GPT-4.1 vs Llama 4 405B
A complete head-to-head: pricing, context window, benchmarks, modality coverage, and openness, with a programmatic verdict synthesized from the underlying data.
Updated
GPT-4.1 specs · Llama 4 405B specs- PriceGPT-4.1
GPT-4.1 publishes pricing ($8.00 / 1M output tokens) while Llama 4 405B does not.
- Context windowGPT-4.1
GPT-4.1 accepts 1M tokens vs 256K, 3.9× 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.
- ModalitiesTie
Both handle text, vision.
- OpennessLlama 4 405B
Llama 4 405B ships open weights (Llama 4 Community License); GPT-4.1 is API-only.
On balance GPT-4.1 edges ahead, winning 2 of 5 categories against Llama 4 405B's 1. GPT-4.1 publishes pricing ($8.00 / 1M output tokens) while Llama 4 405B does not. GPT-4.1 accepts 1M tokens vs 256K, 3.9× the room for long documents and codebases.
No directly comparable public benchmarks are available for both models, check the spec sheets for individual scores. Both target the same set of modalities (text, vision), so the deciding factors are price, context, and raw quality. Llama 4 405B ships open weights (Llama 4 Community License); GPT-4.1 is API-only.
Both shipped within roughly a month of each other in 2025, so they share the same generation of training data and tooling. GPT-4.1 is usually picked for long context and rag workloads, while Llama 4 405B sees more deployments in open source llm and fine tuning. If pricing matters more than every last benchmark point, run the numbers in the calculator below before committing.
Side-by-side specs
| Spec | GPT-4.1 | Llama 4 405B |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | OpenAI | Meta |
| Released | Apr 2025 | Apr 2025 |
| Modalities | text, vision | text, vision |
| Context window | 1M tokens | 256K tokens |
| Max output | 32.8K tokens | , |
| Input · 1M | $2.00 / 1M tokens | Pricing not published |
| Output · 1M | $8.00 / 1M tokens | Pricing not published |
| Knowledge cutoff | 2024-06 | 2024-12 |
| Open weights | No | Yes (Llama 4 Community License) |
| 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$18.00 vs ,
- Heavy usage, 1M in / 500k out per day$180 vs ,
- RAG workload, 5M in / 200k out per day$348 vs ,
Light usage, 100k in / 50k out per day: pricing not directly comparable (one or both models are missing public per-token rates). Heavy usage, 1M in / 500k out per day: pricing not directly comparable (one or both models are missing public per-token rates). RAG workload, 5M in / 200k out per day: pricing not directly comparable (one or both models are missing public per-token rates).
Estimated spend for the listed models at your usage. Numbers are derived from each model's published per-million-token rates.
- GPT-4.1$0.600
- Llama 4 405BPricing unavailable
Benchmarks compared
Only sourced numbers. Where a benchmark is missing for one model we show the available value rather than fabricating the other.
- MMLU86.2
- HumanEval90.6
GPT-4.1 fits when…
- 1M-token context window, strong for long-doc workloads
- Mature SDK and tooling integrations
- Reliable JSON-mode and function-calling
- Long-context tasks, handles 1M tokens vs 256K for Llama 4 405B.
Llama 4 405B fits when…
- Strongest open-weight model at launch
- Multimodal (text + vision)
- Wide hosting availability
- Self-hosting and on-prem requirements, open weights (Llama 4 Community License).
Consider GPT-5.5
OpenAI's mid-cycle GPT-5 refresh, improved reasoning, tool use, and multimodal grounding over the 2025 launch.
Frequently asked
Is GPT-4.1 or Llama 4 405B cheaper?
Per-token pricing isn't published for at least one of these models, check each model's spec page for current rates.Which has the larger context window?
GPT-4.1 accepts 1M tokens vs 256K for Llama 4 405B.Is GPT-4.1 or Llama 4 405B better for coding?
Both GPT-4.1 and Llama 4 405B 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?
Llama 4 405B ships open weights (Llama 4 Community License). GPT-4.1 is API-only.When were GPT-4.1 and Llama 4 405B released?
GPT-4.1 was released by OpenAI on 2025-04-14. Llama 4 405B was released by Meta on 2025-04-05.
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