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Comparison · 2 models · Updated Oct 4, 2026

GPT-4o mini vs GPT-5 Mini

GPT-5 Mini comes out ahead, 65 to 56 on our weighted score, though GPT-4o mini is 2.6× cheaper per token.

  1. OpenAI

    GPT-4o mini

    Released Jul 18, 2024

    56/100
    • ECI126.6
    • Price$0.15 / $0.60
    • Context128K
    Full specs Remove GPT-4o mini
  2. Our pick

    OpenAI

    GPT-5 Mini

    Released Aug 7, 2025

    65/100
    • ECI145.5
    • Price$0.25 / $2.00
    • Context400K
    Full specs Remove GPT-5 Mini

  3. Add a model

    Make it a three-way comparison.

01 — Verdict

GPT-5 Mini is our pick

GPT-5 Mini is the better all-round choice, scoring 65/100 against GPT-4o mini (56). It leads on capability and context window. GPT-4o mini wins on price. The score weighs capability 50%, price 25%, inputs & features 15%, context window 10%.

  • CapabilityGPT-5 MiniCapabilities Index (ECI): GPT-5 Mini 145.5 · GPT-4o mini 126.6
  • Lowest priceGPT-4o miniGPT-4o mini $0.263 · GPT-5 Mini $0.688 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
  • Longest contextGPT-5 MiniGPT-5 Mini 400,000 · GPT-4o mini 128,000 tokens
  • Widest inputsGPT-4o miniGPT-4o mini: Text, Images, PDFs · GPT-5 Mini: Text, Images
  • Self-hostingNo open weightsBoth are available only through APIs
How the score is built
MeasureWeightGPT-4o miniGPT-5 Mini
CapabilityCapabilities Index (ECI)50%4972
Price25%7758
Inputs & features15%7070
Context window10%2444
Overall100%56/10065/100
02 — Side by side

Every spec in one table

Highlighted cells lead their row. Dashes mean the data is not published.

GPT-4o mini vs GPT-5 Mini specifications side by side
SpecificationGPT-4o miniOpenAIGPT-5 MiniOpenAI
Capability
Capabilities Index (ECI)126.6145.5 (best)
ECI rank#135 of 148#77 of 148 (best)
GPQA DiamondGraduate-level science questions37.7%75.0% (best)
FrontierMath Tiers 1–3Research-level mathematics0.7%46.7% (best)
OTIS Mock AIME 2024–2025Competition mathematics6.9%86.7% (best)
SWE-bench VerifiedFixing real GitHub issues—64.7%
SimpleQA VerifiedShort factual questions8.3%21.6% (best)
Price per million tokens
Input$0.15 (best)$0.25
Output$0.60 (best)$2.00
Cached input$0.075$0.025 (best)
Blended (3:1)$0.263 (best)$0.688
Long-context rateSame rateSame rate
Price sourceOfficial OpenAI APIOfficial OpenAI API
Limits
Context window128,000 tokens400,000 tokens (best)
Max output16,384 tokens128,000 tokens (best)
Inputs and features
TextYesYes
ImagesYesYes
PDFsYesNo
AudioNoNo
VideoNoNo
ReasoningNoYesminimal · low · medium · high
Tool callingYesYes
Structured outputYesYes
Availability
WeightsProprietaryProprietary
API model IDgpt-4o-minigpt-5-mini
API providers2123 (best)
ReleasedJul 18, 2024Aug 7, 2025
Knowledge cutoffSep 2023May 30, 2024
03 — Cost

What would a month cost?

Enter your expected volume in millions of tokens. List prices only; caching and batch discounts would lower these.

  • GPT-4o mini$2.70
  • GPT-5 Mini$6.50
04 — Questions

Which should you choose?

Which is better: GPT-4o mini or GPT-5 Mini?

GPT-5 Mini is the better all-round choice, scoring 65/100 against GPT-4o mini (56). It leads on capability and context window. GPT-4o mini wins on price. The score weighs capability 50%, price 25%, inputs & features 15%, context window 10%.

Which is cheaper, GPT-4o mini or GPT-5 Mini?

GPT-4o mini is cheaper at $0.15 input / $0.60 output per million tokens (official OpenAI API price). GPT-5 Mini costs $0.25 input / $2.00 output per million tokens (official OpenAI API price). At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $0.263 per million tokens for GPT-4o mini versus $0.688 for GPT-5 Mini (2.6× as much).

Which scores higher on benchmarks?

GPT-5 Mini scores higher on the Capabilities Index (ECI): GPT-5 Mini 145.5 (#77 of 148) and GPT-4o mini 126.6 (#135 of 148). Their confidence ranges do not overlap (143.6–147.0 vs 120.5–128.5), so the gap is a real one. On individual benchmarks: GPQA Diamond — GPT-5 Mini 75.0%, GPT-4o mini 37.7%; FrontierMath Tiers 1–3 — GPT-5 Mini 46.7%, GPT-4o mini 0.7%; OTIS Mock AIME 2024–2025 — GPT-5 Mini 86.7%, GPT-4o mini 6.9%; SimpleQA Verified — GPT-5 Mini 21.6%, GPT-4o mini 8.3%.

Which is better for coding?

There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for GPT-4o mini yet, so there is no like-for-like coding score. On overall capability, GPT-5 Mini leads, which tends to carry over to coding, but test on your own codebase. Both support tool calling for agent workflows.

Which has the bigger context window?

GPT-5 Mini has the largest context window at 400,000 tokens, against 128,000 for GPT-4o mini. Maximum output per response: GPT-4o mini up to 16,384, GPT-5 Mini up to 128,000 tokens.

Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?

GPT-4o mini accepts text, images and PDFs; GPT-5 Mini accepts text and images. GPT-4o mini handles the widest range of inputs.

Are any of these open source?

No. GPT-4o mini and GPT-5 Mini are proprietary and only available through APIs and apps.

Which is newer?

GPT-5 Mini is the newest, released Aug 7, 2025. GPT-4o mini came out Jul 18, 2024. Knowledge cutoff: GPT-4o mini Sep 2023, GPT-5 Mini May 30, 2024.

How do you decide the winner?

Each model gets a 0–100 score on capability (50%, independent benchmark results); price (25%, blended price per million tokens (3 input : 1 output), log scale); inputs & features (15%, image, PDF, audio and video input, tool calling, structured output and reasoning); context window (10%, maximum tokens per request, log scale). Dimensions missing for any model are dropped and the remaining weights rescaled, so every model is judged on the same evidence. Specs and prices come from public model listings and the labs’ own API pages; capability scores come from independent benchmark runs. Data updated Oct 4, 2026.

05 — Keep comparing

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