Last checked 30 Oct 2026
Claude Sonnet 5.5 vs Gemini 4 Carbon
Claude Sonnet 5.5 is billed by Anthropic. Gemini 4 Carbon is billed by Google. A pair is two models from different providers whose higher published input rate is at most 1.5 times the lower one, and whose higher published output rate is at most 1.5 times the lower one. Closer rates are listed first. Each model is in at most 2 pairs, and the list stops at 12. The figures below are the rates stored on those two rows, the differences between them, and the cost of one sample workload. This page does not score quality.
Stored rates
Claude Sonnet 5.5 (Anthropic, Base input / cache hit / output) and Gemini 4 Carbon (Google, Announced introductory rate, limited access). Provider pages: Anthropic and Google.
| Field | Claude Sonnet 5.5 | Gemini 4 Carbon |
|---|---|---|
| Input / 1M | $2.00 | $2.00 |
| Cached input / 1M | $0.10 | $0.10 |
| Output / 1M | $10.00 | $10.00 |
| Rate | Base input / cache hit / output | Announced introductory rate, limited access |
| Context | 1M | n/a |
| Max output | 128k | n/a |
| Status | Active | Limited access |
| Modalities | n/a | n/a |
| Released | 28 Sep 2026 | 28 Oct 2026 |
| Checked | 30 Oct 2026 | 30 Oct 2026 |
| Per request | $0.012 | $0.012 |
| Per month | $360.00 | $360.00 |
Sample workload
The sample is the calculator's starting workload: 2,000 input tokens and 800 output tokens per request, 1,000 requests a day. A month in the calculator is 30 days, so that is 30,000 requests. The cost uses the stored input and output rates only. Cache hits, batch discounts, long-context surcharges, peak hours, and prices scheduled after an introductory window are not included. The rate label and the notes below name those other published rates.
Claude Sonnet 5.5 is $0.012 per request and $360.00 per month ($120.00 input and $240.00 output over the month). Gemini 4 Carbon is $0.012 per request and $360.00 per month ($120.00 input and $240.00 output over the month).
On this sample the two stored rates cost the same amount.
Open Claude Sonnet 5.5 in the calculatorOpen Gemini 4 Carbon in the calculator
Notes from the sources
Claude Sonnet 5.5
Base input / cache hit / output
Base input and output rates, plus cache hits and refreshes at $0.10 per 1M tokens. The pricing page also lists 5-minute cache writes at $2.50 and 1-hour cache writes at $4. Context is published as 1M tokens and max output as 128K. Modalities were not listed on the pages checked.
Gemini 4 Carbon
Announced introductory rate, limited access
Access is limited to a subset of cyber defenders through Google's Fairwind Program, with developer, business, and consumer access described as coming as soon as possible. The rates are the announced introductory price, not a row on the Gemini API pricing table: $2 input and $10 output per 1M tokens, with cached input at the stated 95% discount off the $2 input price ($0.10). After the introductory period the announcement lists $4 per 1M input tokens and $20 per 1M output tokens. No API model id, context window, max output, or modality list is published.