ZMIME
Comparison · 2 models · Updated Nov 2, 2026

o4-mini-deep-research vs Gemini 4 Argon

Gemini 4 Argon comes out ahead, 52 to 37 on our weighted score, though o4-mini-deep-research is 21% cheaper per token.

  1. OpenAI

    o4-mini-deep-research

    Released Jun 26, 2025

    37/100
    • ECI—
    • Price$1.80 / $7.20
    • Context200K
    Full specs Remove o4-mini-deep-research
  2. Our pick

    Google

    Gemini 4 Argon

    Released Oct 13, 2026New

    52/100
    • ECI166.1
    • Price$2.00 / $10.00
    • Context1.05M
    Full specs Remove Gemini 4 Argon

  3. Add a model

    Make it a three-way comparison.

01 — Verdict

Gemini 4 Argon is our pick

Gemini 4 Argon is the better all-round choice, scoring 52/100 against o4-mini-deep-research (37). It leads on inputs & features and context window. o4-mini-deep-research wins on price. 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 priceo4-mini-deep-researcho4-mini-deep-research $3.15 · Gemini 4 Argon $4.00 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
  • Longest contextGemini 4 ArgonGemini 4 Argon 1,048,576 · o4-mini-deep-research 200,000 tokens
  • Widest inputsGemini 4 Argono4-mini-deep-research: Text, Images · Gemini 4 Argon: Text, Images, PDFs, Audio, Video
  • Self-hostingNo open weightsBoth are available only through APIs
How the score is built
MeasureWeighto4-mini-deep-researchGemini 4 Argon
Price50%2520
Inputs & features30%60100
Context window20%3261
Overall100%37/10052/100

Left out because at least one model lacks the data: capability. The remaining weights were rescaled.

02 — Side by side

Every spec in one table

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

o4-mini-deep-research vs Gemini 4 Argon specifications side by side
Specificationo4-mini-deep-researchOpenAIGemini 4 ArgonGoogle
Capability
Capabilities Index (ECI)—166.1
ECI rank—#7 of 165
GPQA DiamondGraduate-level science questions—96.4%
FrontierMath Tiers 1–3Research-level mathematics—86.0%
OTIS Mock AIME 2024–2025Competition mathematics—100%
SimpleQA VerifiedShort factual questions—76.0%
Price per million tokens
Input$1.80 (best)$2.00
Output$7.20 (best)$10.00
Cached input—$0.10
Blended (3:1)$3.15 (best)$4.00
Long-context rateSame rateSame rate
Price sourceMedian of 1 providersOfficial Google API
Limits
Context window200,000 tokens1,048,576 tokens (best)
Max output100,000 tokens (best)65,536 tokens
Inputs and features
TextYesYes
ImagesYesYes
PDFsNoYes
AudioNoYes
VideoNoYes
ReasoningYesYeslow · medium · high
Tool callingYesYes
Structured outputNoYes
Availability
WeightsProprietaryProprietary
API model ID—gemini-4-argon
API providers124 (best)
ReleasedJun 26, 2025Oct 13, 2026
Knowledge cutoffMay 2024Mar 2026
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.

  • o4-mini-deep-research$32.40
  • Gemini 4 Argon$40.00
04 — Questions

Which should you choose?

Which is better: o4-mini-deep-research or Gemini 4 Argon?

Gemini 4 Argon is the better all-round choice, scoring 52/100 against o4-mini-deep-research (37). It leads on inputs & features and context window. o4-mini-deep-research wins on price. 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, o4-mini-deep-research or Gemini 4 Argon?

o4-mini-deep-research is cheaper at $1.80 input / $7.20 output per million tokens (median across 1 API provider). Gemini 4 Argon costs $2.00 input / $10.00 output per million tokens (official Google API price). At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $3.15 per million tokens for o4-mini-deep-research versus $4.00 for Gemini 4 Argon (1.3× as much).

Which scores higher on benchmarks?

There is no independent benchmark that covers both models yet. o4-mini-deep-research has not been scored yet and Gemini 4 Argon has an ECI of 166.1.

Which is better for coding?

There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for o4-mini-deep-research and Gemini 4 Argon yet, so there is no like-for-like coding score. Test both on a sample of your own tasks. Both support tool calling for agent workflows.

Which has the bigger context window?

Gemini 4 Argon has the largest context window at 1,048,576 tokens, against 200,000 for o4-mini-deep-research. Maximum output per response: o4-mini-deep-research up to 100,000, Gemini 4 Argon up to 65,536 tokens.

Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?

o4-mini-deep-research accepts text and images; Gemini 4 Argon accepts text, images, PDFs, audio and video. Gemini 4 Argon handles the widest range of inputs.

Are any of these open source?

No. o4-mini-deep-research and Gemini 4 Argon are proprietary and only available through APIs and apps.

Which is newer?

Gemini 4 Argon is the newest, released Oct 13, 2026. o4-mini-deep-research came out Jun 26, 2025. Knowledge cutoff: o4-mini-deep-research May 2024, Gemini 4 Argon Mar 2026.

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 Nov 2, 2026.

05 — Keep comparing

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