Model Comparison
o1 vs GPT-4Which is better in 2026?
o1 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. o1 is 1.4x cheaper per token.
Verdict: o1 vs GPT-4 — which is better?
o1 (by OpenAI) and GPT-4 (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.
o1 outperforms in 5 benchmarks (GPQA, HumanEval, MATH, MGSM, MMLU), while GPT-4 is better at 0 benchmarks. o1 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
On price, o1 is roughly 1.4x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
o1 also accepts a larger context window (200,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.
Choose o1 if…
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 5 of 5 shared benchmarks
- cost matters — it's about 1.4x cheaper per token
- you process long inputs — it offers a 200,000 token context window
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Dec 2024
Choose GPT-4 if…
- you want predictable pricing at $30.00/M input and $60.00/M output
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
o1 outperforms in 5 benchmarks (GPQA, HumanEval, MATH, MGSM, MMLU), while GPT-4 is better at 0 benchmarks.
o1 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Human preference votes
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, o1 ($15.00/1M tokens) is 2.0x cheaper than GPT-4 ($30.00/1M tokens).
For output processing, o1 ($60.00/1M tokens) costs the same as GPT-4 ($60.00/1M tokens).
In conclusion, GPT-4 is more expensive than o1.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
o1 accepts 200,000 input tokens compared to GPT-4's 32,768 tokens. o1 can generate longer responses up to 100,000 tokens, while GPT-4 is limited to 32,768 tokens.
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
GPT-4 supports multimodal inputs, whereas o1 does not.
GPT-4 can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.
o1
GPT-4
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
o1 was released on 2024-12-17, while GPT-4 was released on 2023-06-13.
o1 is 18 months newer than GPT-4.
Dec 17, 2024
1.5 years ago
1.5yr newerJun 13, 2023
3.0 years ago
Knowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
GPT-4 has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2022-12-31, while o1's cutoff date is not specified.
We can confirm GPT-4's training data extends to 2022-12-31, but cannot make a direct comparison without o1's cutoff date.
—
Dec 2022
Provider Availability
o1 is available from Azure, OpenAI. GPT-4 is available from Azure, OpenAI.
o1
GPT-4
Outputs Comparison
Key Takeaways
o1
View detailsOpenAI
GPT-4
View detailsOpenAI
Detailed Comparison
FAQ
Common questions about o1 vs GPT-4.