OpenAI: GPT-5.1-InstantWork with me

OpenAI: GPT-5.1-Instant

byOpenAI

GPT-5.1-Instant is a reasoning model from OpenAI released on Nov 12, 2025. It reads text and images and writes text, with a 128K token context window and up to 16K tokens per reply.

Show more

It costs $1.10 per million input tokens and $9 per million output tokens. Cached input bills at $0.11, 90% less than fresh input.

It supports tool calling and prompt caching.

Modalities
In / out price
$1.10 / $9 per 1M
Context
128K
Max output
16K
Released
Nov 12, 2025
Knowledge cutoff
n/a
  • Tool calling
  • Structured output
  • Reasoning
  • Prompt caching
  • Open weights
  • Free to use

GPT-5.1-Instant pricing

USD, as listed on Oct 15, 2026. Most bills are input heavy, so the cached input rate matters as much as the headline price.

Input$1.10 / 1M tokens
Output$9 / 1M tokens
Cached input (read)$0.11 / 1M tokens

What GPT-5.1-Instant costs per month

Pick a workload close to yours or type your own volumes.

GPT-5.1-Instant per month
$132
Without caching
$177
Per request
$0.0044

Supported request parameters

What you can set when you call GPT-5.1-Instant through an OpenAI compatible API.

  • Toolstools
  • Reasoningreasoning

Alternatives to GPT-5.1-Instant

Models that take the same inputs and call tools, closest in price, cheaper ones first.

  • Index 46.5

    Reads text, images and files. Tool calling, structured output, reasoning. Served by 22 providers.

    by x-aiSep 16, 2026500K context$2/M input tokens$6/M output tokens22 providers

  • Reads text, images and files. Tool calling, structured output, reasoning. Served by 29 providers.

    by x-aiAug 10, 2026$2/M input tokens$6/M output tokens29 providers

  • Index 45.4

    Reads text, images, files and video. Tool calling, structured output, reasoning. Served by 30 providers.

    by qwenJul 19, 20261M context$2/M input tokens$6/M output tokens30 providers

  • Reads text, images and files. Tool calling, structured output, reasoning. Served by 24 providers.

    by x-aiJul 7, 2026$2/M input tokens$6/M output tokens24 providers

  • Reads text, images and files. Tool calling, structured output, reasoning. Served by 18 providers.

    by mistralaiApr 29, 2026262K context$1.50/M input tokens$7.50/M output tokens18 providers

  • Reads text and images. Tool calling, structured output, reasoning. Served by 8 providers.

    by sakanaSep 11, 2026$2/M input tokens$6/M output tokens8 providers

More from OpenAI

  • Index 51.8

    Reads text, images and files. Tool calling, structured output, reasoning. Served by 27 providers.

    by openaiSep 29, 20261.05M context$2/M input tokens$10/M output tokens27 providers

  • Reads text, images and files. Tool calling, structured output, reasoning. Served by 2 providers.

    by openaiSep 29, 2026$2/M input tokens$10/M output tokens2 providers

  • Index 38.1

    Reads text, images and files. Tool calling, structured output, reasoning. Served by 27 providers.

    by openaiSep 22, 20261.05M context$0.10/M input tokens$0.50/M output tokens27 providers

  • Reads text, images and files. Tool calling, structured output, reasoning. Served by 2 providers.

    by openaiSep 22, 2026$0.10/M input tokens$0.50/M output tokens2 providers

  • Reads text, images and files. Tool calling, structured output, reasoning. Served by 27 providers.

    by openaiSep 22, 2026$2/M input tokens$10/M output tokens27 providers

  • Reads text, images and files. Tool calling, structured output, reasoning. Served by 2 providers.

    by openaiSep 22, 2026$2/M input tokens$10/M output tokens2 providers

All OpenAI models

GPT-5.1-Instant questions

How much does the GPT-5.1-Instant API cost?

$1.10 per million input tokens and $9 per million output tokens, with cached input at $0.11. The estimator on this page turns that into a monthly bill for your own workload.

What is the context window of GPT-5.1-Instant?

128,000 tokens of input, and it can write up to 16,384 tokens in one reply. As a rough guide, a million tokens is around 750,000 English words.

Does GPT-5.1-Instant support tool calling?

Yes. It accepts tool definitions, which is what an agent needs to call your APIs.

Is GPT-5.1-Instant open source?

No. OpenAI serves it through an API only, so you cannot download the weights or host it yourself.

When was GPT-5.1-Instant released?

Nov 12, 2025.

Catalog data from models.dev (MIT licensed), refreshed daily, last on Oct 15, 2026. The summary is written from these facts.

Building on GPT-5.1-Instant?

I test your real tasks on it and the two closest alternatives, then ship the agent on whichever wins on cost and accuracy.

Book Meeting