GPT-3.5-turbo vs GPT-5 Search API: API price and specs
GPT-3.5-turbo is 80% cheaper than GPT-5 Search API on input price.
GPT-3.5-turbo is 92% cheaper than GPT-5 Search API on output price.
GPT-3.5-turbo is 88% cheaper than GPT-5 Search API on a 1M-in / 200k-out workload.
GPT-5 Search API has a 1560.1% larger context than GPT-3.5-turbo.
| Field | GPT-3.5-turbo | GPT-5 Search API |
|---|---|---|
| Lowest input, per 1M | $0.25 | $1.25 +400% |
| Median input, per 1M | $0.50 | $1.25 +150% |
| Lowest output, per 1M | $0.75 | $10.00 +1233.3% |
| Median output, per 1M | $1.50 | $10.00 +566.7% |
| Lowest unit price | — | — |
| Cost of 1M in + 200k out | $0.40 | $3.25 +712.5% |
| Context | 16K +94% | 272K |
| Max output | 4K | — |
| Providers | 12 | 2 +83.3% |
| Regions | US | US |
| Accepts | image, pdf, text | file, image, text |
| Returns | text | text |
| Type | Text models | Text models |
| Free option | no | no |
| Cheapest provider | openrouter | edenai |
Your own workload: how many tokens the model gets (input) and gives back (output) - for example, in a month. The "Cost" row of the table above is recalculated for these numbers, for each model.
Computed from current offers each time the page opens; the best value of a row is bold, the percent is how far behind the best.
Providers selling both
Frequently asked questions
Which is cheaper, GPT-3.5-turbo or GPT-5 Search API?
GPT-3.5-turbo is 80% cheaper than GPT-5 Search API on input price. GPT-3.5-turbo is 92% cheaper than GPT-5 Search API on output price. GPT-3.5-turbo is 88% cheaper than GPT-5 Search API on a 1M-in / 200k-out workload.
Which has the larger context, GPT-3.5-turbo or GPT-5 Search API?
GPT-3.5-turbo: 16K tokens; GPT-5 Search API: 272K tokens.
Where can I use both GPT-3.5-turbo and GPT-5 Search API?
edenai, openai