Nova Lite vs Phi-4-mini vs Step 1 (32K)
Nova Lite comes out ahead, 77 to 58 and 18 on our weighted score, and it is the cheaper option too.
- Our pick
AmazonNova Lite
77/100- ECI—
- Price$0.06 / $0.24
- Context300K
MicrosoftPhi-4-mini
58/100- ECI—
- Price$0.075 / $0.30
- Context128K
StepFunStep 1 (32K)
18/100- ECI—
- Price$2.05 / $9.59
- Context33K
Nova Lite is our pick
Nova Lite is the better all-round choice, scoring 77/100 against Phi-4-mini (58) and Step 1 (32K) (18). It leads on price, inputs & features and context window. The score weighs price 50%, inputs & features 30%, context window 20%. None of the shared benchmarks cover every model here yet, so capability is left out of this verdict.
- CapabilityNot enough dataNo independent benchmark covers every model here yet
- Lowest priceNova LiteNova Lite $0.105 · Phi-4-mini $0.131 · Step 1 (32K) $3.94 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
- Longest contextNova LiteNova Lite 300,000 · Phi-4-mini 128,000 · Step 1 (32K) 32,768 tokens
- Widest inputsNova LiteNova Lite: Text, Images, PDFs, Video · Phi-4-mini: Text · Step 1 (32K): Text
- Self-hostingPhi-4-miniPublishes downloadable weights
| Measure | Weight | Nova Lite | Phi-4-mini | Step 1 (32K) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | 50% | 96 | 92 | 22 |
| Inputs & features | 30% | 70 | 25 | 25 |
| Context window | 20% | 39 | 24 | 0 |
| Overall | 100% | 77/100 | 58/100 | 18/100 |
Left out because at least one model lacks the data: capability. The remaining weights were rescaled.
Every spec in one table
Highlighted cells lead their row. Dashes mean the data is not published.
| Specification | Nova LiteAmazon | Phi-4-miniMicrosoft | Step 1 (32K)StepFun |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capability | |||
| Capabilities Index (ECI) | — | — | — |
| ECI rank | — | — | — |
| Price per million tokens | |||
| Input | $0.06 (best) | $0.075 | $2.05 |
| Output | $0.24 (best) | $0.30 | $9.59 |
| Cached input | $0.015 (best) | — | $0.41 |
| Blended (3:1) | $0.105 (best) | $0.131 | $3.94 |
| Long-context rate | Same rate | Same rate | Same rate |
| Price source | Official Amazon Bedrock API | Official Azure API | Official StepFun (Global) API |
| Limits | |||
| Context window | 300,000 tokens (best) | 128,000 tokens | 32,768 tokens |
| Max output | 10,000 tokens | 4,096 tokens | 32,768 tokens (best) |
| Inputs and features | |||
| Text | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Images | Yes | No | No |
| PDFs | Yes | No | No |
| Audio | No | No | No |
| Video | Yes | No | No |
| Reasoning | No | No | No |
| Tool calling | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Structured output | No | No | No |
| Availability | |||
| Weights | Proprietary | Open | Proprietary |
| API model ID | amazon.nova-lite-v1:0 | phi-4-mini | step-1-32k |
| API providers | 3 (best) | 1 | 1 |
| Released | Dec 3, 2024 | Dec 11, 2024 | Jan 1, 2025 |
| Knowledge cutoff | Oct 2024 | Oct 2023 | Jun 2024 |
What would a month cost?
Enter your expected volume in millions of tokens. List prices only; caching and batch discounts would lower these.
- Nova Lite$1.08
- Phi-4-mini$1.35
- Step 1 (32K)$39.68
Which should you choose?
Which is better: Nova Lite, Phi-4-mini or Step 1 (32K)?
Nova Lite is the better all-round choice, scoring 77/100 against Phi-4-mini (58) and Step 1 (32K) (18). It leads on price, inputs & features and context window. The score weighs price 50%, inputs & features 30%, context window 20%. None of the shared benchmarks cover every model here yet, so capability is left out of this verdict.
Which is cheaper, Nova Lite, Phi-4-mini or Step 1 (32K)?
Nova Lite is cheaper at $0.06 input / $0.24 output per million tokens (official Amazon Bedrock API price). Phi-4-mini costs $0.075 input / $0.30 output per million tokens (official Azure API price); Step 1 (32K) costs $2.05 input / $9.59 output per million tokens (official StepFun (Global) API price). At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $0.105 per million tokens for Nova Lite versus $0.131 for Phi-4-mini (1.2× as much) and $3.94 for Step 1 (32K) (37× as much).
Which scores higher on benchmarks?
There is no independent benchmark that covers all three models yet. Nova Lite has not been scored yet, Phi-4-mini has not been scored yet and Step 1 (32K) has not been scored yet.
Which is better for coding?
There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for Nova Lite, Phi-4-mini and Step 1 (32K) yet, so there is no like-for-like coding score. Test both on a sample of your own tasks. All three support tool calling for agent workflows.
Which has the bigger context window?
Nova Lite has the largest context window at 300,000 tokens, against 128,000 for Phi-4-mini and 32,768 for Step 1 (32K). Maximum output per response: Nova Lite up to 10,000, Phi-4-mini up to 4,096, Step 1 (32K) up to 32,768 tokens.
Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?
Nova Lite accepts text, images, PDFs and video; Phi-4-mini accepts text; Step 1 (32K) accepts text. Nova Lite handles the widest range of inputs.
Are any of these open source?
Phi-4-mini publishes its weights and can be self-hosted; Nova Lite and Step 1 (32K) is proprietary.
Which is newer?
Step 1 (32K) is the newest, released Jan 1, 2025. Phi-4-mini came out Dec 11, 2024; Nova Lite came out Dec 3, 2024. Knowledge cutoff: Nova Lite Oct 2024, Phi-4-mini Oct 2023, Step 1 (32K) Jun 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.
