Real API pricing method ranks subscriptions: GPT-5.6 Luna cheapest at $0.00083/MTok
teortaxesTex · x · 2026-09-11
A new "real API pricing" method — dividing subscription cost by actual token allowance — upends conventional AI value rankings.
Key findings:
- GPT-5.6 Luna ranks #1: effectively $0.00083/MTok on ChatGPT Pro 20x, cheaper than any API
- DeepSeek V4 Flash, famed for value, only hits #31 ($0.01392/MTok, off-peak API)
- Grok 4.6 (SuperGrok Plus) ranks #63 at $0.04902/MTok
- "Expensive" Opus 5 lands at #23 ($0.01274/MTok); GPT-5.6 Sol at #33
- Conclusion: subscriptions are vastly cheaper than APIs — Luna cheapest of all
Data comes from public sources and user-reported screenshots; the full database and algorithm will be open-sourced.
More from Venture
- Positron AI raises $230M Series B at over $1B valuation with Arm backing — seanmcdonaldxyz · 2026-09-11
- OpenAI Reportedly Restricts Competitors From Advertising in ChatGPT — BenBajarin · 2026-09-11
- Baseten acquires Blaxel to build integrated cloud infrastructure for AI agents — baseten · 2026-09-11
- No incremental buyers for Anthropic at GS conference, seller reports — thedealdirector · 2026-09-11
- AI Broke Hiring: Elly Launches as First 'AI Recruiter as a Service' — SucceededMind · 2026-09-11
- Tech reporter Alex Heath joins Sound Ventures as investing partner — johncoogan · 2026-09-11