GPT-3.5 Turbo vs o1-mini
o1-mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. GPT-3.5 Turbo is 7.0x cheaper per token.
OpenAI · OpenAI · Updated for 2026
Which is better?
GPT-3.5 Turbo outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while o1-mini is better at 3 benchmarks (GPQA, HumanEval, MMLU). o1-mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
On price, GPT-3.5 Turbo is roughly 7.0x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
o1-mini also accepts a larger context window (128,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.
Based on current benchmark, pricing, and model metadata for 2026.
Choose GPT-3.5 Turbo
- cost matters — it's about 7.0x cheaper per token
Choose o1-mini
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 3 of 3 shared benchmarks
- you process long inputs — it offers a 128,000 token context window
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Sep 2024
At a glance
The differences that matter most.
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
GPT-3.5 Turbo outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while o1-mini is better at 3 benchmarks (GPQA, HumanEval, MMLU).
o1-mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Playground indexes and blind preference scores
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, GPT-3.5 Turbo ($0.50/1M tokens) is 6.0x cheaper than o1-mini ($3.00/1M tokens).
For output processing, GPT-3.5 Turbo ($1.50/1M tokens) is 8.0x cheaper than o1-mini ($12.00/1M tokens).
In conclusion, o1-mini is more expensive than GPT-3.5 Turbo.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
o1-mini accepts 128,000 input tokens compared to GPT-3.5 Turbo's 16,385 tokens. o1-mini can generate longer responses up to 65,536 tokens, while GPT-3.5 Turbo is limited to 4,096 tokens.
License
Usage and distribution terms
Both models are licensed under proprietary licenses.
Both models have usage restrictions defined by their respective organizations.
Proprietary
Closed source
Proprietary
Closed source
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
GPT-3.5 Turbo was released on 2023-03-21, while o1-mini was released on 2024-09-12.
o1-mini is 18 months newer than GPT-3.5 Turbo.
Mar 21, 2023
3.4 years ago
Sep 12, 2024
2.0 years ago
1.5yr newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
GPT-3.5 Turbo has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2021-09-30, while o1-mini's cutoff date is not specified.
We can confirm GPT-3.5 Turbo's training data extends to 2021-09-30, but cannot make a direct comparison without o1-mini's cutoff date.
Sep 2021
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Provider Availability
GPT-3.5 Turbo is available from Azure, OpenAI. o1-mini is available from OpenAI, Azure.
GPT-3.5 Turbo
o1-mini
Outputs Comparison
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against GPT-3.5 Turbo and o1-mini side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
FAQ
Common questions about GPT-3.5 Turbo vs o1-mini.