GPT-4.1 Mini alternatives

Best GPT-4.1 Mini alternatives

10 models that can stand in for GPT-4.1 Mini, ranked by benchmark score, with what each one does better.

Current Model

GPT-4.1 Mini

Input / 1M: $0.40
Output / 1M: $1.60
Context: 1.05M
Intelligence: 10.2

Quick picks

The best alternative depends on what you need

Why people switch away from GPT-4.1 Mini, and the model that fits each reason best.

Cheapest alternative

Gemini 2.5 Flash Lite

$0.40 per 1M output tokens vs $1.60

Smartest alternative

o3 Mini High

Intelligence score 11 vs 10.2

Largest context

Gemini 2.5 Flash Lite

1.05M tokens vs 1.05M

Ranked

Top GPT-4.1 Mini alternatives

Each model is scored against GPT-4.1 Mini. Green means better, red means worse.

GPT-4.1 Mini as the baseline, then the top alternatives scored against it
Model	Input / 1M	Output / 1M	Context	Intelligence	Compare
GPT-4.1 Mini OpenAI	Input / 1M$0.40	Output / 1M$1.60	Context1.05M	Intelligence10.2	Reference model
1 o3 Mini High OpenAI	Input / 1M$1.10+175%	Output / 1M$4.40+175%	Context200K-81%	Intelligence11+8%	Compare
Why switch:Higher intelligence score
2 Gemini 2.5 Flash Lite Google	Input / 1M$0.10-75%	Output / 1M$0.40-75%	Context1.05M0%	Intelligence10.4+2%	Compare
Why switch:4x cheaper outputHigher intelligence scoreLarger 1.05M contextAccepts audio and videoNewer release
3 Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct Qwen	Input / 1M$0.21-47%	Output / 1M$1.90+19%	Context262K-75%	Intelligence9.9-3%	Compare
Why switch:Newer release
4 DeepSeek V3 0324 DeepSeek	Input / 1M$0.29-27%	Output / 1M$1.14-29%	Context164K-84%	Intelligence9.7-5%	Compare
Why switch:1.4x cheaper output
5 Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct Qwen	Input / 1M$0.10-75%	Output / 1M$1.10-31%	Context262K-75%	Intelligence9.6-6%	Compare
Why switch:1.5x cheaper outputNewer release
6 Mistral Large 3 2512 Mistral	Input / 1M$0.50+25%	Output / 1M$1.50-6%	Context262K-75%	Intelligence9.3-9%	Compare
Why switch:1.1x cheaper outputNewer release
7 Mistral Medium 3.1 Mistral	Input / 1M$0.40	Output / 1M$2+25%	Context131K-87%	Intelligence9.2-10%	Compare
Why switch:Newer release
8 Devstral 2 2512 Mistral	Input / 1M$0.40	Output / 1M$2+25%	Context262K-75%	Intelligence8.6-16%	Compare
Why switch:Newer release
9 GPT-4o-mini OpenAI	Input / 1M$0.15-62%	Output / 1M$0.60-62%	Context128K-88%	Intelligence6.7-34%	Compare
Why switch:2.7x cheaper output
10 GPT-3.5 Turbo OpenAI	Input / 1M$0.50+25%	Output / 1M$1.50-6%	Context16K-98%	Intelligence5.5-46%	Compare
Why switch:1.1x cheaper output

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

What is the best alternative to GPT-4.1 Mini?

o3 Mini High from OpenAI ranks first, based on independent benchmark scores. It costs $4.40 per 1M output tokens, compared with $1.60 for GPT-4.1 Mini.

Is there a cheaper alternative to GPT-4.1 Mini?

Yes. Gemini 2.5 Flash Lite charges $0.40 per 1M output tokens, versus $1.60 for GPT-4.1 Mini.

Can I try GPT-4.1 Mini and its alternatives at the same time?

Yes. Shortcut Chat sends one prompt to several models at once, so you can compare GPT-4.1 Mini with any of these alternatives on your own tasks.

Not sure which to pick? Try them all.

Send one prompt to GPT-4.1 Mini and its alternatives at the same time, and keep the answer you like best.

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