Model Comparison
GPT-3.5 Turbo vs o4-miniWhich is better in 2026?
o4-mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. GPT-3.5 Turbo is 2.6x cheaper per token.
Verdict: GPT-3.5 Turbo vs o4-mini — which is better?
GPT-3.5 Turbo (by OpenAI) and o4-mini (by OpenAI) 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.
GPT-3.5 Turbo outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while o4-mini is better at 3 benchmarks (GPQA, MathVista, MMMU). o4-mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
On price, GPT-3.5 Turbo is roughly 2.6x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
o4-mini also accepts a larger context window (200,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.
Choose GPT-3.5 Turbo if…
- cost matters — it's about 2.6x cheaper per token
Choose o4-mini if…
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 3 of 3 shared benchmarks
- you process long inputs — it offers a 200,000 token context window
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Apr 2025
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
GPT-3.5 Turbo outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while o4-mini is better at 3 benchmarks (GPQA, MathVista, MMMU).
o4-mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Human preference votes
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, GPT-3.5 Turbo ($0.50/1M tokens) is 2.2x cheaper than o4-mini ($1.10/1M tokens).
For output processing, GPT-3.5 Turbo ($1.50/1M tokens) is 2.9x cheaper than o4-mini ($4.40/1M tokens).
In conclusion, o4-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
o4-mini accepts 200,000 input tokens compared to GPT-3.5 Turbo's 16,385 tokens. o4-mini can generate longer responses up to 100,000 tokens, while GPT-3.5 Turbo is limited to 4,096 tokens.
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
o4-mini supports multimodal inputs, whereas GPT-3.5 Turbo does not.
o4-mini can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.
GPT-3.5 Turbo
o4-mini
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 o4-mini was released on 2025-04-16.
o4-mini is 25 months newer than GPT-3.5 Turbo.
Mar 21, 2023
3.3 years ago
Apr 16, 2025
1.2 years ago
2.1yr newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
GPT-3.5 Turbo has a knowledge cutoff of 2021-09-30, while o4-mini has a cutoff of 2024-05-31.
o4-mini has more recent training data (up to 2024-05-31), making it potentially better informed about events through that date compared to GPT-3.5 Turbo (2021-09-30).
Sep 2021
May 2024
2.7 yr newerProvider Availability
GPT-3.5 Turbo is available from Azure, OpenAI. o4-mini is available from OpenAI.
GPT-3.5 Turbo
o4-mini
Outputs Comparison
Key Takeaways
o4-mini
View detailsOpenAI
GPT-3.5 Turboo4-miniDetailed Comparison
Interactive Arena
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against GPT-3.5 Turbo and o4-mini side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
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FAQ
Common questions about GPT-3.5 Turbo vs o4-mini.