AI API Cost Calculator
Estimate the monthly cost of running an AI feature. Enter requests, input and output tokens, and a model to project your LLM API spend in USD or INR.
1. Model
2. Volume
Requests to the model per month.
3. Tokens per request
Roughly 1 token ≈ 4 characters (~0.75 words).
Estimated API cost
How this ai api cost calculator works
Large language model APIs are priced per token — the small chunks of text a model reads and writes, where one token is roughly four characters or three-quarters of a word. Every request has an input cost for the tokens you send (your prompt, context, and any retrieved documents) and an output cost for the tokens the model generates back. Output tokens are usually several times more expensive than input tokens.
This calculator multiplies your monthly request volume by the per-request token cost for the model you pick, using representative public list prices. It's the fastest way to sanity-check whether an AI feature is affordable at scale before you build it, and to compare a cheap, fast model against a premium one for the same workload.
- Prices are representative public list prices per 1M tokens and change often — confirm the current rate with your provider.
- One token is roughly 4 characters (~0.75 words) of English text.
- The estimate excludes embeddings, image/audio tokens, fine-tuning, and cached-input discounts.
- Retrieval-augmented prompts can add large input-token counts — include your context in the input figure.
AI API Cost Calculator — frequently asked questions
How is LLM API cost calculated?
Cost = (input tokens ÷ 1,000,000 × input price) + (output tokens ÷ 1,000,000 × output price), multiplied by your number of requests. Because output tokens are typically 3–5× the price of input tokens, controlling how much the model writes back is one of the biggest levers on your bill.
How can I reduce my AI API costs?
Use a smaller model for simple tasks, keep prompts and retrieved context tight, cap the maximum output length, and cache repeated inputs where the provider supports it. Batching and moving non-urgent work to cheaper tiers also help. Often a mix of models — cheap for routing, premium for hard cases — cuts cost dramatically.
What's the difference between input and output tokens?
Input tokens are everything you send to the model: the system prompt, conversation history, and any documents. Output tokens are what the model generates in response. They're billed at different rates, with output almost always the pricier of the two.
Are these prices exact?
They're representative list prices to help you plan and are subject to change by each provider. For budgeting a production system, confirm the live pricing for your chosen model and account for volume discounts or cached-input rates you may qualify for.
Want an exact number, not an estimate?
Tell us about your project and CodersArts Build will scope it into a fixed price and timeline — usually within a day.