GPT-5 mini vs Amazon Nova Micro
A complete head-to-head: pricing, context window, benchmarks, modality coverage, and openness, with a programmatic verdict synthesized from the underlying data.
Updated
GPT-5 mini specs · Amazon Nova Micro specs- PriceAmazon Nova Micro
Amazon Nova Micro is roughly 14.3× cheaper on output tokens ($0.14 vs $2.00 per 1M).
- Context windowGPT-5 mini
GPT-5 mini 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 mini
GPT-5 mini supports 3 modalities (text, vision, audio) vs 1 for Amazon Nova Micro.
- OpennessTie
Both are closed-weight, API-only.
On balance GPT-5 mini edges ahead, winning 2 of 5 categories against Amazon Nova Micro's 1. Amazon Nova Micro is roughly 14.3× cheaper on output tokens ($0.14 vs $2.00 per 1M). GPT-5 mini 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, GPT-5 mini handles text, vision, audio while Amazon Nova Micro handles text, which can be the deciding factor before you even look at benchmarks. Both are closed-weight, API-only.
GPT-5 mini is the newer of the two, released 8 months after Amazon Nova Micro, which usually means a more recent knowledge cutoff and updated safety post-training. GPT-5 mini is usually picked for code completion and customer support workloads, while Amazon Nova Micro 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 | GPT-5 mini | Amazon Nova Micro |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | OpenAI | Other |
| Released | Aug 2025 | Dec 2024 |
| Modalities | text, vision, audio | text |
| Context window | 400K tokens | 128K tokens |
| Max output | 128K tokens | , |
| Input · 1M | $0.25 / 1M tokens | $0.035 / 1M tokens |
| Output · 1M | $2.00 / 1M tokens | $0.14 / 1M tokens |
| Knowledge cutoff | 2024-09 | , |
| Open weights | No | 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 $0.315
- Heavy usage, 1M in / 500k out per day$37.50 vs $3.15
- RAG workload, 5M in / 200k out per day$49.50 vs $6.09
Light usage, 100k in / 50k out per day: $3.75 vs $0.315 per month, model B comes out ahead. Heavy usage, 1M in / 500k out per day: $37.50 vs $3.15 per month, model B comes out ahead. RAG workload, 5M in / 200k out per day: $49.50 vs $6.09 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.
- GPT-5 mini$0.125
- Amazon Nova Micro$0.011
Benchmarks compared
Only sourced numbers. Where a benchmark is missing for one model we show the available value rather than fabricating the other.
GPT-5 mini fits when…
- Excellent price-quality ratio for production workloads
- Fast first-token latency
- Same tool-use API surface as flagship
- Long-context tasks, handles 400K tokens vs 128K for Amazon Nova Micro.
- Multimodal needs covering vision, audio.
Amazon Nova Micro fits when…
- Lowest-cost frontier-lab model
- Native AWS integration
- Generous 128k context for the price tier
- Cost-sensitive workloads, 14.3× cheaper than GPT-5 mini on output tokens.
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-5 mini or Amazon Nova Micro cheaper?
Amazon Nova Micro is cheaper at $0.14 / 1M tokens per million output tokens, vs $2.00 / 1M tokens for GPT-5 mini.Which has the larger context window?
GPT-5 mini accepts 400K tokens vs 128K for Amazon Nova Micro.Is GPT-5 mini or Amazon Nova Micro better for coding?
Both GPT-5 mini and Amazon Nova Micro 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?
Neither model ships open weights, both are accessible only via their respective providers' APIs.When were GPT-5 mini and Amazon Nova Micro released?
GPT-5 mini was released by OpenAI on 2025-08-07. Amazon Nova Micro was released by Other on 2024-12-03.
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