Premium models are not the default lane. They are escalation tools for work where a better answer is worth more than the API bill.
The current ladder: use Sonnet 5 for daily Claude production, Opus 5 for consequential premium Claude work, and the generally available GPT-5.6 tier that fits OpenAI-native workloads. Fable 5 subscription use is now through usage credits; Mythos 5 remains approved-access only.
For the dated return analysis, read /posts/fable-5-returns-claude-sonnet-5/. For the deeper Fable-specific buying guide, read /posts/claude-fable-5-mythos-5-cost-guardrails/.
Quick Comparison
Prices are per 1 million tokens.
| Model | Input | Output | Batch input/output | Context | Best use |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Fable 5 | $10 | $50 | $5 / $25 | 1M | Restored premium escalation; not a default lane |
| Claude Opus 5 | $5 | $25 | $2.50 / $12.50 | 1M | Current premium Claude baseline; tune effort |
| GPT-5.6 Sol | $5 | $30 | $2.50 / $15 | 1.05M | Flagship OpenAI tier |
| GPT-5.6 Terra | $2 | $12 | $1 / $6 | 1.05M | Balanced OpenAI tier |
| GPT-5.6 Luna | $0.20 | $1.20 | $0.10 / $0.60 | 1.05M | High-volume OpenAI tier |
| Claude Sonnet 5 | $2 intro; $3 standard | $10 intro; $15 standard | verify current pricing docs | 1M | First Claude cost/performance test; intro ends Aug 31 |
| GPT-5.5 standard, short context | $5 | $30 | $2.50 / $15 | short-context lane | OpenAI-native premium work |
| GPT-5.5 standard, long context | $10 | $45 | $5 / $22.50 | long-context lane | Long context when OpenAI fit matters |
| GPT-5.5 Pro, short context | $30 | $180 | $15 / $90 | short-context Pro lane | Highest-cost OpenAI Pro-tier work |
Model Notes
Claude Fable 5
Anthropic suspended Fable on June 12 and says the export controls were lifted June 30. Fable returned globally on native Claude surfaces July 1. It costs 2x Opus 5, 5x Sonnet 5 at the introductory rate, and about 3.3x Sonnet 5 at the standard rate. Treat it as a high-cost guarded escalation, not a default lane.
If your account has access, re-test it only for long-horizon autonomous coding, vision-heavy reconstruction, scientific or analytical work, and expensive decisions where Opus is visibly not enough. Avoid it when zero-data-retention terms are required, when cyber/bio/chem fallback would break the workflow, or when you need predictable low-cost scale.
Claude Opus 5
Opus 5 is the practical premium Claude baseline. It costs half as much as Fable, has a 1M context window, supports five effort levels, and is the model to try before escalating to Fable.
Artificial Analysis reported Opus 5 max at $2.03 per Intelligence Index task versus Sonnet 5 max at $1.53, so Opus is not categorically cheaper. Its high/xhigh configurations can deliver stronger performance at lower task cost on specific evaluations. On AA-Briefcase, Opus 5 max cost $17.79 per task versus Fable’s $22.30; high effort cost $10.41 and still narrowly exceeded Fable, but averaged 25.7 minutes per task.
Use Opus 5 for architecture, hard debugging, code review, multi-file reasoning, and second-pass arbitration. Opus 4.8 remains available as a historical baseline.
The value comparison against GLM-5.2 remains conservative: GLM-5.2 API is about 72% lower on input and 82.4% lower on output than Opus 5 API list pricing. That makes GLM-5.2 a value lane to test, not a proven Opus replacement.
Claude Sonnet 5
Sonnet 5 is the default Claude production test. Its $2/$10 introductory API rate runs through August 31, 2026, then becomes $3/$15. The new tokenizer can produce about 30% more tokens for equivalent text, so compare complete request and agent-loop cost rather than list price alone.
Move up only when Sonnet fails in a way that matters.
GPT-5.5
GPT-5.5 standard short-context pricing is cheaper than Fable on input and output. Long-context standard pricing matches Fable input and is lower on output. GPT-5.5 Pro is much more expensive than Fable.
Compare GPT-5.5 when cached-input economics, Codex/OpenAI tooling, OpenAI-native APIs, or long-context behavior matter more than Claude’s model behavior.
GPT-5.6 family
OpenAI lists standard short-context Sol, Terra, and Luna rates at $5/$30, $2/$12, and $0.20/$1.20 per million input/output tokens. Requests above 272K input use higher long-context rates for the full request. All three have been generally available across ChatGPT, Codex, and API since July 9, with plan-dependent product access. The Luna price-cut analysis separates benchmark evidence, token subtotals, and CAR.
Use the consolidated GPT-5.6 model guide for family pricing, cache behavior, status, and benchmark provenance.
Comparable Evidence
benchmark artifact
Premium and Restricted Model Evidence
| Model | Provider | Status | Context | Input price | Output price | Coding signal | Tool-use signal | Benchmark evidence | Speed | Verdict | Sources | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GPT-5.5 | OpenAI | active Generally available prior-generation OpenAI model retained for existing integrations and comparisons. | 1.05M API; 400K Codex | $5.00 / 1M | $30.00 / 1M | not verified | not verified | not verified | not verified | Primary coding seat while ChatGPT/Codex limits fit the workload. | OpenAI GPT-5.5 API model page, OpenAI GPT-5.5 ChatGPT limits, Artificial Analysis: GPT-5.5, LMArena leaderboard dataset | 2026-06-28 |
| GPT-5.6 Sol | OpenAI | active Generally available through ChatGPT paid plans, Codex paid plans, and the OpenAI API; plan and effort options vary. | 1.05M | $5.00 / 1M | $30.00 / 1M | Artificial Analysis reports 80 on its Coding Agent Index at max effort; OpenAI reports 64.6% on SWE-bench Pro. | Generally available in API and paid Codex plans; max and ultra modes are vendor-documented. |
| OpenAI announced a selected-customer Cerebras preview for July; production latency is not verified. | Generally available flagship; test on real tasks and apply stronger controls for agentic or cyber work. | OpenAI GPT-5.6 general availability [archive], OpenAI API pricing [archive], Artificial Analysis GPT-5.6 evaluation [archive], Agent Arena leaderboard, OpenAI GPT-5.6 availability [archive], OpenAI GPT-5.6 system card | 2026-08-01 |
| Claude Sonnet 5 | Anthropic | active Generally available across Claude plans, Claude Code, the Claude API, GitHub Copilot, and supported AWS paths. | 1M | $2.00 / 1M | $10.00 / 1M | Anthropic reports substantial coding and agentic gains over Sonnet 4.6; independent normalized results are pending. | Available in Claude Code and the Claude API; adaptive thinking is on by default. |
| No site-owned normalized latency result is verified. | First Claude cost/performance test before Opus 5; escalate only when the premium pass changes the accepted result. | Anthropic Claude Sonnet 5 launch [archive], Claude Sonnet 5 migration guide [archive], GitHub Copilot Claude Sonnet 5 launch [archive], Claude Sonnet 5 on AWS [archive], Artificial Analysis: Claude Opus 5 [archive] | 2026-07-25 |
| Claude Opus 5 | Anthropic | active Current premium Claude baseline; default on Max, strongest Pro model, and available through the Claude API and supported cloud platforms. | 1M | $5.00 / 1M | $25.00 / 1M | Anthropic reports major agentic-coding gains; Artificial Analysis reports joint first on its Coding Agent Index at xhigh. | Thinking is on by default; five effort settings materially change cost, latency, and task performance. |
| Artificial Analysis reports high/xhigh/max AA-Briefcase runtimes of 25.7/34.3/36.2 minutes per task; Fast mode is a separate API research preview. | Premium escalation for consequential agentic and knowledge work; compare complete-task cost against Sonnet 5 before default routing. | Anthropic Claude Opus 5 launch [archive], What's new in Claude Opus 5 [archive], Claude Opus 5 system card [archive], Claude models overview [archive], Claude API pricing [archive], Artificial Analysis: Claude Opus 5 [archive], Artificial Analysis: Claude Opus 5 on AA-Briefcase [archive] | 2026-07-25 |
| Claude Opus 4.8 | Anthropic | historical Still available, but superseded by Opus 5 for current premium comparisons. | 1M | $5.00 / 1M | $25.00 / 1M | Historical premium Claude baseline; use Opus 5 for new task-level comparisons. | Still available for pinned integrations; new Claude premium routing should test Opus 5. |
| Artificial Analysis measured 57.3 output tokens/s; provider and workload latency vary. | Historical premium baseline. Use Claude Opus 5 for current Claude premium routing. | Claude models overview [archive], Claude API pricing [archive], Artificial Analysis: Claude Opus 4.8 [archive], Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index v4.1, LMArena leaderboard dataset, Berkeley Function Calling Leaderboard | 2026-07-25 |
| Claude Fable 5 | Anthropic | active Generally available; temporary subscription allowances ended July 7 and current subscription use is through usage credits. | 1M | $10.00 / 1M | $50.00 / 1M | Anthropic reports frontier launch results; independent reproducible ranking is pending. | Guarded-domain requests can refuse or fall back; verify account behavior before routing. |
| Task latency varies; compare complete-task runtime before escalation. | High-cost guarded escalation only; use Opus 5 as the practical Claude premium baseline. | Claude models overview [archive], Claude API pricing [archive], Anthropic Fable 5 and Mythos 5 [archive], Anthropic Fable/Mythos access statement [archive], Anthropic Fable 5 redeployment [archive], Artificial Analysis: Claude Opus 5 [archive], Artificial Analysis: Claude Opus 5 on AA-Briefcase [archive] | 2026-07-25 |
| Claude Mythos 5 | Anthropic | restricted Restored to a set of approved US organizations; broader Glasswing access remains restricted. | 1M | $10.00 / 1M | $50.00 / 1M | General coding quality is not independently verified for an accessible production route. | Invitation-only research access; account and compliance approval required. |
| not verified | Restricted research context, not a normal production or buying recommendation. | Claude models overview [archive], Claude API pricing [archive], Anthropic Fable 5 and Mythos 5 [archive], Anthropic Fable/Mythos access statement [archive], Anthropic Fable 5 redeployment [archive] | 2026-07-01 |
Active, historical, restored, and restricted models are intentionally shown together with explicit status. Scores are not normalized across different benchmark families.
Decision Matrix
| If you need… | Start with | Escalate to |
|---|---|---|
| Routine production coding | Sonnet 5 | Opus 5 if architecture or multi-file reasoning fails |
| Premium Claude code review | Opus 5 high | Raise effort only when measured gains justify the latency |
| Long-horizon autonomous coding | Opus 5 high | xhigh/max, then Fable only after access and guardrail tests |
| Vision-heavy reconstruction | Opus 5 | GPT-5.6, Gemini, or Fable only if live output is better |
| OpenAI-native workflow | GPT-5.6 Terra or Luna | GPT-5.6 Sol when the harder tier changes the result |
| Cyber, bio, or chemistry work | Do a guardrail test first | Trusted access or another approved model |
| Zero-data-retention workload | Avoid Fable/Mythos-class routes | Use a model/contract that meets the requirement |
Cost Sanity Check
For a 100K-input / 20K-output request:
| Model | Approx cost |
|---|---|
| Claude Sonnet 5 | $0.40 introductory / $0.60 standard |
| GPT-5.6 Luna standard short context | $0.044 |
| GPT-5.6 Terra standard short context | $0.44 |
| Claude Opus 5 | $1.00 |
| GPT-5.6 Sol standard short context | $1.10 |
| GPT-5.5 standard short context | $1.10 |
| GPT-5.5 standard long context | $1.90 |
| Claude Fable 5 | $2.00 |
| GPT-5.5 Pro short context | $6.60 |
If a task is routine, those deltas compound quickly. If a task is high-stakes and a better answer prevents a costly mistake, the premium can be rational.
What To Verify Before Committing Spend
- Does Sonnet already solve the task well enough?
- Does Opus 5 improve the answer materially, and at which effort?
- Is Fable available through your target account, plan, cloud, and region?
- Do its retention, usage-credit, and guardrail terms fit the workload?
- Does the Covered Model 30-day minimum fit your data policy?
- Does the right GPT-5.6 tier beat Claude for this workload?
- Can you measure cost per successful task, not just benchmark score?
Sources
- Anthropic: Redeploying Fable 5 (Archive)
- Anthropic: Covered Models
- Anthropic: Data retention practices for Covered Models
- Anthropic: Claude Fable 5 and Claude Mythos 5 (Archive)
- Anthropic: Statement on the US government directive to suspend access to Fable 5 and Mythos 5 (Archive)
- WIRED: Anthropic Says It’s Taking Claude Fable 5 Offline to Comply With US Government Order (Archive)
- The Verge: Anthropic cuts off Fable 5 and Mythos 5 access following government order (Archive)
- Claude API docs: Fable/Mythos model introduction (Archive)
- Claude API docs: Pricing (Archive)
- Anthropic: Claude Sonnet 5 launch (Archive)
- Anthropic: Claude Opus 5 launch (Archive)
- Anthropic Platform: What’s new in Claude Opus 5 (Archive)
- Artificial Analysis: Opus 5 Intelligence Index analysis (Archive)
- Artificial Analysis: Opus 5 on AA-Briefcase (Archive)
- Anthropic Platform: Sonnet 5 migration guide (Archive)
- OpenAI: API pricing (Archive)
- OpenAI: July 30 GPT-5.6 price update (Archive)
- OpenAI: GPT-5.6 general availability
- OpenAI: GPT-5.6 system card
- WIRED: Anthropic Is Still at Odds With the White House Over Claude Fable 5 (Archive) — June 15: talks unresolved
- The Verge: Trump’s Anthropic shutdown just made the case for non-American AI (Archive) — June 15: sovereign AI reaction
- The Verge: Anthropic got hit by export rules nobody understands (Archive) — June 17: no clear statutory process
- Business Insider: An AI startup is suing the US government for taking away Anthropic’s new model (Archive) — June 24: reported Fable restoration behind nationality and onboarding controls
Related links
- GPT-5.6 Luna price-cut analysis
- Claude Fable 5 decision guide
- Claude vs OpenAI data retention
- Claude Opus 4.8 historical guide
- Budget Tier LLM Comparison — Models under $1/1M tokens
- Mid-Range Tier LLM Comparison — Models $1-$3/1M tokens
- Claude vs OpenAI pricing — Provider pricing head-to-head
- Smart Spend Guide — Spend strategy before premium escalation
Last verified: August 1, 2026. Opus 5 is the current premium Claude baseline, GPT-5.6 uses separate short- and long-context rates, Fable uses credits on subscription plans, and Mythos remains restricted. Pricing, entitlements, latency, safeguards, and benchmark results can change independently.