Grok 4.5 API Pricing and Cost Estimates
xAI Grok 4.5 API pricing is $2 per 1M input tokens and $6 per 1M output tokens. Cached input is billed at $0.3 per 1M tokens. The context window is 500K tokens. No batch tier is offered. Prices verified 2026-07-27 against the official pricing page.
Input / 1M tokens
$2
Output / 1M tokens
$6
Cached input / 1M
$0.3
Context window
500K
Monthly cost at three workloads
| Workload | Tokens / month | Standard | 50% cache hit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Light (prototype / side project) | 5M in + 1M out | $16.00 | $11.75 |
| Medium (small production app) | 50M in + 10M out | $160 | $118 |
| Heavy (production at scale) | 500M in + 100M out | $1600 | $1175 |
Note: Requests over 200K tokens bill at 2×.
Closest-priced alternatives
| Model | Input / 1M | Output / 1M | Medium workload / mo |
|---|---|---|---|
| xAI Grok 4.5 | $2 | $6 | $160 |
| Google Gemini 3.6 Flash | $1.5 | $7.5 | $150 |
| Anthropic Claude Sonnet 5 | $2 | $10 | $200 |
| Zhipu (z.ai) GLM-5.2 | $1.4 | $4.4 | $114 |
| OpenAI GPT-5.6 luna | $1 | $6 | $110 |
Medium workload = 50M input + 10M output tokens per month at standard price, no caching. Prices verified 2026-07-27.
Calculate with your own volume
LLM API Pricing Calculator
Compare current API prices for Claude, GPT, Gemini, DeepSeek, Kimi, Grok and other LLMs, and estimate your monthly bill from token volume. Includes prompt-caching prices and batch discounts that most comparison tables miss. Prices last verified 2026-07-27. Runs entirely in your browser — no upload, no signup.
Share of input tokens served from prompt cache
| Model | Input $/M | Output $/M | Cached $/M | Context | Est. monthly |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
DeepSeek V4 Flash DeepSeek · open-weight | $0.14 | $0.28 | $0.0028 | 1M | $9.80 |
Gemini 3.1 Flash-Lite | $0.25 | $1.5 | $0.025 | 1M | $27.50 |
DeepSeek V4 Pro DeepSeek · open-weight | $0.435 | $0.87 | $0.003625 | 1M | $30.45 |
GPT-5 mini OpenAI | $0.25 | $2 | $0.025 | 400K | $32.50 |
GLM-5 Zhipu (z.ai) · open-weight | $1 | $3.2 | $0.2 | 200K | $82.00 |
Grok 4.20 xAI | $1.25 | $2.5 | $0.2 | 1M | $87.50 |
Kimi K2.7 Code Moonshot · open-weight | $0.95 | $4 | $0.19 | 262K | $87.50 |
Claude Haiku 4.5 Anthropic | $1 | $5 | $0.1 | 200K | $100 |
GPT-5.6 luna OpenAI | $1 | $6 | $0.1 | 1.05M | $110 |
GLM-5.2 Zhipu (z.ai) · open-weight | $1.4 | $4.4 | $0.26 | 200K | $114 |
Gemini 3.6 Flash | $1.5 | $7.5 | $0.15 | 1M | $150 |
Grok 4.5 xAI | $2 | $6 | $0.3 | 500K | $160 |
Claude Sonnet 5 Anthropic | $2 | $10 | $0.2 | 1M | $200 |
Gemini 3.1 Pro Preview | $2 | $12 | $0.2 | 1M | $220 |
GPT-5.6 terra OpenAI | $2.5 | $15 | $0.25 | 1.05M | $275 |
Kimi K3 Moonshot · open-weight | $3 | $15 | $0.3 | 1.048576M | $300 |
Claude Opus 5 Anthropic | $5 | $25 | $0.5 | 1M | $500 |
GPT-5.6 sol OpenAI | $5 | $30 | $0.5 | 1.05M | $550 |
Claude Fable 5 Anthropic | $10 | $50 | $1 | 1M | $1000 |
Prices are per 1 million tokens in USD, standard (non-batch) tier, verified 2026-07-27 against official pricing pages. Claude Sonnet 5: Intro price through Aug 31, 2026; $3 / $15 after. GPT-5.6 sol: Requests beyond the long-context threshold bill at 2× input / 1.5× output. Gemini 3.1 Pro Preview: Prompts over 200K tokens bill at $4 / $18. Grok 4.5: Requests over 200K tokens bill at 2×. Kimi K3: Always-on reasoning; output includes thinking tokens.
Batch discount is applied only to models whose provider offers an async batch tier. Cached-input pricing models the read price; cache-write surcharges (Anthropic) are not included. Long-context surcharges apply above provider thresholds and are noted per model.
FAQ
How much does the Grok 4.5 API cost?
$2 per 1M input tokens and $6 per 1M output tokens, with cached input at $0.3 per 1M. Note: Requests over 200K tokens bill at 2×. (Verified 2026-07-27.)
What does a month of Grok 4.5 cost in practice?
A medium workload of 50M input + 10M output tokens per month runs about $160/mo, or about $118/mo if half the input hits the prompt cache.
How does prompt caching change Grok 4.5 pricing?
Input tokens served from the prompt cache bill at $0.3 per 1M — about 15% of the standard input price. Repeated prefixes like system prompts and few-shot examples benefit most.
Is Grok 4.5 cheaper than Gemini 3.6 Flash?
At the same medium workload, Grok 4.5 costs about $160/mo versus about $150/mo for Google Gemini 3.6 Flash. Also weigh quality, latency, and context window (500K vs 1M tokens).