Model Comparison

Claude Sonnet 4 vs Claude 3 Sonnet

Claude Sonnet 4 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Claude Sonnet 4 and Claude 3 Sonnet cost the same.

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Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

1 benchmarks

Claude Sonnet 4 outperforms in 1 benchmarks (GPQA), while Claude 3 Sonnet is better at 0 benchmarks.

Claude Sonnet 4 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Fri May 08 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Pricing Analysis

Price comparison per million tokens

For input processing, Claude Sonnet 4 ($3.00/1M tokens) costs the same as Claude 3 Sonnet ($3.00/1M tokens).

For output processing, Claude Sonnet 4 ($15.00/1M tokens) costs the same as Claude 3 Sonnet ($15.00/1M tokens).

In conclusion, Claude Sonnet 4 and Claude 3 Sonnet cost the same.*

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

Lowest available price from all providers
Fri May 08 2026 • llm-stats.com
Anthropic
Claude Sonnet 4
Input tokens$3.00
Output tokens$15.00
Best providerAnthropic
Anthropic
Claude 3 Sonnet
Input tokens$3.00
Output tokens$15.00
Best providerAnthropic
Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue→

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Both models have the same input context window of 200,000 tokens. Claude 3 Sonnet can generate longer responses up to 200,000 tokens, while Claude Sonnet 4 is limited to 64,000 tokens.

Anthropic
Claude Sonnet 4
Input200,000 tokens
Output64,000 tokens
Anthropic
Claude 3 Sonnet
Input200,000 tokens
Output200,000 tokens
Fri May 08 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Both Claude Sonnet 4 and Claude 3 Sonnet support multimodal inputs.

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

Claude Sonnet 4

Text
Images
Audio
Video

Claude 3 Sonnet

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 Sonnet 4

Proprietary

Closed source

Claude 3 Sonnet

Proprietary

Closed source

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Claude Sonnet 4 was released on 2025-05-22, while Claude 3 Sonnet was released on 2024-02-29.

Claude Sonnet 4 is 15 months newer than Claude 3 Sonnet.

Claude Sonnet 4

May 22, 2025

11 months ago

1.2yr newer
Claude 3 Sonnet

Feb 29, 2024

2.2 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 Sonnet 4 is available from Anthropic, Bedrock, Google. Claude 3 Sonnet is available from Anthropic, Bedrock, Google.

Claude Sonnet 4

anthropic logo
Anthropic
Input Price:Input: $3.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $15.00/1M
bedrock logo
AWS Bedrock
Input Price:Input: $3.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $15.00/1M
google logo
Google
Input Price:Input: $3.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $15.00/1M

Claude 3 Sonnet

anthropic logo
Anthropic
Input Price:Input: $3.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $15.00/1M
bedrock logo
AWS Bedrock
Input Price:Input: $3.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $15.00/1M
google logo
Google
Input Price:Input: $3.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $15.00/1M
* Prices shown are per million tokens

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue discussion→

Key Takeaways

Anthropic
Higher GPQA score (75.4% vs 40.4%)
Anthropic

No standout differentiators in the data we have for this pair.

AnthropicClaude Sonnet 4
AnthropicClaude 3 Sonnet
Compare in Playground

Detailed Comparison

AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
Anthropic
Claude Sonnet 4
Anthropic
Claude 3 Sonnet

FAQ

Common questions about Claude Sonnet 4 vs Claude 3 Sonnet.

Which is better, Claude Sonnet 4 or Claude 3 Sonnet?

Claude Sonnet 4 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Claude Sonnet 4 is made by Anthropic and Claude 3 Sonnet is made by Anthropic. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does Claude Sonnet 4 compare to Claude 3 Sonnet in benchmarks?

Claude Sonnet 4 scores MMMLU: 86.5%, TAU-bench Retail: 80.5%, GPQA: 75.4%, MMMU: 74.4%, SWE-Bench Verified: 72.7%. Claude 3 Sonnet scores ARC-C: 93.2%, GSM8k: 92.3%, HellaSwag: 89.0%, MGSM: 83.5%, BIG-Bench Hard: 82.9%.

Is Claude Sonnet 4 cheaper than Claude 3 Sonnet?

Both models cost $3.00 per million input tokens.

What are the context window sizes for Claude Sonnet 4 and Claude 3 Sonnet?

Claude Sonnet 4 supports 200K tokens and Claude 3 Sonnet supports 200K tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.