Alternatives · 15 models compared · checked 17 Aug 2026
GPT-5.2 Chat alternatives: 15 models in or near grid E2
The closest model to GPT-5.2 Chat on the atlas is Nano Banana 2.1, in the same square, at $1.50 per 1M input tokens against GPT-5.2 Chat’s . 11 of the 15 nearest models are cheaper on input; the cheapest is MiniMax M2-her at $0.30. We rank by position on the atlas, not by capability, because we hold no capability data.
$1.75
observed We measured
- Source
- Our catalogue
- Retrieved
- 17 Aug 2026
Ask an AI about this pageGChatGPTCClaudePPerplexityGeGeminiXGrok
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Cite this page
ModelsAtlas. “GPT-5.2 Chat alternatives: 15 models in or near grid E2”. Retrieved 17 Aug 2026. https://modelsatlas.com/models/openai/gpt-5-2-chat/alternatives
Where the alternatives sit
Each square is a price band (A–H) × a context band (1–6). How the grid works
Same squareGRIDE25 modelsCommand R+ (08-2024), GPT Audio, GPT-4o and 2 more
GPT-5.2 ChatIts 15 nearest modelsOther modelsOpen weights
View the map as a table (3 squares)
| Square | Price band | Context band | Models |
|---|---|---|---|
| GRIDD2 | $0.30–1 | 32–128K | MiniMax M2-her, Nano Banana (Gemini 2.5 Flash Image), Mistral Small 3.1 24B, Qwen2.5 72B Instruct, WizardLM-2 8x22B, Qwen2.5 Coder 32B Instruct, Qwen2.5 VL 72B Instruct |
| GRIDE2 | $1–3 | 32–128K | GPT-5.2 Chat, Nano Banana 2.1, Mixtral 8x22B Instruct, Command R+ (08-2024), GPT Audio, GPT-4o |
| GRIDE3 | $1–3 | 128–256K | Claude Haiku 4.5, Grok Build 0.1, o3 Mini High |
Top 15 alternatives
Ranked by steps away on the atlas, then cheaper before pricier, then input price
| # | Model | Grid | Why it fits | Input / 1M | vs GPT-5.2 Chat | Output / 1M | Context | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | GPT-5.2 ChatOpenAI · the model you’re replacing | GRIDE2 | Baseline | $1.75 | — | $14.00 | 128K | |
| 1 | Nano Banana 2.1Google | GRIDE2 | Same square, 14% cheaper input | $1.50 | −14% | $7.50 | 66K | Compare → |
| 2 | Mixtral 8x22B InstructMistral AI | GRIDE2 | Same square, 14% pricier input | $2.00 | +14% | $6.00 | 66K | Compare → |
| 3 | Command R+ (08-2024)Cohere | GRIDE2 | Same square, 43% pricier input | $2.50 | +43% | $10.00 | 128K | Compare → |
| 4 | GPT AudioOpenAI | GRIDE2 | Same maker, same square, 43% pricier input | $2.50 | +43% | $10.00 | 128K | Compare → |
| 5 | GPT-4oOpenAI | GRIDE2 | Same maker, same square, 43% pricier input | $2.50 | +43% | $10.00 | 128K | Compare → |
| 6 | MiniMax M2-herMiniMax | GRIDD2 | Neighbouring square D2, 83% cheaper input | $0.30 | −83% | $1.20 | 66K | |
| 7 | Nano Banana (Gemini 2.5 Flash Image)Google | GRIDD2 | Neighbouring square D2, 83% cheaper input | $0.30 | −83% | $2.50 | 33K | |
| 8 | Mistral Small 3.1 24BMistral AI | GRIDD2 | Neighbouring square D2, 80% cheaper input | $0.35 | −80% | $0.56 | 128K | |
| 9 | Qwen2.5 72B InstructQwen (Alibaba) | GRIDD2 | Neighbouring square D2, 79% cheaper input | $0.36 | −79% | $0.40 | 33K | |
| 10 | WizardLM-2 8x22BMicrosoft | GRIDD2 | Neighbouring square D2, 65% cheaper input | $0.62 | −65% | $0.62 | 66K | |
| 11 | Qwen2.5 Coder 32B InstructQwen (Alibaba) | GRIDD2 | Neighbouring square D2, 62% cheaper input | $0.66 | −62% | $1.00 | 33K | |
| 12 | Qwen2.5 VL 72B InstructQwen (Alibaba) | GRIDD2 | Neighbouring square D2, 54% cheaper input | $0.80 | −54% | $1.00 | 128K | |
| 13 | Claude Haiku 4.5Anthropic | GRIDE3 | Neighbouring square E3, 43% cheaper input, 1.6× the context | $1.00 | −43% | $5.00 | 200K | |
| 14 | Grok Build 0.1xAI | GRIDE3 | Neighbouring square E3, 43% cheaper input, 2× the context | $1.00 | −43% | $2.00 | 256K | |
| 15 | o3 Mini HighOpenAI | GRIDE3 | Same maker, neighbouring square E3, 37% cheaper input, 1.6× the context | $1.10 | −37% | $4.40 | 200K |
What switching saves
3,000 input + 800 output tokens × 1,000 requests a day
Σ Derived from standard-tier prices; excludes caching and batch discounts. Use your own numbers →
Larger-context alternatives
| Model | Input / 1M | Context | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku 4.5Anthropic | $1.00 | 200K | |
| Grok Build 0.1xAI | $1.00 | 256K | |
| o3 Mini HighOpenAI | $1.10 | 200K | |
| o4 MiniOpenAI | $1.10 | 200K | |
| o4 Mini HighOpenAI | $1.10 | 200K |
Free alternatives
| Model | Input / 1M | Context | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lyria 3 Clip PreviewGoogle | Free | 1.05M | |
| Lyria 3 Pro PreviewGoogle | Free | 1.05M |
Compare GPT-5.2 Chat head to head
Questions
What is the best alternative to GPT-5.2 Chat?
Nano Banana 2.1 ranks first: same square, 14% cheaper input. Input is $1.50 per 1M tokens against $1.75 for GPT-5.2 Chat. Ranking is by position on the atlas, not by quality.
What is the cheapest alternative to GPT-5.2 Chat?
MiniMax M2-her at $0.30 per 1M input tokens, 83% less than GPT-5.2 Chat, among the 15 closest.
Is there an open-weight alternative to GPT-5.2 Chat?
None of the 15 closest is marked open-weight in our records.
Which alternative has a larger context window?
Grok Build 0.1, Claude Haiku 4.5 and o3 Mini High hold more than GPT-5.2 Chat's 128K; the largest is Grok Build 0.1 at 256K.
How are alternatives ranked?
By distance on the atlas grid from GPT-5.2 Chat's square E2: the same square first, then neighbouring squares. Within the same distance, cheaper models come before pricier ones, then the lowest input price wins. We hold no capability data, so we do not claim a model can do what GPT-5.2 Chat does, only that it costs and holds about the same. No vendor pays for position.
More alternatives
Keep going in your AI
Opens with this page as the source. We add nothing else to the prompt.
- What is the best alternative to GPT-5.2 Chat?
- What is the cheapest alternative to GPT-5.2 Chat?
- Is there an open-weight alternative to GPT-5.2 Chat?