful-reasoning-model' target='_blank'>VentureBeat <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 16 16" fill="none"> <path d="M14 6.5C14 6.63261 13.9473 6.75979 13.8536 6.85355C13.7598 6.94732 13.6326 7 13.5 7C13.3674 7 13.2402 6.94732 13.1464 6.85355C13.0527 6.75979 13 6.63261 13 6.5V3.7075L8.85437 7.85375C8.76055 7.94757 8.63331 8.00028 8.50062 8.00028C8.36794 8.00028 8.2407 7.94757 8.14688 7.85375C8.05305 7.75993 8.00035 7.63268 8.00035 7.5C8.00035 7.36732 8.05305 7.24007 8.14688 7.14625L12.2925 3H9.5C9.36739 3 9.24021 2.94732 9.14645 2.85355C9.05268 2.75979 9 2.63261 9 2.5C9 2.36739 9.05268 2.24021 9.14645 2.14645C9.24021 2.05268 9.36739 2 9.5 2H13.5C13.6326 2 13.7598 2.05268 13.8536 2.14645C13.9473 2.24021 14 2.36739 14 2.5V6.5ZM11.5 8C11.3674 8 11.2402 8.05268 11.1464 8.14645C11.0527 8.24021 11 8.36739 11 8.5V13H3V5H7.5C7.63261 5 7.75979 4.94732 7.85355 4.85355C7.94732 4.75979 8 4.63261 8 4.5C8 4.36739 7.94732 4.24021 7.85355 4.14645C7.75979 4.05268 7.63261 4 7.5 4H3C2.73478 4 2.48043 4.10536 2.29289 4.29289C2.10536 4.48043 2 4.73478 2 5V13C2 13.2652 2.10536 13.5196 2.29289 13.7071C2.48043 13.8946 2.73478 14 3 14H11C11.2652 14 11.5196 13.8946 11.7071 13.7071C11.8946 13.5196 12 13.2652 12 13V8.5C12 8.36739 11.9473 8.24021 11.8536 8.14645C11.7598 8.05268 11.6326 8 11.5 8Z" fill="#95988B"/> </svg></a></td></tr><tr><td>August 7, 2025</td><td>GPT-5 launch at $1.25/$10, GPT-5 Mini at $0.25/$2 per 1M tokens</td><td><a href='https://techcrunch.com/2025/08/08/openai-priced-gpt-5-so-low-it-may-spark-a-price-war/' target='_blank'>TechCrunch <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 16 16" fill="none"> <path d="M14 6.5C14 6.63261 13.9473 6.75979 13.8536 6.85355C13.7598 6.94732 13.6326 7 13.5 7C13.3674 7 13.2402 6.94732 13.1464 6.85355C13.0527 6.75979 13 6.63261 13 6.5V3.7075L8.85437 7.85375C8.76055 7.94757 8.63331 8.00028 8.50062 8.00028C8.36794 8.00028 8.2407 7.94757 8.14688 7.85375C8.05305 7.75993 8.00035 7.63268 8.00035 7.5C8.00035 7.36732 8.05305 7.24007 8.14688 7.14625L12.2925 3H9.5C9.36739 3 9.24021 2.94732 9.14645 2.85355C9.05268 2.75979 9 2.63261 9 2.5C9 2.36739 9.05268 2.24021 9.14645 2.14645C9.24021 2.05268 9.36739 2 9.5 2H13.5C13.6326 2 13.7598 2.05268 13.8536 2.14645C13.9473 2.24021 14 2.36739 14 2.5V6.5ZM11.5 8C11.3674 8 11.2402 8.05268 11.1464 8.14645C11.0527 8.24021 11 8.36739 11 8.5V13H3V5H7.5C7.63261 5 7.75979 4.94732 7.85355 4.85355C7.94732 4.75979 8 4.63261 8 4.5C8 4.36739 7.94732 4.24021 7.85355 4.14645C7.75979 4.05268 7.63261 4 7.5 4H3C2.73478 4 2.48043 4.10536 2.29289 4.29289C2.10536 4.48043 2 4.73478 2 5V13C2 13.2652 2.10536 13.5196 2.29289 13.7071C2.48043 13.8946 2.73478 14 3 14H11C11.2652 14 11.5196 13.8946 11.7071 13.7071C11.8946 13.5196 12 13.2652 12 13V8.5C12 8.36739 11.9473 8.24021 11.8536 8.14645C11.7598 8.05268 11.6326 8 11.5 8Z" fill="#95988B"/> </svg></a></td></tr><tr><td>August 27, 2025</td><td>GPT Realtime 20% price cut to $32/$64 per 1M audio tokens</td><td><a href='https://openai.com/index/introducing-gpt-realtime/' target='_blank'>OpenAI <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="16" height="16" viewBox="0 0 16 16" fill="none"> <path d="M14 6.5C14 6.63261 13.9473 6.75979 13.8536 6.85355C13.7598 6.94732 13.6326 7 13.5 7C13.3674 7 13.2402 6.94732 13.1464 6.85355C13.0527 6.75979 13 6.63261 13 6.5V3.7075L8.85437 7.85375C8.76055 7.94757 8.63331 8.00028 8.50062 8.00028C8.36794 8.00028 8.2407 7.94757 8.14688 7.85375C8.05305 7.75993 8.00035 7.63268 8.00035 7.5C8.00035 7.36732 8.05305 7.24007 8.14688 7.14625L12.2925 3H9.5C9.36739 3 9.24021 2.94732 9.14645 2.85355C9.05268 2.75979 9 2.63261 9 2.5C9 2.36739 9.05268 2.24021 9.14645 2.14645C9.24021 2.05268 9.36739 2 9.5 2H13.5C13.6326 2 13.7598 2.05268 13.8536 2.14645C13.9473 2.24021 14 2.36739 14 2.5V6.5ZM11.5 8C11.3674 8 11.2402 8.05268 11.1464 8.14645C11.0527 8.24021 11 8.36739 11 8.5V13H3V5H7.5C7.63261 5 7.75979 4.94732 7.85355 4.85355C7.94732 4.75979 8 4.63261 8 4.5C8 4.36739 7.94732 4.24021 7.85355 4.14645C7.75979 4.05268 7.63261 4 7.5 4H3C2.73478 4 2.48043 4.10536 2.29289 4.29289C2.10536 4.48043 2 4.73478 2 5V13C2 13.2652 2.10536 13.5196 2.29289 13.7071C2.48043 13.8946 2.73478 14 3 14H11C11.2652 14 11.5196 13.8946 11.7071 13.7071C11.8946 13.5196 12 13.2652 12 13V8.5C12 8.36739 11.9473 8.24021 11.8536 8.14645C11.7598 8.05268 11.6326 8 11.5 8Z" fill="#95988B"/> </svg></a></td></tr></table></div>
<h3>Customer Sentiment Highlights</h3><ul><li>“This costs me, on average, ~$0.50 per week, or ~$13/year. Personally, I think that&#039;s worth it to be able to give my home instructions and query” — <b>Reddit User, Reddit HomeAssistant Discussion</b></li><li>“The API is fairly cheap, if you&#039;re putting a low amount of tokens and specially if using 4o-mini your costs should be near nothing” — <b>Reddit User, Reddit OpenAI Discussion</b></li></ul>
Metronome’s Take
<p>OpenAI&#039;s token-based pricing demonstrates sophisticated pricing architecture that separates capability tiers from access models, enabling developers to optimize costs while consumers gain predictable subscription entry points. The 50x pricing spread from GPT-4o mini ($0.15/1M tokens) to o1-preview ($15/1M tokens) matches different production requirements, while the company&#039;s rapid pricing iteration shows operational agility rare at this scale.</p>
<p><strong>Recommendation:</strong> Organizations running high-volume, cost-sensitive applications benefit most from the tiered model approach and batch processing discounts. Companies with unpredictable consumption patterns can leverage OpenAI&#039;s built-in spend visibility and controls, including project-level thresholds, real-time notifications, and monthly caps, to manage costs without surprise bills.</p>
<h4>Key Insights</h4><ul><li><strong>Cached Input Discounting:</strong> The 50% cost reduction for cached inputs represents transparent usage optimization that rewards architectural efficiency. <p><strong>Benefit:</strong> Developers can materially reduce costs through prompt design without changing their application logic.</p></li><li><strong>Batch vs Realtime Pricing:</strong> The 50% discount for Batch API alongside premium Realtime API pricing serves fundamentally different workload types. <p><strong>Benefit:</strong> Teams can route latency-tolerant tasks to batch processing for cost savings while reserving real-time capacity for user-facing applications, optimizing spend based on actual requirements.</p></li><li><strong>Model Tier Economics:</strong> The dramatic cost range across model tiers positions different intelligence levels as distinct products rather than arbitrary gates. <p><strong>Benefit:</strong> Organizations building high-volume applications can achieve production economics with mini models, while complex reasoning tasks justify premium pricing through measurably superior performance.</p></li></ul>

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