OpenAI API Pricing History & Current Rates | NetLift
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OpenAI API Pricing History

By Paige Gilmore, Founder, NetLift· Published July 28, 2026· Updated July 28, 2026

On July 27, 2026, OpenAI moved its ChatGPT Go, Plus, and Pro plans from fixed monthly rates to a sales-led model. Current API rates vary widely by model performance, with input costs ranging from $0.20 to $32.00 per 1M tokens.

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OpenAI recently transitioned its core ChatGPT subscription tiers—Go, Plus, and Pro—from fixed monthly fees to negotiated pricing. Before July 27, 2026, these plans were listed at $8, $20, and $100 per month. The ChatGPT Free tier remains at $0, though all professional and research-oriented plans now require direct sales engagement.

For API integration, the pricing structure remains token-based and highly granular. Rates are determined by the specific model version and context length, with gpt-5.4-nano representing the entry-level cost at $0.20 per 1M input tokens, while high-performance models like gpt-5.5-pro reach $180.00 per 1M output tokens.

OpenAI API pricing history

NetLift has monitored the official OpenAI API pricing page since 2026-07-27. No price changes have been recorded in that window.

Current verified prices

Plan Price Billing Notes
ChatGPT — Business (Annual Billing) $20 per seat / month Requires 2+ users. Nonprofits eligible for up to 75% discount.
ChatGPT — Business (Monthly Billing) $25 per seat / month Requires 2+ users. Nonprofits eligible for up to 75% discount.
ChatGPT — Enterprise Contact sales per seat / month Contact sales for pricing. Billed annually. Nonprofits eligible for up to 75% discount.

Current verified per-token prices

Model / rate Price Unit
OpenAI API — gpt-5.4-nano (Standard Short context) input $0.2 per 1M input tokens
OpenAI API — gpt-5.4-mini (Standard Short context) input $0.75 per 1M input tokens
OpenAI API — gpt-5.6-luna (Standard Short context) input $1 per 1M input tokens
OpenAI API — gpt-5.6-terra (Standard Short context) input $2.50 per 1M input tokens
OpenAI API — gpt-5.4-mini (Standard Short context) output $4.50 per 1M output tokens
OpenAI API — gpt-5.6-sol (Standard Short context) input $5 per 1M input tokens
OpenAI API — gpt-5.5 (Standard Short context) input $5 per 1M input tokens
OpenAI API — o3-deep-research input $5 per 1M input tokens
OpenAI API — gpt-5.6-luna (Standard Short context) output $6 per 1M output tokens
OpenAI API — gpt-5.6-sol (Standard Long context) input $10 per 1M input tokens
OpenAI API — gpt-5.6-terra (Standard Short context) output $15 per 1M output tokens
OpenAI API — o3-deep-research output $20 per 1M output tokens
OpenAI API — gpt-5.6-sol (Standard Short context) output $30 per 1M output tokens
OpenAI API — gpt-5.5 (Standard Short context) output $30 per 1M output tokens
OpenAI API — gpt-5.5-pro (Standard Short context) input $30 per 1M input tokens
OpenAI API — gpt-realtime-2.1 Audio input $32 per 1M input tokens
OpenAI API — gpt-5.6-sol (Standard Long context) output $45 per 1M output tokens
OpenAI API — gpt-realtime-2.1 Audio output $64 per 1M output tokens
OpenAI API — gpt-5.5-pro (Standard Short context) output $180 per 1M output tokens
chat-latest — ChatGPT standard $5 per 1M input tokens
gpt-5.3-codex — Codex standard input $1.75 per 1M input tokens
gpt-5.4 — Standard Short context Input $2.50 per 1M input tokens
gpt-5.4 — Standard Short context Output $15 per 1M output tokens
gpt-5.4-mini — Standard Short context Input $0.75 per 1M input tokens
gpt-5.4-mini — Standard Short context Output $4.50 per 1M output tokens
gpt-5.4-nano — Standard Short context Input $0.2 per 1M input tokens
gpt-5.4-nano — Standard Short context Output $1.25 per 1M output tokens
gpt-5.5 — Standard Short context Input $5 per 1M input tokens
gpt-5.5 — Standard Short context Output $30 per 1M output tokens
gpt-5.5-pro — Standard Short context Input $30 per 1M input tokens
gpt-5.5-pro — Standard Short context Output $180 per 1M output tokens
gpt-5.6-luna — Standard Short context Input $1 per 1M input tokens
gpt-5.6-luna — Standard Short context Output $6 per 1M output tokens
gpt-5.6-sol — Standard Short context Cached input $0.5 per 1M input tokens
gpt-5.6-sol — Standard Short context Input $5 per 1M input tokens
gpt-5.6-sol — Standard Long context Input $10 per 1M input tokens
gpt-5.6-sol — Standard Short context Output $30 per 1M output tokens
gpt-5.6-sol — Standard Long context Output $45 per 1M output tokens
gpt-5.6-terra — Standard Short context Input $2.50 per 1M input tokens
gpt-5.6-terra — Standard Short context Output $15 per 1M output tokens

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How does the shift to "Contact Sales" affect procurement?

The removal of transparent pricing for the Go, Plus, and Pro plans suggests a move toward volume-based enterprise discounting or customized service-level agreements. For Finance and Procurement teams, this change necessitates usage-based forecasting to negotiate effective per-seat or per-org rates, as the previous $8 to $100 benchmarks no longer serve as public ceilings.

Which models offer the highest cost efficiency?

There is a significant price spread between model families. The "mini" and "nano" variants, such as gpt-5.4-mini at $0.75 per 1M input tokens, provide a lower-cost alternative for high-volume tasks compared to the standard gpt-5.5 or gpt-5.6-sol models. Organizations must weigh the cost of "Long context" models, which can double the input price, against the specific requirements of their internal applications.

To determine if these API costs translate into a positive net return, organizations must look beyond the invoice and measure the specific time saved versus manual baselines. NetLift enables Finance and AI leaders to correlate token spend with evidence of productivity gains, ensuring that the premium paid for high-output models like gpt-5.5-pro is offset by verifiable efficiency improvements.

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Sources

All pricing on this page comes from official vendor pages:

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About the author

Paige Gilmore · Founder, NetLift

Paige Gilmore is the founder of NetLift, the AI Value Management platform that helps organisations measure the cost, savings and return of AI adoption.

Paige Gilmore on LinkedIn

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