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Negotiation-ready benchmarks

AI API cost optimisation & capacity planner

Model true runtime spend across leading AI API providers. Layer in cache hit rates, evaluation workloads, SLA uplifts, and support plans so procurement, finance, and engineering agree on the real budget envelope before contract negotiations.

Negotiated monthly cost

$1,732

Monthly savings unlock

$0.00

Tokens processed / month

12,936,000

Confidence quick scan

Strict residency with Schrems II safeguards. Negotiated discount factor locked at 29.0% total.

Demand modelling inputs

Customer-facing conversational AI

Token overrides

Set blank to fall back to pattern benchmarks.

Dynamic workload modifiers

Cache hit rate18%
Evaluation workload12%
Burst concurrency80 req/sec

Region, SLA & negotiation levers

Strict residency with Schrems II safeguards.

Business support with enhanced incident response.

Average for late-stage enterprise deals: 18-32%.

Adds predictable premium support across providers.

Providers to compare

Provider comparison summary

Showing 3 provider(s) from your selection.

Google's AI platform with Gemini models and extensive cloud integration

Google AI

ModelMonthly costNegotiated costPer interactionContext
Gemini 1.5 Pro

text · Massive context window · Multimodal

$96.26$68.34$0.002,000,000
Gemini 1.5 FlashCheapest

text · Fast inference · Large context

$2.51$1.78$0.001,000,000
Gemini 1.0 Pro

text · Balanced performance · Standard features

$13.75$9.76$0.0030,720

Run-rate incl. buffers

$1,732

Support & success

$1,400

Annualised cost

$20,781

Why teams pick this vendor

  • Largest context windows available
  • Strong multimodal capabilities
  • Competitive pricing for Flash model

Watch outs

  • Newer models with less proven track record
  • Complex pricing structure

Compliance snapshot

Support level: Community + Google Cloud Support. Data policy: Configurable, no training by default. Minimum commitment: None (pay-as-you-go).

Leading AI API provider with GPT models and comprehensive ecosystem

OpenAI

ModelMonthly costNegotiated costPer interactionContext
GPT-4o

text · Function calling · Vision

$83.57$59.34$0.00128,000
GPT-4o miniCheapest

text · Function calling · Vision

$5.01$3.56$0.00128,000
GPT-3.5 Turbo

text · Function calling · JSON mode

$13.75$9.76$0.0016,385

Run-rate incl. buffers

$1,734

Support & success

$1,400

Annualised cost

$20,803

Why teams pick this vendor

  • Industry-leading model performance
  • Extensive documentation and community
  • Reliable API with high uptime

Watch outs

  • Higher pricing for premium models
  • Rate limits can be restrictive for new accounts

Compliance snapshot

Support level: Community + Paid tiers. Data policy: 30 days (API), zero data retention available. Minimum commitment: None.

AI safety-focused company with Claude models known for helpful, harmless, and honest AI

Anthropic

ModelMonthly costNegotiated costPer interactionContext
Claude 3.5 Sonnet

text · Large context window · Advanced reasoning

$118.07$83.83$0.00200,000
Claude 3 HaikuCheapest

text · Fast responses · Large context window

$9.84$6.99$0.00200,000
Claude 3 Opus

text · Highest intelligence · Complex reasoning

$590.33$419.14$0.02200,000

Run-rate incl. buffers

$1,737

Support & success

$1,400

Annualised cost

$20,844

Why teams pick this vendor

  • Exceptional reasoning and analysis
  • Large context windows across all models
  • Strong safety and alignment focus

Watch outs

  • Higher pricing for top-tier models
  • Smaller model selection compared to competitors

Compliance snapshot

Support level: Email + Enterprise tiers. Data policy: No training on customer data. Minimum commitment: None.

Team alignment checkpoints

  • Finance: validate discount ladder against 12-month commitment bands.
  • Engineering: confirm cache strategy can sustain 18% hit rate.
  • Security: document residency requirements for EU (GDPR aligned) workloads.

Optimisation quick wins

  • Route evaluation runs to discounted regions while production stays eu (gdpr aligned).
  • Deploy prompt caching for long-tail intents to lift hit-rate beyond 18%.
  • Blend fast + economised models per request complexity to trim per-interaction cost.

Scale considerations

  • Introduce shadow routing to a secondary provider before usage exceeds 70% of agreed burst capacity.
  • Track total tokens (12,936,000) against roadmap growth scenarios quarterly.
  • Negotiate evaluation credits separately so experimentation budget remains protected.

Disclaimer

Pricing is derived from publicly listed rates and practitioner interviews as of Q2 2025. Actual commercial terms depend on committed usage, compliance requirements, and provider negotiations. Validate financial assumptions with your procurement and legal teams before executing agreements. Affiliate links may appear on this page—see our affiliate disclosure for details.