Do these 3 things before closing this tab:
1Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsThere is no single cached-token price that makes Anthropic, OpenAI, and Google Gemini directly comparable. Each provider bills cache creation and reuse differently, while model rates, output charges, and—in Gemini’s case—potential storage fees also affect the total. Compare them against the same workload and include actual cache hits, not just the lowest cached-input rate.
What to compare before choosing a provider
A useful comparison starts with a defined workload, not a provider-wide price label. Specify the model and service tier, context length, reusable prompt-prefix size, how often and when requests repeat, and the expected generated output. Also account for any required data-routing or processing tier that affects the rates available to you.
| # | Preview | Product | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
|
AI Pricing @ Work: The Playbook for Pricing Usage-Based AI Products That Make Money on Your Best... | $39.90 | Buy on Amazon |
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
For each option, estimate the full bill:
- Ordinary input tokens that are not served from a cache.
- Cache creation or write charges.
- Cached-token reads, including any cache refreshes.
- Storage charges over the time cached content remains available, if applicable.
- Output tokens.
Use the providers’ current schedules for the chosen models and tiers: Anthropic pricing, OpenAI API pricing, and Gemini Developer API pricing. Their pricing pages organize cache-related charges differently, so a cached-input line by itself is not a complete cost comparison.
How the three caching models affect cost
Anthropic Claude API
Anthropic’s pricing documentation separates ordinary input, cache writes by duration, cache reads or refreshes, and output. The documented rate-card multipliers are relative to the base input price: a 5-minute cache write costs 1.25 times base input, a 1-hour write costs 2 times base input, and a cache read costs 0.1 times base input. These are pricing multipliers, not guarantees of savings for a particular request pattern. The value depends on how often content is reused before it expires and on the remaining input, output, and other charges. See Anthropic’s pricing documentation for current model-specific rates.
#1 Best Overall
OpenAI API
OpenAI publishes model-specific input, cached-input, cache-write, and output rates, with rates that can vary by model and context class. Its prompt caching reuses matching prompt prefixes, but keeping a session open does not guarantee that a request will receive a cache hit. Check usage information to see how many tokens were actually cached, and use that observed behavior in cost estimates. The OpenAI prompt-caching guide explains prefix reuse and usage tracking; current rates are on the OpenAI pricing page.
Google Gemini API
Gemini’s pricing schedule lists context-caching token charges and, for paid-tier entries reviewed, separate storage charges based on tokens and time. The reviewed schedule included an example of $0.50 per million tokens per hour for some paid-tier entries, but other entries have different values or tier terms. Treat that figure only as an example from a tiered schedule, not as a universal Gemini rate; confirm the current model, tier, and applicable terms on Google’s pricing page.
Google documents both implicit caching and usage reporting for cache hits, while explicit caching lets cached content be reused in later requests. Confirm that the selected model supports the caching mode and any size or threshold requirements your workload needs. See Google’s guides to context caching and usage reporting and explicit caching.
Crashes, No Sound, or Screen Glitches?
Random freezes, missing sound and display glitches usually trace back to one bad driver. Find and replace yours safely.Free scan · under a minuteWindows Errors? Fix Them Before They Spread
Repair common Windows errors and clear accumulated junk for a smoother, more stable PC - no reinstall needed.Free scan · no reinstallBuild a workload-level cost estimate
For each provider, calculate costs over the same period and request pattern rather than comparing a single token rate:
- Choose the model and tier. Record the exact model, context class, and service tier, then use that combination’s current published rates.
- Count reusable and non-reusable input separately. Estimate the tokens in the reusable prefix and the tokens that change from request to request.
- Estimate cache creation and retention. Include write or creation charges, and add storage time where the pricing schedule bills it.
- Model cache hits realistically. Use observed cached-token usage if available. If you do not have measurements yet, calculate multiple scenarios rather than assuming every repeat is a hit.
- Add output and ordinary input. Include the full expected generated output and input that is not cached.
- Recheck the official rates before committing. Pricing and model availability change; the provider pages are the source for current model-specific terms.
The official schedules do not establish one universal break-even point. It depends on the write cost, cache lifetime or storage billing, reuse frequency, hit rate, and output volume for the selected models.
Why a cached-token price alone can mislead
A low read rate may be offset by expensive cache creation, short retention, separate storage fees, or a low real hit rate. Conversely, a higher cache-write charge can make sense when a large prefix is reused often enough within its lifetime. The rates are not interchangeable labels: check what each provider includes under cached input, cache writes, cache reads, and storage before drawing a conclusion.
OpenAI explicitly cautions that a matching prefix can be reused but that a session alone does not guarantee a cache hit. Google provides usage reporting for cache hits. For any provider, distinguish the intended cache behavior from the tokens the billing or usage data shows were actually cached.
Recommended Free Tools
Quick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
