Model comparison
Claude Sonnet 4.5 vs Inkling
Head-to-head evidence from 3 shared benchmark results across 3 categories. Overall scores shown here use the public BenchAlign v5 ranking lane.
Verified leaderboard positions: Claude Sonnet 4.5 unranked; Inkling #17
BenchAlign evidence: Claude Sonnet 4.5 estimated; Inkling not scored. Intervals and evidence labels describe ranking uncertainty, not a guarantee for a specific workload.
Evidence parity. Claude Sonnet 4.5 and Inkling share 3 comparable benchmark results. 4 of 8 categories are comparable. 9 results are unique to Claude Sonnet 4.5; 13 to Inkling.
Updated July 15, 2026- Shared results
- 3
- Claude Sonnet 4.5 only
- 9
- Inkling only
- 13
- Comparable categories
- 4 / 8
Pick Inkling if you want the stronger benchmark profile. Claude Sonnet 4.5 only becomes the better choice if knowledge is the priority or you would rather avoid the extra latency and token burn of a reasoning model.
Confidence note. This is a partial-evidence comparison with 3 shared benchmark results across 3 evidence categories; 4 of 8 categories currently have scoreable aggregates for both models. Treat the verdict as directional until coverage is more balanced.
Why this result
Inkling is clearly ahead on the provisional aggregate, 69 to 59. The gap is large enough that you do not need to squint at the spreadsheet to see the difference.
Inkling's sharpest advantage is in mathematics, where it averages 97.1 against 11.2. The single biggest benchmark swing on the page is Terminal-Bench 2.0, 50% to 63.8%. Claude Sonnet 4.5 does hit back in knowledge, so the answer changes if that is the part of the workload you care about most.
Claude Sonnet 4.5 is also the more expensive model on tokens at $3.00 input / $15.00 output per 1M tokens, versus $1.87 input / $4.68 output per 1M tokens for Inkling. That is roughly 3.2x on output cost alone. Inkling is the reasoning model in the pair, while Claude Sonnet 4.5 is not. That usually helps on harder chain-of-thought-heavy tests, but it can also mean more latency and more token spend in real use. Inkling gives you the larger context window at 1M, compared with 200K for Claude Sonnet 4.5.
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 Sonnet 4.5 | Δ | Inkling |
|---|---|---|---|
| Math | Claude Sonnet 4.511.2 | Margin→ 85.9 | Inkling97.1 |
| Knowledge | Claude Sonnet 4.583.4 | Margin← 31.7 | Inkling51.7 |
| Agentic | Claude Sonnet 4.555.4 | Margin→ 14.0 | Inkling69.4 |
| Coding | Claude Sonnet 4.577.2 | Margin← 8.6 | Inkling68.6 |
| Reasoning | Claude Sonnet 4.513.6 | MarginNo overlap | InklingNot measured |
| Multimodal | Claude Sonnet 4.5Not measured | MarginNo overlap | Inkling76.5 |
| Inst. Following | Claude Sonnet 4.5Not measured | MarginNo overlap | Inkling79.8 |
Decisive benchmark drivers
The largest measured benchmark gaps in this matchup, with exact reported values.
More
- Source ↗
Terminal-Bench 2.0
AgenticA 50%B 63.8%Winner: InklingΔ 13.8Terminal-Bench 2.0: Claude Sonnet 4.5 scored 50%; Inkling scored 63.8%. Inkling wins this benchmark. - Source ↗
GPQA
KnowledgeA 83.4%B 87.9%Winner: InklingΔ 4.5GPQA: Claude Sonnet 4.5 scored 83.4%; Inkling scored 87.9%. Inkling wins this benchmark. - Source ↗
SWE-bench Verified
CodingA 77.2%B 77.6%Winner: InklingΔ 0.4SWE-bench Verified: Claude Sonnet 4.5 scored 77.2%; Inkling scored 77.6%. Inkling wins this benchmark.
Operational comparison
Runtime and commercial metrics are compared only when both models have a complete sourced value.
| Metric | Claude Sonnet 4.5 | Inkling | Comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| Input / output priceUSD per 1M tokens | Claude Sonnet 4.5$3 input / $15 output | Inkling$1.87 input / $4.68 output | Inkling has the lower combined listed price. |
| Generation speedtokens per second | Claude Sonnet 4.5Not available | InklingNot available | A complete speed comparison is not available. |
| First-answer latencyseconds to first token | Claude Sonnet 4.5Not available | InklingNot available | A complete latency comparison is not available. |
| Context windowmaximum listed tokens | Claude Sonnet 4.5200K | Inkling1M | Inkling lists the larger context window. |
Benchmark Deep Dive
AgenticInkling wins8 benchmarks
| Benchmark | Claude Sonnet 4.5 | Inkling | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Terminal-Bench 2.0Source | 50% | 63.8% | Inkling leads |
| OSWorld-VerifiedSource | 61.4% | — | Not comparable |
| VITA-BenchSource | 17.0% | — | Not comparable |
| Gert LabsSource | 48.51% | — | Not comparable |
| JobBenchSource | 27.7% | — | Not comparable |
| BrowseCompSource | — | 77.1% | Not comparable |
| MCP AtlasSource | — | 74.1% | Not comparable |
| Design Arena Agentic Web DevSource | — | 1258 | Not comparable |
CodingClaude Sonnet 4.5 wins3 benchmarks
Reasoning1 benchmarks
| Benchmark | Claude Sonnet 4.5 | Inkling | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| ARC-AGI-2Source | 13.6% | — | Not comparable |
KnowledgeClaude Sonnet 4.5 wins4 benchmarks
MathInkling wins4 benchmarks
Multimodal4 benchmarks
Inst. Following1 benchmarks
| Benchmark | Claude Sonnet 4.5 | Inkling | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| IFBenchSource | — | 79.8% | Not comparable |
Frequently Asked Questions (5)
Which is better, Claude Sonnet 4.5 or Inkling?
Inkling is ahead on BenchLM's provisional leaderboard, 69 to 59. The biggest single separator in this matchup is Terminal-Bench 2.0, where the scores are 50% and 63.8%.
Which is better for knowledge tasks, Claude Sonnet 4.5 or Inkling?
Claude Sonnet 4.5 has the edge for knowledge tasks in this comparison, averaging 83.4 versus 51.7. Inside this category, GPQA is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.
Which is better for coding, Claude Sonnet 4.5 or Inkling?
Claude Sonnet 4.5 has the edge for coding in this comparison, averaging 77.2 versus 68.6. Inside this category, SWE-bench Verified is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.
Which is better for math, Claude Sonnet 4.5 or Inkling?
Inkling has the edge for math in this comparison, averaging 97.1 versus 11.2. Claude Sonnet 4.5 stays close enough that the answer can still flip depending on your workload.
Which is better for agentic tasks, Claude Sonnet 4.5 or Inkling?
Inkling has the edge for agentic tasks in this comparison, averaging 69.4 versus 55.4. Inside this category, Terminal-Bench 2.0 is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.
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