Model Comparison

Nova Lite vs o4-miniWhich is better in 2026?

o4-mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Nova Lite is 18.3x cheaper per token.

Verdict: Nova Lite vs o4-mini — which is better?

Nova Lite (by Amazon) 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.

Nova Lite outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while o4-mini is better at 2 benchmarks (GPQA, MMMU). o4-mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

On price, Nova Lite is roughly 18.3x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.

Nova Lite also accepts a larger context window (300,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.

Choose Nova Lite if…

  • cost matters — it's about 18.3x cheaper per token
  • you process long inputs — it offers a 300,000 token context window

Choose o4-mini if…

  • you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 2 of 2 shared benchmarks
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Apr 2025

Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

2 benchmarks

Nova Lite outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while o4-mini is better at 2 benchmarks (GPQA, MMMU).

o4-mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Tue Jul 28 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Pricing Analysis

Price comparison per million tokens

Nova Lite costs less

For input processing, Nova Lite ($0.06/1M tokens) is 18.3x cheaper than o4-mini ($1.10/1M tokens).

For output processing, Nova Lite ($0.24/1M tokens) is 18.3x cheaper than o4-mini ($4.40/1M tokens).

In conclusion, o4-mini is more expensive than Nova Lite.*

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

Lowest available price from all providers
Tue Jul 28 2026 • llm-stats.com
Amazon
Nova Lite
Input tokens$0.06
Output tokens$0.24
Best providerAWS Bedrock
OpenAI
o4-mini
Input tokens$1.10
Output tokens$4.40
Best providerOpenAI
Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue→

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Nova Lite accepts 300,000 input tokens compared to o4-mini's 200,000 tokens. o4-mini can generate longer responses up to 100,000 tokens, while Nova Lite is limited to 2,048 tokens.

Amazon
Nova Lite
Input300,000 tokens
Output2,048 tokens
OpenAI
o4-mini
Input200,000 tokens
Output100,000 tokens
Tue Jul 28 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Both Nova Lite and o4-mini support multimodal inputs.

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

Nova Lite

Text
Images
Audio
Video

o4-mini

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.

Nova Lite

Proprietary

Closed source

o4-mini

Proprietary

Closed source

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Nova Lite was released on 2024-11-20, while o4-mini was released on 2025-04-16.

o4-mini is 5 months newer than Nova Lite.

Nova Lite

Nov 20, 2024

1.7 years ago

o4-mini

Apr 16, 2025

1.3 years ago

4mo newer

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

o4-mini has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2024-05-31, while Nova Lite's cutoff date is not specified.

We can confirm o4-mini's training data extends to 2024-05-31, but cannot make a direct comparison without Nova Lite's cutoff date.

Nova Lite

—

o4-mini

May 2024

Provider Availability

Nova Lite is available from Bedrock. o4-mini is available from OpenAI.

Nova Lite

bedrock logo
AWS Bedrock
Input Price:Input: $0.06/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.24/1M

o4-mini

openai logo
OpenAI
Input Price:Input: $1.10/1MOutput Price:Output: $4.40/1M
* Prices shown are per million tokens

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue discussion→

Key Takeaways

Amazon
Larger context window (300,000 tokens)
Less expensive input tokens
Less expensive output tokens
OpenAI
Higher GPQA score (81.4% vs 42.0%)
Higher MMMU score (81.6% vs 56.2%)
AmazonNova Lite
OpenAIo4-mini
Compare in Playground

Detailed Comparison

Interactive Arena

Judge for yourself.

Run your own prompts against Nova Lite and o4-mini side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.

Nova Lite
✓ Preferred
o4-mini
Open in Playground
AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
Amazon
Nova Lite
OpenAI
o4-mini

FAQ

Common questions about Nova Lite vs o4-mini.

Which is better, Nova Lite or o4-mini?

o4-mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Nova Lite is made by Amazon and o4-mini is made by OpenAI. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does Nova Lite compare to o4-mini in benchmarks?

Nova Lite scores GSM8k: 94.5%, ARC-C: 92.4%, DocVQA: 92.4%, IFEval: 89.7%, Translation en→Set1 COMET22: 88.8%. o4-mini scores AIME 2024: 93.4%, AIME 2025: 92.7%, MathVista: 84.3%, MMMU: 81.6%, GPQA: 81.4%.

Is Nova Lite cheaper than o4-mini?

Nova Lite is 18.3x cheaper for input tokens. Nova Lite costs $0.06/M input and $0.24/M output via bedrock. o4-mini costs $1.10/M input and $4.40/M output via openai.

What are the context window sizes for Nova Lite and o4-mini?

Nova Lite supports 300K tokens and o4-mini supports 200K tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.

What are the main differences between Nova Lite and o4-mini?

Key differences include context window (300K vs 200K), input pricing ($0.06 vs $1.10/M). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes Nova Lite and o4-mini?

Nova Lite is developed by Amazon and o4-mini is developed by OpenAI.

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