GPT-4.1 vs Mistral Medium: API Cost Comparison
Compare the API pricing, context windows, features, and real-world cost projections for GPT-4.1 (OpenAI) and Mistral Medium (Mistral AI). Use the interactive calculator below to compute your exact monthly cost based on your token usage and request volume.
Prices verified Apr 30, 2026
Interactive Cost Calculator
Fills in typical token counts for a workload type
Tokens in each prompt sent to the model
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Total API calls per month
Showing costs for 2 models. Cheapest: Mistral Medium at $52.50/month.
| Alert | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
BestMistral Medium | Mistral AI | $52.50 | $0.005250 | $15.00 | $37.50 | 12.5% | Alerts coming soon |
GPT-4.1 | OpenAI | $60.00 | $0.006000 | $20.00 | $40.00 | — | Alerts coming soon |
Monthly Cost Comparison
Price Comparison at a Glance
All prices are in USD per 1 million tokens ($/M tokens). Lower is cheaper.
| Pricing Type | GPT-4.1 | Mistral Medium | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Input (standard) | $2.00/M | $1.50/M | Mistral Medium |
| Output | $8.00/M | $7.50/M | Mistral Medium |
| Cached input | $0.50/M | N/A | — |
| Batch input | $1.00/M | N/A | — |
| Batch output | $4.00/M | N/A | — |
Prices last verified: 2026-03-08 – 2026-04-30
Cost Breakdown by Usage Volume
Estimated monthly costs at different request volumes, assuming 1,000 input tokens and 500 output tokens per request. Adjust in the calculator above for your specific use case.
| Volume | GPT-4.1Monthly | Mistral MediumMonthly | GPT-4.1Per request | Mistral MediumPer request |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1K requests/mo | $6.00 | $5.25 | $0.006000 | $0.005250 |
| 10K requests/mo | $60.00 | $52.50 | $0.006000 | $0.005250 |
| 100K requests/mo | $600.00 | $525.00 | $0.006000 | $0.005250 |
| 1M requests/mo | $6,000.00 | $5,250.00 | $0.006000 | $0.005250 |
Green values indicate the lower-cost option at each volume tier. Cost per request is calculated at 1,000 input + 500 output tokens using standard (non-batch, non-cached) pricing.
Price History
Input price per 1M tokensWhen to Choose GPT-4.1
by OpenAI
- RAG / Semantic search
- Document summarization
- Code generation
Input / 1M tokens
$2.00/M
Output / 1M tokens
$8.00/M
Context window
1,047,576
Tier
premium
When to Choose Mistral Medium
by Mistral AI
- General chatbot
- Customer support
- Content & copywriting
Input / 1M tokens
$1.50/M
Output / 1M tokens
$7.50/M
Context window
131,072
Tier
premium
Key Differences Beyond Price
Cost is only one factor in choosing an AI model. Context window size, rate limits, supported features, and latency all affect whether a model fits your use case.
| Capability | GPT-4.1 | Mistral Medium |
|---|---|---|
| Context window | 1,047,576 tokens | 131,072 tokens |
| Max output tokens | 32,768 tokens | 4,096 tokens |
| Performance tier | Premium | Premium |
| Vision / image input | Yes | No |
| Function calling | Yes | Yes |
| JSON mode | Yes | Yes |
| Prompt caching | Yes | No |
| Batch API (50% discount) | Yes | No |
| Extended reasoning | No | No |
| Fine-tuning | No | No |
| Rate limit (req/min) | 10,000 | Not published |
GPT-4.1 notes
1M token context window enables entire codebases in context.
Mistral Medium notes
Good balance of quality and cost for European GDPR-compliant workloads.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GPT-4.1 cheaper than Mistral Medium?
At standard usage (1,000 input tokens, 500 output tokens, 100,000 requests/month), Mistral Medium costs $525.00/month versus $600.00/month for GPT-4.1 — a 13% saving. Your actual savings will vary based on your token profile; output-heavy workloads amplify differences in output pricing.
Which model has a larger context window, GPT-4.1 or Mistral Medium?
GPT-4.1 has a larger context window at 1,047,576 tokens, compared to 131,072 tokens for Mistral Medium. A larger context window is important for processing long documents, multi-turn conversations, or large codebases without truncation.
Do GPT-4.1 and Mistral Medium support the Batch API?
GPT-4.1 supports the Batch API (50% discount for async processing), while Mistral Medium does not. If your workload tolerates up to 24-hour latency, routing to GPT-4.1 with batch pricing could significantly cut costs versus Mistral Medium's standard rate.
Which model offers better prompt caching?
GPT-4.1 supports prompt caching at $0.50/M for cached input, while Mistral Medium does not offer prompt caching. For RAG applications or chatbots with large, repeated context, GPT-4.1's caching capability can substantially reduce effective costs.
What are the best use cases for GPT-4.1 vs Mistral Medium?
GPT-4.1 is best suited for RAG / Semantic search, Document summarization, Code generation, while Mistral Medium is optimized for General chatbot, Customer support, Content & copywriting. Choose based on which use case matches your primary workload — and validate with the cost calculator above to confirm the total monthly spend fits your budget.
What is the cost per request for GPT-4.1 vs Mistral Medium?
At 1,000 input tokens and 500 output tokens per request — a typical conversational workload — GPT-4.1 costs $0.006000 per request and Mistral Medium costs $0.005250 per request. At 100,000 requests/month, that translates to $600.00 and $525.00 respectively. Use the interactive calculator to adjust these parameters for your actual workload.
GPT-4.1 vs Mistral Medium: Summary
When comparing GPT-4.1 and Mistral Medium for API cost, the right choice depends on your workload's token profile, required features, and tolerance for latency. Mistral Medium offers lower total cost at standard usage volumes (1,000 input + 500 output tokens per request at 100,000 requests/month) at $525.00/month, compared to $600.00/month for GPT-4.1.
Both models are priced in USD per million tokens, the standard unit across all major AI API providers. GPT-4.1 charges $2.00/M for input tokens and $8.00/M for output tokens. Mistral Medium charges $1.50/M input and $7.50/M output. If your workload is output-heavy (more tokens generated than consumed as input), the model with the lower output price compounds cost savings significantly at scale.
Prompt caching is supported by GPT-4.1 but not Mistral Medium. For workloads with large, repeated system prompts or document context — such as RAG pipelines or multi-turn conversations with a fixed knowledge base — prompt caching can reduce effective input costs by 60–90%, which may change the cost ranking between these two models at your specific usage pattern.
Context window capacity differs between the two: GPT-4.1 supports up to 1,047,576 tokens in a single request, versus 131,072 tokens for Mistral Medium. A larger context window is essential for document summarization, large codebase analysis, and multi-document retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) applications.
Use the interactive calculator at the top of this page to enter your actual token usage and monthly request volume for a precise cost comparison tailored to your workload. Adjust for batch API discounts and prompt caching to find the most cost-effective option for your specific deployment.
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Relevant Use Cases
See cost recommendations for workloads where GPT-4.1 or Mistral Medium is recommended.