Pairwise benchmark snapshot · Aug 1, 2026
In this head-to-head showdown, Claude 3.5 Sonnet delivers higher overall intelligence and human-preferred responses (Elo 1,280 vs 1,272), while Claude 3.5 Sonnet leads in SWE-bench software engineering benchmarks (49%), while GPT-4o mini is more budget-friendly at $0.6/1M per 1M output tokens. Review the complete breakdown below to determine which model best fits your performance and budget requirements.
9 direct benchmark disciplines evaluated across capability, speed, and cost
2024 workhorse. Still a high-intent compare against GPT-4o.
Legacy small OpenAI model. Useful as a cheap baseline.
Δ 8 Arena Elo pts
160 tok/s
$0.6 / 1M output
Relative percentile scores computed across all active models in the benchmark catalog.
Comparing top Western standard models with China's leading frontier rival across 6 skill dimensions. Tap any spoke or dot to inspect.
Category wins across reasoning intelligence, generation speed, and token cost.
Preference Elo, Coding proficiency, SWE-bench & LiveBench accuracy
Generation throughput and time to first token responsiveness
Cost per million tokens and max context window length
| Benchmark | Claude 3.5 Sonnet | GPT-4o mini | Advantage Delta |
|---|---|---|---|
| Preference Elo | +8 | ||
| LiveBench | +4% | ||
| SWE-bench | +7.8% | ||
| GPQA Diamond | +4.9% | ||
| Time to first token | +150 ms | ||
| Output speed | 80 tok/s | 160 tok/s | +80 tok/s |
| Input price | $0.15/1M | +$2.85/1M | |
| Output price | $0.6/1M | +$14.4/1M | |
| Context window | +72k |
Simulate monthly production API costs in USD (US Dollar).
GPT-4o mini is estimated to save $315.75/month ($3,789/year).
Higher SWE-bench (49%).
Lower output list price ($0.6/1M).
Lower TTFT (130 ms).
Larger window (200k).
Both accept images. Defaulting to the higher-Elo side (Claude 3.5 Sonnet).
| Target Workload | Recommended Pick | Evaluation Rationale |
|---|---|---|
| Repo / coding agents | Claude 3.5 Sonnet | Higher SWE-bench (49%). |
| High-volume chat | GPT-4o mini | Lower output list price ($0.6/1M). |
| Voice / low-latency UI | GPT-4o mini | Lower TTFT (130 ms). |
| Long-document RAG | Claude 3.5 Sonnet | Larger window (200k). |
| Screenshots / vision | Claude 3.5 Sonnet | Both accept images. Defaulting to the higher-Elo side (Claude 3.5 Sonnet). |
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