GPT-5.6 Sol (High) vs GPT-6 Astra (Xhigh)
Which is better for the money: GPT-5.6 Sol (High) by OpenAI or GPT-6 Astra (Xhigh) by OpenAI? Intelligence, total benchmark cost, and end-to-end time from Artificial Analysis & other sources, snapshot 2026-10-26.
Trade-off
Verdict
Depends on your budget
GPT-6 Astra (Xhigh) scores 10.1 points higher (52.4 vs 42.3) but costs 2.6× as much to run the benchmark ($3803 vs $1487; flagship vs premium cost classes). Pick GPT-6 Astra (Xhigh) when the extra intelligence is worth the premium, otherwise GPT-5.6 Sol (High).
| Metric | GPT-5.6 Sol (High) | GPT-6 Astra (Xhigh) | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Intelligence (higher is better) | 42.3 | 52.4 | +23.9% GPT-6 Astra (Xhigh) is 23.9% more intelligent |
| Total AA cost (lower is better) | $1,487.34 | $3,802.98 | +155.7% GPT-6 Astra (Xhigh) is 2.6× more expensive |
| End-to-end time (lower is better) | 15.89s | 188.57s | +1086.7% GPT-6 Astra (Xhigh) is 1086.7% slower |
| Price per 1M tokens (in / out) | $4.00 / $20.0 | $10.0 / $50.0 | |
| Input modalities | Text, Image | Text, Image |
GPT-6 Astra (Xhigh) vs GPT-5.6 Sol (High): 23.9% more intelligence, 155.7% more cost to run the AA benchmark, and 1086.7% slower end-to-end.
Today's Pareto frontier
Against the frontier
- GPT-5.6 Sol (High) is off the frontier: at the same or lower cost, GPT-6.1 Sol (Max) scores 51.80 for $1082.
- GPT-6 Astra (Xhigh) is off the frontier: at the same or lower cost, Kimi K3.1 Pro scores 55.10 for $3117.
GPT-5.6 Sol (High)GPT-6 Astra (Xhigh)Today's Pareto frontierEvery other model
Matchup
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