AI and LLMs · Comparison
OpenAI vs Gemini vs Claude vs OpenRouter
Three model makers and one gateway in front of them all. Prices are rough ranges per million input tokens; output tokens cost about four to six times more.
4 options · 8 questions side by side · updated
| Compare | OpenAI | Gemini | Claude | OpenRouter |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | OpenAI's own models | Google's own models | Anthropic's own models | One API for hundreds of models |
| Model tiers | Small, mid-size and flagship reasoning | Flash-Lite, Flash and Pro | Haiku, Sonnet, Opus and above | Whatever each provider offers |
| Free tier | No | Yes, with rate limits | No | Free models with daily limits |
| Input price per million | About $0.10 to $10 | About $0.10 to $2 (more for long prompts) | About $1 to $10 | Provider price, plus a fee on credits |
| Long context | Yes, priced higher past about 272K tokens | Up to about 1M tokens | Up to about 1M tokens on recent models | Depends on the model |
| Stand-out extras | Image, speech and realtime voice models | Search grounding, video and audio input | Computer use, citations, prompt caching | Routing, fallbacks, one bill |
| Your data | Not used for training by default | Free-tier prompts may improve Google products | Not used for training by default | Skips hosts that train on prompts by default |
| Watch out for | Model retirements force upgrades | Different terms for free and paid use | Pricier small models than rivals | Fee on credits and one more middleman |
How to choose between OpenAI, Gemini, Claude and OpenRouter
- Pick OpenAI for a wide range of models and mature tooling across text, images and speech.
- Pick Gemini to prototype for free, or for long documents, audio and video at low per-token prices.
- Pick Claude for coding assistants, long documents and agents that lean heavily on tools.
- Pick OpenRouter to compare models, or to mix providers behind one key and one bill.
The options
- OpenAIOpenAI's paid API for its GPT family of models, the technology behind ChatGPT, used to add text, image, speech and search features to your own app.
- GeminiGoogle's API for its Gemini models, with a free tier for trying ideas and long-context models that read text, images, audio, video and PDFs.
- ClaudeAnthropic's API for its Claude models, widely used for writing, coding assistants and agents that work through long tasks with tools.
- OpenRouterA gateway that gives you one API key and one bill for hundreds of models from many providers, so you can switch or mix models without new integrations.
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