Claude Haiku 4.5 vs Claude Sonnet 4.6
Pricing, context window, and benchmark comparison · Last updated April 2026
Claude Haiku 4.5 is cheaper than Claude Sonnet 4.6 at $1.00/1M/1M vs $3.00/1M/1M input tokens — a 3.0x cost difference. Claude Sonnet 4.6 scores higher on quality benchmarks (ELO 1390). Choose Claude Haiku 4.5 for cost-sensitive workloads; choose Claude Sonnet 4.6 for maximum quality.
Which is cheaper: Claude Haiku 4.5 or Claude Sonnet 4.6?
Claude Haiku 4.5 is the cheaper option at $1.00/1M per 1M input tokens, compared to $3.00/1M for Claude Sonnet 4.6. That is a 3.0x cost difference on input tokens. Output pricing follows a similar pattern: Claude Haiku 4.5 charges $5.00/1M/1M vs $15.00/1M/1M for Claude Sonnet 4.6.
Which has better quality: Claude Haiku 4.5 or Claude Sonnet 4.6?
Based on LMSYS Chatbot Arena rankings, Claude Sonnet 4.6 achieves a higher ELO score (1390 vs 1320), suggesting stronger performance on open-ended tasks. Claude Haiku 4.5 excels at near-frontier intelligence at the lowest claude price tier. Claude Sonnet 4.6 is known for best combination of speed and intelligence in the claude family.
Which should you choose: Claude Haiku 4.5 or Claude Sonnet 4.6?
- → Near-frontier intelligence at the lowest Claude price tier
- → Fastest Claude model
- → 200K context window
- → Best combination of speed and intelligence in the Claude family
- → 1M token context window at standard pricing
- → Extended thinking and adaptive thinking supported
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is cheaper: Claude Haiku 4.5 or Claude Sonnet 4.6?
Claude Haiku 4.5 is cheaper at $1.00/1M per 1M input tokens, making it 3.0x more affordable.
Which has better quality: Claude Haiku 4.5 or Claude Sonnet 4.6?
Claude Sonnet 4.6 scores higher on the LMSYS Chatbot Arena with an ELO of 1390, suggesting better overall quality for most tasks.
Which has a larger context window: Claude Haiku 4.5 or Claude Sonnet 4.6?
Claude Sonnet 4.6 has a larger context window at 1000K tokens.
Should I choose Claude Haiku 4.5 or Claude Sonnet 4.6?
Choose Claude Haiku 4.5 if cost is the priority. Choose Claude Sonnet 4.6 if benchmark quality is most important. Consider your specific use case: Claude Haiku 4.5 is best for fast-response and customer-support, while Claude Sonnet 4.6 excels at coding and function-calling.
Is Claude Haiku 4.5 or Claude Sonnet 4.6 open source?
Claude Haiku 4.5 is proprietary. Claude Sonnet 4.6 is proprietary.