Model Comparison

Claude Opus 4.6 vs Nova LiteWhich is better in 2026?

Claude Opus 4.6 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Nova Lite is 95.2x cheaper per token.

Verdict: Claude Opus 4.6 vs Nova Lite — which is better?

Claude Opus 4.6 (by Anthropic) and Nova Lite (by Amazon) are two of the AI models people compare most. Here is how they stack up on benchmarks, price and capabilities, and which one to pick in 2026.

Claude Opus 4.6 outperforms in 1 benchmarks (GPQA), while Nova Lite is better at 0 benchmarks. Claude Opus 4.6 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

On price, Nova Lite is roughly 95.2x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.

Claude Opus 4.6 also accepts a larger context window (1,000,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.

Choose Claude Opus 4.6 if…

  • you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 1 of 1 shared benchmarks
  • you process long inputs — it offers a 1,000,000 token context window
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Feb 2026

Choose Nova Lite if…

  • cost matters — it's about 95.2x cheaper per token
Want to compare interactively?Try the playground

Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

1 benchmarks

Claude Opus 4.6 outperforms in 1 benchmarks (GPQA), while Nova Lite is better at 0 benchmarks.

Claude Opus 4.6 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Sun Jun 07 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Pricing Analysis

Price comparison per million tokens

Nova Lite costs less

For input processing, Claude Opus 4.6 ($5.00/1M tokens) is 83.3x more expensive than Nova Lite ($0.06/1M tokens).

For output processing, Claude Opus 4.6 ($25.00/1M tokens) is 104.2x more expensive than Nova Lite ($0.24/1M tokens).

In conclusion, Claude Opus 4.6 is more expensive than Nova Lite.*

* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens

Lowest available price from all providers
Sun Jun 07 2026 • llm-stats.com
Anthropic
Claude Opus 4.6
Input tokens$5.00
Output tokens$25.00
Best providerAnthropic
Amazon
Nova Lite
Input tokens$0.06
Output tokens$0.24
Best providerAWS Bedrock
Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue→

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Claude Opus 4.6 accepts 1,000,000 input tokens compared to Nova Lite's 300,000 tokens. Claude Opus 4.6 can generate longer responses up to 128,000 tokens, while Nova Lite is limited to 2,048 tokens.

Anthropic
Claude Opus 4.6
Input1,000,000 tokens
Output128,000 tokens
Amazon
Nova Lite
Input300,000 tokens
Output2,048 tokens
Sun Jun 07 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Both Claude Opus 4.6 and Nova Lite support multimodal inputs.

They are both capable of processing various types of data, offering versatility in application.

Claude Opus 4.6

Text
Images
Audio
Video

Nova Lite

Text
Images
Audio
Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

Both models are licensed under proprietary licenses.

Both models have usage restrictions defined by their respective organizations.

Claude Opus 4.6

Proprietary

Closed source

Nova Lite

Proprietary

Closed source

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Claude Opus 4.6 was released on 2026-02-05, while Nova Lite was released on 2024-11-20.

Claude Opus 4.6 is 15 months newer than Nova Lite.

Claude Opus 4.6

Feb 5, 2026

4 months ago

1.2yr newer
Nova Lite

Nov 20, 2024

1.5 years ago

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

Neither model specifies a knowledge cutoff date.

Unable to compare the recency of their training data.

No cutoff dates available

Provider Availability

Claude Opus 4.6 is available from Anthropic. Nova Lite is available from Bedrock.

Claude Opus 4.6

anthropic logo
Anthropic
Input Price:Input: $5.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $25.00/1M

Nova Lite

bedrock logo
AWS Bedrock
Input Price:Input: $0.06/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.24/1M
* Prices shown are per million tokens

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue discussion→

Key Takeaways

Anthropic
Larger context window (1,000,000 tokens)
Higher GPQA score (91.3% vs 42.0%)
Amazon
Less expensive input tokens
Less expensive output tokens

Detailed Comparison

AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
Anthropic
Claude Opus 4.6
Amazon
Nova Lite

FAQ

Common questions about Claude Opus 4.6 vs Nova Lite.

Which is better, Claude Opus 4.6 or Nova Lite?

Claude Opus 4.6 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Claude Opus 4.6 is made by Anthropic and Nova Lite is made by Amazon. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does Claude Opus 4.6 compare to Nova Lite in benchmarks?

Claude Opus 4.6 scores Vending-Bench 2: 100.0%, AIME 2025: 99.8%, Tau2 Telecom: 99.3%, Graphwalks parents >128k: 95.4%, MRCR v2 (8-needle): 93.0%. Nova Lite scores GSM8k: 94.5%, ARC-C: 92.4%, DocVQA: 92.4%, IFEval: 89.7%, Translation en→Set1 COMET22: 88.8%.

Is Claude Opus 4.6 cheaper than Nova Lite?

Nova Lite is 83.3x cheaper for input tokens. Claude Opus 4.6 costs $5.00/M input and $25.00/M output via anthropic. Nova Lite costs $0.06/M input and $0.24/M output via bedrock.

What are the context window sizes for Claude Opus 4.6 and Nova Lite?

Claude Opus 4.6 supports 1.0M tokens and Nova Lite supports 300K tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.

What are the main differences between Claude Opus 4.6 and Nova Lite?

Key differences include context window (1.0M vs 300K), input pricing ($5.00 vs $0.06/M). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes Claude Opus 4.6 and Nova Lite?

Claude Opus 4.6 is developed by Anthropic and Nova Lite is developed by Amazon.

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