o3 vs o4-mini Deep Research
Pricing verdict: o3 vs o4-mini Deep Research: pricing is a tie at $2.00/M input and $8.00/M output. The real choice is context: o3 is better for long-context tasks (1,000,000 tokens vs 200,000).
Direct answer: pricing is a tie. Choose o3 for the larger 1M context window, or pick o4-mini Deep Research if 200K is already enough for your workload.
Compare API pricing, input and output token costs, context windows, and monthly estimates on one page so you can pick the right model fast.
Cost Comparison (1000 input + 500 output tokens, 100 requests/day)
o3
o4-mini Deep Research
Cost Differences
Both models cost the same at the default workload.
Quick Recommendation
Direct API pricing is a tie at the default workload: both land around $18.00/month. Pick o3 if you need the larger 1M context window; otherwise choose the model that better fits your workflow.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | o3 | o4-mini Deep Research |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | OpenAI | OpenAI |
| Input Price | $2.00/1M tokens | $2.00/1M tokens |
| Output Price | $8.00/1M tokens | $8.00/1M tokens |
| Context Window | 1,000,000 tokens | 200,000 tokens |
| Max Output | 131,072 tokens | 32,768 tokens |
| Category | reasoning | reasoning |
| Capabilities | textreasoningvisioncode | textreasoningcode |
| Release Date | 4/16/2025 | 6/26/2025 |
o3 vs o4-mini Deep Research: Which Should You Choose?
Choosing between o3 and o4-mini Deep Research depends on your priorities: cost efficiency, context length, or raw capability. Both models cost the same on input and output tokens, so raw price is a tie. Meanwhile, o3 offers a significantly larger context window at 1,000,000 tokens vs 200,000 for o4-mini Deep Research.
Both models are in the reasoning category, making this a direct head-to-head comparison. At scale — say 10,000 requests per day — direct API pricing stays tied, so the real decision is context, latency, and provider fit.
Output costs matter too. o3 charges $8.00/1M output tokens vs $8.00 for o4-mini Deep Research.
Multimodal capabilities: o3 supports vision (image inputs) while o4-mini Deep Research is text-only. If your application needs image understanding, this narrows your choice.
Best Use Cases
Choose o3 when:
- • You need a larger context window (1,000,000 tokens)
- • You need more capabilities (vision)
- • You need longer outputs (up to 131,072 tokens)
- • You're already using OpenAI's API ecosystem
Choose o4-mini Deep Research when:
- • You're already using OpenAI's API ecosystem
Pros and Caveats at a Glance
o3
- • Input pricing: $2.00/M tokens
- • Output pricing: $8.00/M tokens
- • Context window: 1,000,000 tokens
- • Max output: 131,072 tokens
Watch out for
- • Trade-offs are minor in this matchup.
o4-mini Deep Research
- • Input pricing: $2.00/M tokens
- • Output pricing: $8.00/M tokens
- • Context window: 200,000 tokens
- • Max output: 32,768 tokens
Watch out for
- • Smaller context window than o3
Try Different Scenarios
Use the calculator below to see how costs change with different usage patterns
o3 (OpenAI)
o4-mini Deep Research (OpenAI)
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Which is cheaper, o3 or o4-mini Deep Research?▼
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