Facts read November 7, 2026
Claude API vs Gemini API
Gemini API is Cuely's default ai model api pick when your description doesn't favor either one: the cheapest mid-size model of the three at the published profile, with a free tier to prototype on. Pick Claude API if you care most about compliance-heavy products.
Side by side
| Fact | Claude API | Gemini API |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Anthropic's model API (Claude Opus, Sonnet and Haiku models). | Google's model API (Gemini Flash and Pro models). |
| Free plan | None | Free tier with free input and output tokens (rate-limited); free-tier content is used to improve Google's products. |
| Paid from | Haiku 5.5: $0.10 per million input tokens, $0.50 output (prompts up to 100k). Sonnet 5.5: $2 input, $10 output. Opus 5.5: $4 input, $20 output. Sonnet cache reads: $0.10 per million. | Gemini 3.8 Flash: $0.75 per million input tokens and $3.75 output through December 31, 2026, then $1.50 and $7.50 from January 1, 2027. Gemini 3.1 Pro Preview: $2.00 input, $12.00 output (prompts up to 200k tokens). |
| At 1,000 users | $650/month | $488/month |
| Open source | No | No |
| Self-hostable | No | No |
| Best for | Answering from documents with citations; Agents and tool use; A cheap small model (Haiku) for simple requests | Keeping token cost down; Prototyping on a free tier; Long documents |
| Watch out | No permanent free tier; new accounts get a small test credit. Haiku 5.5 costs 5 times more for prompts over 100,000 tokens ($0.50 in, $2.50 out). | On the free tier, the pricing page says content is used to improve Google's products; on the paid tier it is not. Don't send customer data on the free tier. Gemini 3.8 Flash's price doubles on January 1, 2027 (to $1.50 input and $7.50 output per million tokens). Gemini 3.1 Pro is listed as a preview model. |
Where they differ
The published scores, from −3 to +3, that decide which one Cuely picks for each need.
| Need | Claude API | Gemini API |
|---|---|---|
| keep costs as low as possible | +1 Haiku 5.5 is $0.10 / $0.50 per million tokens, about $33 a month at the profile. | +2 Gemini 3.8 Flash is about $488 a month at the profile from January 2027 ($244 until then), the lowest of the three mid-size models. |
| regulated or compliance-sensitive | 0 No particular strength here. | −1 The free tier trains on your content; regulated data must stay on the paid tier. |
Sources: Claude API pricing (read November 7, 2026), Gemini API pricing (read November 7, 2026). No vendor pays for placement.