GPT-4.1 vs GPT-5
Benchmarks, API pricing and specs, head to head. Data updated 2026-06-10.
GPT-4.1
OpenAI · Apr 2025
A non-reasoning workhorse with a 1M-token context window, still popular for predictable-latency production APIs.
GPT-5
70.7OpenAI · Aug 2025
OpenAI's August 2025 unified flagship that merged the GPT and o-series reasoning lines into one model with selectable effort.
The verdict
GPT-5 wins 3 of the 3 benchmarks these models share, against 0 for GPT-4.1. GPT-5 is about 1.0x cheaper per blended million tokens (3:1 input:output mix). GPT-4.1 also takes 1M of context versus 400K for GPT-5.
Benchmark head-to-head 0–3
Specs & pricing
| GPT-4.1 | GPT-5 | |
|---|---|---|
| modhub Index | — | 70.7 |
| Input price / 1M | $2 | $1.25 |
| Output price / 1M | $8 | $10 |
| Context window | 1M | 400K |
| Max output | 33K | 128K |
| Open weights | no | no |
| Reasoning model | no | yes |
| Multimodal input | text, image | text, image |
| Knowledge cutoff | Jun 2024 | Sep 2024 |
| Released | Apr 2025 | Aug 2025 |
| Example monthly cost* | $32.00 | $27.50 |
* 10M input + 1.5M output tokens per month at list prices, no caching. Green = better value on that row.
Frequently asked questions
- Which is better, GPT-4.1 or GPT-5?
- GPT-5 wins 3 of the 3 benchmarks these models share, against 0 for GPT-4.1. GPT-5 is about 1.0x cheaper per blended million tokens (3:1 input:output mix). GPT-4.1 also takes 1M of context versus 400K for GPT-5.
- Which is cheaper, GPT-4.1 or GPT-5?
- GPT-4.1 costs $2/$8 per million input/output tokens, while GPT-5 costs $1.25/$10. For a typical workload of 10M input and 1.5M output tokens per month, that's $32.00 versus $27.50.
- Which model is better for coding, GPT-4.1 or GPT-5?
- On SWE-bench Verified — the standard agentic-coding benchmark — GPT-5 scores 74.9% versus 54.6% for GPT-4.1, making GPT-5 the stronger pick for coding agents.