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Anthropic vs OpenAI vs Google Gemini

Anthropic, OpenAI, Google Gemini side by side: price, free tier, who each one fits and when to skip it.
Item
Anthropic
OpenAI
Google Gemini
What it doesAPI for the Claude models, strong at writing, code, long documents and agents that use tools.API for the GPT models, plus image, voice, transcription and embeddings in one account.API for Google's Gemini models, which read text, images, audio and video, with a free tier.
Best forA SaaS whose core feature is an agent or assistant that reads long contracts or spreadsheets and calls your own tools.A SaaS that needs text, voice transcription and image generation from a single provider and SDK.A SaaS that processes lots of PDFs, audio or video and wants to prototype on the free tier before paying.
Skip it ifYou want to test with real users before spending anything, since the API has no free tier and bills in dollars.You want to try it with no upfront cost, since the GPT models have no free tier and you pay in dollars from the first call.You need prices locked in for next year: Gemini 4 Argon doubles on Dec 1, 2026 and the 3.x Flash models double on Jan 1, 2027.
SetupNeeds a developer. An afternoon for the first answer in your app; no approval needed, just a card and credits.Needs a developer. An afternoon for the first answer; some newer models may ask for organization verification first, which can add days.Needs a developer. Minutes to get a free key; an afternoon for the first version in your app.
PriceSonnet 5.5: $2 input / $10 output per million tokensgpt-6.1-sol: $2 input / $10 output per million tokensGemini 4 Argon: $2 input / $10 output per million tokens (rising Dec 1, 2026)
What it costs in practiceEstimate: 1,000 users × 30 chats a month × about 2,000 tokens per chat (1,500 in, 500 out) = 45M input and 15M output tokens. On Sonnet 5.5 ($2 in / $10 out per million): 45 × $2 + 15 × $10 ≈ $240/month, under the Start tier's $500 cap. The same volume on Haiku 5.5 ($0.10 / $0.50) is about $12/month.Estimate: 1,000 users × 30 chats a month × about 2,000 tokens per chat (1,500 in, 500 out) = 45M input and 15M output tokens. On gpt-6.1-sol ($2 in / $10 out per million): 45 × $2 + 15 × $10 ≈ $240/month, which already needs the Build tier's $500 cap. On gpt-6-luna ($0.10 / $0.50) it's about $12/month.Estimate: 1,000 users × 30 chats a month × about 2,000 tokens per chat (1,500 in, 500 out) = 45M input and 15M output tokens. On Gemini 3.8 Flash ($0.75 / $3.75 per million): about $90/month today and $180 from January 2027. On Gemini 4 Argon: about $240 today and $480 from December 1, 2026, which is above Tier 1's $250 cap.
Free planNo free API tier; you pay for usage in dollars.No free tier for GPT models; only the moderation model is free.Free tier with rate limits on the Flash and Flash-Lite models; Gemini 4 Argon is paid only.
Price per million tokens (main model)Sonnet 5.5: $2 in / $10 outgpt-6.1-sol: $2 in / $10 outGemini 4 Argon: $2 in / $10 out
ModelsClaude Fable, Opus, Sonnet, HaikuGPT-6 family, image, voice, embeddingsGemini 4, Gemini 3.x Flash, Nano Banana
Free tierNo free tierNo free tierRate-limited free tier on Flash models
Open sourceNo: noNo: noNo: no
Before you build
  • Each usage tier has a monthly spend cap ($500 on Start, $1,000 on Build). Hit it and the API stops answering until the 1st of next month, unless you request a higher tier. New accounts may start on an Evaluation tier with even lower limits.
  • Prepaid credits expire one year after purchase, the date can't be extended, and purchases are non-refundable. Don't top up a year's budget at once.
  • Models get retired, with at least 60 days' notice. After that, calls to the old model name fail. Claude Sonnet 4.5, for example, retires on November 30, 2026.
  • Prices and credits are in US dollars, so if you charge your customers in euros or pounds, your cost moves with the exchange rate.
  • Your monthly spend is capped by tier: $500 on Build ($5 purchased), $5,000 on Launch ($100 purchased). Tiers rise only with total credit purchases, so a launch spike can hit the ceiling.
  • Purchased credits expire after one year, OpenAI can't extend the date, and unused credits are generally non-refundable.
  • Some models and features only unlock after verifying your organization (business documents or a government ID and selfie). Check before building around a specific model.
  • Models are shut down on a schedule: at least 6 months' notice for generally available models, about 2 weeks for previews. GPT-5.1 shuts down on April 1, 2027.
  • Prompts over 272K input tokens cost more: on gpt-6.1-sol, input goes from $2 to $4 per million and output from $10 to $15.
  • On the free tier, Google uses what you send to improve its products and human reviewers may read it. The terms say not to send sensitive, confidential or personal information. Paid usage isn't used this way.
  • Prices are going up: Gemini 4 Argon goes from $2/$10 to $4/$20 per million tokens on December 1, 2026, and Gemini 3.8 and 3.6 Flash double on January 1, 2027.
  • Tier 1 has a $250 monthly spend cap. Reaching Tier 2 ($2,000 cap) takes $100 in paid spend and 3 days after the first payment; at the cap, the API pauses until the 1st of next month.
  • Prepaid credits expire 12 months after purchase and are generally non-refundable. When the balance hits $0, every linked key stops working until you add credits.
  • Google Cloud welcome credits generally can't be used for the Gemini API, especially on accounts opened after March 2, 2026.
Price checked

Checked on Oct 28, 2026 · official pricing

Checked on Oct 28, 2026 · official pricing

Checked on Oct 28, 2026 · official pricing

Prices are read from each official pricing page on the date shown and can change. Always confirm before signing up.

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