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Claude 3.5 Sonnet vs GPT-4 Turbo

Pricing, context window, and benchmark comparison · Last updated April 2026

Quick Verdict

Claude 3.5 Sonnet is cheaper than GPT-4 Turbo at $3.00/1M/1M vs $10.00/1M/1M input tokens — a 3.3x cost difference. Claude 3.5 Sonnet scores higher on quality benchmarks (ELO 1295). Choose Claude 3.5 Sonnet for cost-sensitive workloads; both are strong choices depending on your budget.

Detailed Comparison

MetricClaude 3.5 SonnetGPT-4 Turbo
Input Price / 1M tokens$3.00/1MCheaper$10.00/1M
Output Price / 1M tokens$15.00/1MCheaper$30.00/1M
Context Window200KLarger128K
ELO Score (LMSYS)1295Smarter1260
Open Source
Free Tier
Release Date2024-062023-11

Which is cheaper: Claude 3.5 Sonnet or GPT-4 Turbo?

Claude 3.5 Sonnet is the cheaper option at $3.00/1M per 1M input tokens, compared to $10.00/1M for GPT-4 Turbo. That is a 3.3x cost difference on input tokens. Output pricing follows a similar pattern: Claude 3.5 Sonnet charges $15.00/1M/1M vs $30.00/1M/1M for GPT-4 Turbo.

Which has better quality: Claude 3.5 Sonnet or GPT-4 Turbo?

Based on LMSYS Chatbot Arena rankings, Claude 3.5 Sonnet achieves a higher ELO score (1295 vs 1260), suggesting stronger performance on open-ended tasks. Claude 3.5 Sonnet excels at 200k context window — best for long documents. GPT-4 Turbo is known for strong general reasoning.

Which should you choose: Claude 3.5 Sonnet or GPT-4 Turbo?

Choose Claude 3.5 Sonnet if:
  • 200K context window — best for long documents
  • Industry-leading coding performance
  • Nuanced instruction following
Choose GPT-4 Turbo if:
  • Strong general reasoning
  • Good at following complex multi-step instructions
  • Reliable tool/function calling

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is cheaper: Claude 3.5 Sonnet or GPT-4 Turbo?

Claude 3.5 Sonnet is cheaper at $3.00/1M per 1M input tokens, making it 3.3x more affordable.

Which has better quality: Claude 3.5 Sonnet or GPT-4 Turbo?

Claude 3.5 Sonnet scores higher on the LMSYS Chatbot Arena with an ELO of 1295, suggesting better overall quality for most tasks.

Which has a larger context window: Claude 3.5 Sonnet or GPT-4 Turbo?

Claude 3.5 Sonnet has a larger context window at 200K tokens.

Should I choose Claude 3.5 Sonnet or GPT-4 Turbo?

Choose Claude 3.5 Sonnet if cost is the priority. Choose Claude 3.5 Sonnet if benchmark quality is most important. Consider your specific use case: Claude 3.5 Sonnet is best for coding and document-analysis, while GPT-4 Turbo excels at coding and function-calling.

Is Claude 3.5 Sonnet or GPT-4 Turbo open source?

Claude 3.5 Sonnet is proprietary. GPT-4 Turbo is proprietary.

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