Command R vs GPT-5 nano
A complete head-to-head: pricing, context window, benchmarks, modality coverage, and openness, with a programmatic verdict synthesized from the underlying data.
Updated
Command R specs · GPT-5 nano specs- PriceGPT-5 nano
GPT-5 nano is roughly 3.8× cheaper on output tokens ($0.40 vs $1.50 per 1M).
- Context windowGPT-5 nano
GPT-5 nano accepts 400K tokens vs 128K, 3.1× the room for long documents and codebases.
- BenchmarksTie
No directly comparable public benchmarks are available for both models, check the spec sheets for individual scores.
- ModalitiesGPT-5 nano
GPT-5 nano supports 2 modalities (text, vision) vs 1 for Command R.
- OpennessCommand R
Command R ships open weights (CC-BY-NC 4.0); GPT-5 nano is API-only.
On balance GPT-5 nano edges ahead, winning 3 of 5 categories against Command R's 1. GPT-5 nano is roughly 3.8× cheaper on output tokens ($0.40 vs $1.50 per 1M). GPT-5 nano accepts 400K tokens vs 128K, 3.1× the room for long documents and codebases.
No directly comparable public benchmarks are available for both models, check the spec sheets for individual scores. They differ in modality coverage, Command R handles text while GPT-5 nano handles text, vision, which can be the deciding factor before you even look at benchmarks. Command R ships open weights (CC-BY-NC 4.0); GPT-5 nano is API-only.
GPT-5 nano is the newer of the two, released 17 months after Command R, which usually means a more recent knowledge cutoff and updated safety post-training. Command R is usually picked for rag and customer support workloads, while GPT-5 nano sees more deployments in cheapest llm and fastest llm. If pricing matters more than every last benchmark point, run the numbers in the calculator below before committing.
Side-by-side specs
| Spec | Command R | GPT-5 nano |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | Cohere | OpenAI |
| Released | Mar 2024 | Aug 2025 |
| Modalities | text | text, vision |
| Context window | 128K tokens | 400K tokens |
| Max output | , | 128K tokens |
| Input · 1M | $0.50 / 1M tokens | $0.050 / 1M tokens |
| Output · 1M | $1.50 / 1M tokens | $0.40 / 1M tokens |
| Knowledge cutoff | , | 2024-09 |
| Open weights | Yes (CC-BY-NC 4.0) | No |
| API available | Yes | Yes |
Pricing at scale
What you'd actually pay at typical workloads. Numbers come from each model's published per-million-token rates.
- Light usage, 100k in / 50k out per day$3.75 vs $0.750
- Heavy usage, 1M in / 500k out per day$37.50 vs $7.50
- RAG workload, 5M in / 200k out per day$84.00 vs $9.90
Light usage, 100k in / 50k out per day: $3.75 vs $0.750 per month, model B comes out ahead. Heavy usage, 1M in / 500k out per day: $37.50 vs $7.50 per month, model B comes out ahead. RAG workload, 5M in / 200k out per day: $84.00 vs $9.90 per month, model B comes out ahead.
Estimated spend for the listed models at your usage. Numbers are derived from each model's published per-million-token rates.
- Command R$0.125
- GPT-5 nano$0.025
Benchmarks compared
Only sourced numbers. Where a benchmark is missing for one model we show the available value rather than fabricating the other.
Command R fits when…
- Cheap RAG
- Reliable tool-use
- Self-hosting and on-prem requirements, open weights (CC-BY-NC 4.0).
GPT-5 nano fits when…
- Lowest-cost OpenAI model with vision support
- Fast P99 latency
- Good enough for routing and classification
- Cost-sensitive workloads, 3.8× cheaper than Command R on output tokens.
- Long-context tasks, handles 400K tokens vs 128K for Command R.
Consider Command R+ (08-2024)
Cohere's flagship optimized for RAG and tool use in enterprise settings.
Frequently asked
Is Command R or GPT-5 nano cheaper?
GPT-5 nano is cheaper at $0.40 / 1M tokens per million output tokens, vs $1.50 / 1M tokens for Command R.Which has the larger context window?
GPT-5 nano accepts 400K tokens vs 128K for Command R.Is Command R or GPT-5 nano better for coding?
Both Command R and GPT-5 nano are competitive on coding benchmarks. See each model's individual spec page for HumanEval and SWE-bench scores where published. For an opinionated pick, consult our Best LLM for Coding ranking.Are either of these models open source?
Command R ships open weights (CC-BY-NC 4.0). GPT-5 nano is API-only.When were Command R and GPT-5 nano released?
Command R was released by Cohere on 2024-03-11. GPT-5 nano was released by OpenAI on 2025-08-07.
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