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Claude 3 Opus vs Claude Opus 4

Compare Anthropic and Anthropic AI models

Anthropic
Claude 3 Opus
vs
Anthropic
Claude Opus 4

Cost Comparison (1000 input + 500 output tokens, 100 requests/day)

Claude 3 Opus

Per Request:$0.0525
Daily:$5.25
Monthly:$157.50
Yearly:$1,916.25

Claude Opus 4

Per Request:$0.0525
Daily:$5.25
Monthly:$157.50
Yearly:$1,916.25

Cost Differences

$0.00
Per Request
$0.00
Daily
$0.00
Monthly
$0.00
Yearly

Claude Opus 4 costs less than Claude 3 Opus

Feature Comparison

FeatureClaude 3 OpusClaude Opus 4
ProviderAnthropicAnthropic
Input Price$15.00/1M tokens$15.00/1M tokens
Output Price$75.00/1M tokens$75.00/1M tokens
Context Window200,000 tokens200,000 tokens
Max Output4,096 tokens32,000 tokens
Categoryflagshipflagship
Capabilities
textvisionreasoning
textvisioncodereasoning
Release Date3/4/20245/14/2025

Claude 3 Opus vs Claude Opus 4: Which Should You Choose?

Choosing between Claude 3 Opus and Claude Opus 4 depends on your priorities: cost efficiency, context length, or raw capability. Claude Opus 4 is the more affordable option at $15.00/1M input tokens.

Both models are in the flagship category, making this a direct head-to-head comparison. At scale — say 10,000 requests per day — the cost difference adds up: Claude Opus 4 would save you roughly $0.00/month compared to Claude 3 Opus. For startups and indie developers, that difference can be significant.

Output costs matter too. Claude 3 Opus charges $75.00/1M output tokens vs $75.00 for Claude Opus 4.

Multimodal capabilities: Both models support vision (image understanding), so you can send images alongside text prompts with either option.

Best Use Cases

Choose Claude 3 Opus when:

  • • You're already using Anthropic's API ecosystem

Choose Claude Opus 4 when:

  • • You need more capabilities (code)
  • • You need longer outputs (up to 32,000 tokens)
  • • You're already using Anthropic's API ecosystem

Try Different Scenarios

Use the calculator below to see how costs change with different usage patterns

Claude 3 Opus (Anthropic)

Claude Opus 4 (Anthropic)

Start using Claude 3 Opus today

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Start using Claude Opus 4 today

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which is cheaper, Claude 3 Opus or Claude Opus 4?
Claude Opus 4 is cheaper for input tokens at $15.00 per million tokens vs $15.00 for Claude 3 Opus.
What is the context window difference between Claude 3 Opus and Claude Opus 4?
Claude 3 Opus supports 200,000 tokens while Claude Opus 4 supports 200,000 tokens — a difference of 0 tokens in favor of Claude 3 Opus.
Which model is better for AI Chatbot?
Both models support text. For ai chatbot, Claude Opus 4 is the lower-cost option, while Claude 3 Opus offers a larger context window (200,000 vs 200,000 tokens). Choose Claude Opus 4 for budget sensitivity or Claude 3 Opus for longer context tasks.
Which model has better overall pricing for heavy usage?
At 100 requests/day with 1,000 input and 500 output tokens each, Claude 3 Opus costs about $157.50/month and Claude Opus 4 costs about $157.50/month. Overall, Claude Opus 4 has lower combined input + output rates ($15.00 in, $75.00 out) vs Claude 3 Opus.

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