Model comparison
Claude 3.5 Sonnet vs GPT-4.1 nano
Head-to-head evidence from 2 shared benchmark results across 2 categories. Overall scores shown here use the public BenchAlign v5 ranking lane.
Public leaderboard positions: Claude 3.5 Sonnet #139 (Estimated); GPT-4.1 nano #170 (Estimated). Intervals and evidence labels describe ranking uncertainty, not a guarantee for a specific workload.
Evidence parity. Claude 3.5 Sonnet and GPT-4.1 nano share 2 comparable benchmark results. 2 of 8 categories are comparable. 2 results are unique to Claude 3.5 Sonnet; 19 to GPT-4.1 nano.
Updated July 24, 2026- Shared results
- 2
- Claude 3.5 Sonnet only
- 2
- GPT-4.1 nano only
- 19
- Comparable categories
- 2 / 8
Pick Claude 3.5 Sonnet if you want the stronger benchmark profile. GPT-4.1 nano only becomes the better choice if you want the cheaper token bill or you need the larger 1M context window.
Confidence note. This is a partial-evidence comparison with 2 shared benchmark results across 2 evidence categories; 2 of 8 categories currently have scoreable aggregates for both models. Treat the verdict as directional until coverage is more balanced.
Why this result
Claude 3.5 Sonnet is clearly ahead on the BenchAlign aggregate, 46.96 to 41.14. The gap is large enough that you do not need to squint at the spreadsheet to see the difference.
Claude 3.5 Sonnet's sharpest advantage is in knowledge, where it averages 59.4 against 50.3. The single biggest benchmark swing on the page is GPQA, 59.4% to 50.3%.
Claude 3.5 Sonnet is also the more expensive model on tokens at $3.00 input / $15.00 output per 1M tokens, versus $0.10 input / $0.40 output per 1M tokens for GPT-4.1 nano. That is roughly 37.5x on output cost alone. GPT-4.1 nano gives you the larger context window at 1M, compared with 200K for Claude 3.5 Sonnet.
Category breakdown
Exact category averages are shown below. Not measured means BenchLM does not have enough sourced public coverage for that model and category.
| Category | Claude 3.5 Sonnet | Δ | GPT-4.1 nano |
|---|---|---|---|
| Knowledge | Claude 3.5 Sonnet59.4 | Margin← 9.1 | GPT-4.1 nano50.3 |
| Math | Claude 3.5 Sonnet1.6 | Margin← 0.6 | GPT-4.1 nano1.0 |
| Coding | Claude 3.5 Sonnet49.0 | MarginNo overlap | GPT-4.1 nanoNot measured |
| Inst. Following | Claude 3.5 SonnetNot measured | MarginNo overlap | GPT-4.1 nano83.2 |
Decisive benchmark drivers
The largest measured benchmark gaps in this matchup, with exact reported values.
More
- Source ↗
GPQA
KnowledgeA 59.4%B 50.3%Winner: Claude 3.5 SonnetΔ 9.1GPQA: Claude 3.5 Sonnet scored 59.4%; GPT-4.1 nano scored 50.3%. Claude 3.5 Sonnet wins this benchmark. - Source ↗
FrontierMath v2 (Tiers 1-3)
MathA 2.069%B 1.034%Winner: Claude 3.5 SonnetΔ 1FrontierMath v2 (Tiers 1-3): Claude 3.5 Sonnet scored 2.069%; GPT-4.1 nano scored 1.034%. Claude 3.5 Sonnet wins this benchmark.
Operational comparison
Runtime and commercial metrics are compared only when both models have a complete sourced value.
| Metric | Claude 3.5 Sonnet | GPT-4.1 nano | Comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| Input / output priceUSD per 1M tokens | Claude 3.5 Sonnet$3 input / $15 output | GPT-4.1 nano$0.1 input / $0.4 output | GPT-4.1 nano has the lower combined listed price. |
| Generation speedtokens per second | Claude 3.5 SonnetNot available | GPT-4.1 nano181 tok/s | A complete speed comparison is not available. |
| First-answer latencyseconds to first token | Claude 3.5 SonnetNot available | GPT-4.1 nano0.63 s | A complete latency comparison is not available. |
| Context windowmaximum listed tokens | Claude 3.5 Sonnet200K | GPT-4.1 nano1M | GPT-4.1 nano lists the larger context window. |
Benchmark Deep Dive
Agentic4 benchmarks
Coding3 benchmarks
Reasoning2 benchmarks
KnowledgeClaude 3.5 Sonnet wins8 benchmarks
| Benchmark | Claude 3.5 Sonnet | GPT-4.1 nano | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| GPQASource | 59.4% | 50.3% | Claude 3.5 Sonnet leads |
| MMLUSource | — | 80.1% | Not comparable |
| Artificial Analysis Intelligence IndexSource | — | 9.6% | Not comparable |
| AA-GPQA DiamondSource | — | 51.2% | Not comparable |
| AA-HLESource | — | 3.9% | Not comparable |
| AA-Omniscience IndexSource | — | -56.4% | Not comparable |
| AA-Omniscience AccuracySource | — | 13.3% | Not comparable |
| AA-Omniscience Hallucination RateSource | — | 80.4% | Not comparable |
MathClaude 3.5 Sonnet wins2 benchmarks
Multimodal2 benchmarks
Frequently Asked Questions (3)
Which is better, Claude 3.5 Sonnet or GPT-4.1 nano?
Claude 3.5 Sonnet is ahead on BenchLM's BenchAlign leaderboard, 46.96 to 41.14. The biggest single separator in this matchup is GPQA, where the scores are 59.4% and 50.3%.
Which is better for knowledge tasks, Claude 3.5 Sonnet or GPT-4.1 nano?
Claude 3.5 Sonnet has the edge for knowledge tasks in this comparison, averaging 59.4 versus 50.3. Inside this category, GPQA is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.
Which is better for math, Claude 3.5 Sonnet or GPT-4.1 nano?
Claude 3.5 Sonnet has the edge for math in this comparison, averaging 1.6 versus 1. Inside this category, FrontierMath v2 (Tiers 1-3) is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.