AI model comparison
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 vs Step 5 Preview
Pricing, context window, benchmarks, and features compared side by side. Or skip the guesswork and send one prompt to both.
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 is the October 17, 2026 snapshot of DeepSeek V4.1 Flash, served by DeepSeek under the `deepseek-flash` API model name.
- Input / 1M
- $0.15
- Output / 1M
- $0.60
- Context
- 1.05M
Step 5 Preview is StepFun's flagship model for agentic work, built on a sparse Mixture-of-Experts architecture (27B active / 600B total parameters).
- Input / 1M
- $1
- Output / 1M
- $2.70
- Context
- 1.05M
Comparing image generators? Compare image models
At a glance
Quick verdict
How the two models stack up on the things people ask about most.
Lower price
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017
5.6x cheaper for a typical chat
Higher intelligence score
Step 5 Preview
43.7 vs 39.5 on Artificial Analysis
Larger context window
Tie
1.05M vs 1.05M tokens
Newer release
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017
Released October 17, 2026
Benchmarks
Benchmark scores
Independent scores from Artificial Analysis. Higher is better.
Intelligence index
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 101739.5Coding index
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017Not availableAgentic index
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017Not availablePricing
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 vs Step 5 Preview API pricing
Per-token API rates. Cheaper option highlighted.
| Metric | DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 | |
|---|---|---|
| Input tokensPer 1M tokens | $0.15 | $1 |
| Output tokensPer 1M tokens | $0.60 | $2.70 |
| Cached input (read)Per 1M tokens | $0.00 | $0.10 |
| Cache writePer 1M tokens | Not available | Not available |
What it costs in practice
Estimated cost per 1,000 requests at standard rates. Coding and long-document figures also show the cost when the input is already cached.
Chat message
2K in, 500 out
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017$0.60Coding task
30K in, 4K out
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017$6.90$2.49 cachedLong document summary
150K in, 2K out
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017$23.70$1.65 cachedSpecs
Context window and capabilities
How much each model can read, how much it can write, and what it accepts as input.
| Metric | DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 | |
|---|---|---|
| Context window | 1.05M tokens | 1.05M tokens |
| Max output | 393K tokens | 64K tokens |
| Input types | Image, Text | Image, Text, Video |
| Output types | Text | Text |
| Reasoning effort levels | Max, High, Low, None | High, Medium, Low |
| Default reasoning effort | High | Medium |
| Release date | October 17, 2026 | October 8, 2026 |
Features
Supported features
API features available for each model.
| Metric | DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 | |
|---|---|---|
| Tool calling | Supported | Supported |
| Structured outputs | Not supported | Supported |
| JSON mode | Supported | Supported |
| Reasoning | Supported | Supported |
| Temperature | Supported | Supported |
| Stop sequences | Supported | Supported |
| Deterministic seed | Not supported | Supported |
| Verbosity control | Not supported | Not supported |
Keep exploring
More on these models
Other head-to-heads, the full model page, and the alternatives list for each model.
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017View full model details- DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 vs Claude Haiku 5.5
- DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 vs GLM 5.3 Flash
- DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 vs Ling 3.1 Flash
- DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 vs GPT-6 Luna
- DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 vs MiMo-V2.6-Flash
- DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 vs GPT-5.6 Luna
- DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 vs DeepSeek V4 Pro 0813
- DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 vs DeepSeek V4 Flash Vision Exp
- DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 vs DeepSeek V4 Flash 0731
- Step 5 Preview vs DeepSeek V4.1 Flash
- Step 5 Preview vs GLM 5.3 Flash
- Step 5 Preview vs MiMo-V2.6-Flash
- Step 5 Preview vs Hy4 preview
- Step 5 Preview vs GPT-6 Luna
- Step 5 Preview vs Claude Opus 5.5
- Step 5 Preview vs GLM 5.3
- Step 5 Preview vs DeepSeek V4 Flash 0731
- Step 5 Preview vs Hy3
- Step 5 Preview vs Muse Spark 1.3 Contributor
- Step 5 Preview vs DeepSeek V4 Flash 0423
- Step 5 Preview vs Claude Sonnet 5.5
- Step 5 Preview vs Kimi K3
- Step 5 Preview vs GPT-6.1 Sol
- Step 5 Preview vs Claude Haiku 5.5
- Step 5 Preview vs Claude Fable 5.1
- Step 5 Preview vs Gemini 3.8 Flash
- Step 5 Preview vs GPT-6 Astra
- Step 5 Preview vs GPT-5.6 Luna
- Step 5 Preview vs Gemini 4 Argon
- Step 5 Preview vs MiMo-V2.6-Pro
- Step 5 Preview vs GLM 5.2
- Step 5 Preview vs Muse Spark 1.3
- Step 5 Preview vs DeepSeek V4 Pro 0813
- Step 5 Preview vs GPT-6 Sol
- Step 5 Preview vs GPT-5.6 Sol
- Step 5 Preview vs Grok 4.7
- Step 5 Preview vs Qwen3.8 Max (0902)
- Step 5 Preview vs Grok 4.6
- Step 5 Preview vs GPT-5.6 Terra
- Step 5 Preview vs Claude Sonnet 5
- Step 5 Preview vs Claude Opus 4.8
- Step 5 Preview vs Ling 3.1 Flash
- Step 5 Preview vs Claude Opus 4.7
- Step 5 Preview vs Qwen3.8 2.4T A95B
- Step 5 Preview vs Gemini 3.7 Flash
- Step 5 Preview vs Muse Spark 1.2
- Step 5 Preview vs GPT-5.4
- Step 5 Preview vs Grok 4.5
- Step 5 Preview vs Qwen3.8 27B
- Step 5 Preview vs Mistral Large 4
- Step 5 Preview vs Gemini 3.6 Flash
- Step 5 Preview vs Muse Spark 1.1
- Step 5 Preview vs GLM 5.3 FlashX
- Step 5 Preview vs GPT-5.6 Luna Pro
Our take
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 is 5.6x cheaper for a typical chat. Step 5 Preview scores higher on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index (43.7 vs 39.5). The right pick depends on your workload, so the quickest way to settle it is to send the same prompt to both and compare.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Is DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 or Step 5 Preview cheaper?
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 is cheaper for a typical chat (2K input tokens and 500 output tokens). DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 costs $0.15 per 1M input tokens and $0.60 per 1M output tokens, while Step 5 Preview costs $1 per 1M input tokens and $2.70 per 1M output tokens.
Which has a bigger context window, DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 or Step 5 Preview?
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 supports up to 1.05M tokens of context, compared with 1.05M for Step 5 Preview.
Is DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 smarter than Step 5 Preview?
On the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index, DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 scores 39.5 and Step 5 Preview scores 43.7, putting Step 5 Preview ahead. Benchmarks don't capture everything, so the best test is running your own prompts through both.
Can I use DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 and Step 5 Preview at the same time?
Yes. Shortcut Chat sends one prompt to multiple models at once, so you can see DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 and Step 5 Preview answer side by side and keep the better response.
Why choose? Ask both.
Send one prompt to DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 and Step 5 Preview at the same time. Compare the answers side by side and keep the best one.