GPT-4 vs Phi 4
GPT-4 and Phi 4 are closely matched at 3.3 and 5.7 on the LLM Stats Score. Phi 4 is 428.6x cheaper per token.
OpenAI · Microsoft · Updated for 2026
Which is better?
GPT-4 and Phi 4 are closely matched on the overall LLM Stats Score at 3.3 and 5.7.
In the 6 individual benchmarks reported for both models, Phi 4 wins 4; this is a narrower head-to-head signal than the composite indexes.
On price, Phi 4 is roughly 428.6x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
GPT-4 also accepts a larger context window (32,768 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.
Based on current LLM Stats indexes, shared benchmarks, pricing, and model metadata for 2026.
Choose GPT-4
- you process long inputs — it offers a 32,768 token context window
Choose Phi 4
- you value its reported benchmark strengths — it wins 4 of 6 exact shared results
- cost matters — it's about 428.6x cheaper per token
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Dec 2024
- you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune
At a glance
The differences that matter most.
Capability indexes
Additional strengths measured across groups of related public benchmarks
Individual benchmarks
12 reported for GPT-4 · 13 for Phi 4
GPT-4 outperforms in 2 benchmarks (DROP, MMLU), while Phi 4 is better at 4 benchmarks (GPQA, HumanEval, MATH, MGSM).
Phi 4 shows notably better performance in the majority of benchmarks.
Human preference
Blind head-to-head votes and playground preference scores
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, GPT-4 ($30.00/1M tokens) is 428.6x more expensive than Phi 4 ($0.07/1M tokens).
For output processing, GPT-4 ($60.00/1M tokens) is 428.6x more expensive than Phi 4 ($0.14/1M tokens).
In conclusion, GPT-4 is more expensive than Phi 4.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
GPT-4 accepts 32,768 input tokens compared to Phi 4's 16,000 tokens. GPT-4 can generate longer responses up to 32,768 tokens, while Phi 4 is limited to 16,000 tokens.
Input capabilities
Documented input modalities across available providers
GPT-4 supports multimodal inputs, whereas Phi 4 does not.
GPT-4 can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.
GPT-4
Phi 4
License
Usage and distribution terms
GPT-4 is licensed under a proprietary license, while Phi 4 uses MIT.
License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.
Proprietary
Closed source
MIT
Open weights
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
GPT-4 was released on 2023-06-13, while Phi 4 was released on 2024-12-12.
Phi 4 is 18 months newer than GPT-4.
Jun 13, 2023
3.2 years ago
Dec 12, 2024
1.7 years ago
1.5yr newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
GPT-4 has a knowledge cutoff of 2022-12-31, while Phi 4 has a cutoff of 2024-06-01.
Phi 4 has more recent training data (up to 2024-06-01), making it potentially better informed about events through that date compared to GPT-4 (2022-12-31).
Dec 2022
Jun 2024
1.5 yr newerProvider Availability
GPT-4 is available from Azure, OpenAI. Phi 4 is available from DeepInfra.
GPT-4
Phi 4
Outputs Comparison
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against GPT-4 and Phi 4 side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
FAQ
Common questions about GPT-4 vs Phi 4.