GPT-5 mini (High) vs Step 5 Preview
Which is better for the money: GPT-5 mini (High) by OpenAI or Step 5 Preview by StepFun? Intelligence, total benchmark cost, and end-to-end time from Artificial Analysis & other sources, snapshot 2026-10-24.
Trade-off
Verdict
Depends on your budget
Step 5 Preview scores 26.9 points higher (43.7 vs 16.8) but costs 6.3× as much to run the benchmark ($1190 vs $189; premium vs mid-range cost classes). They are not alternatives at one budget: pick Step 5 Preview when you need intelligence above 16.8, and GPT-5 mini (High) when 16.8 is enough.
| Metric | GPT-5 mini (High) | Step 5 Preview | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Intelligence (higher is better) | 16.8 | 43.7 | +160.1% Step 5 Preview is 2.6× more intelligent |
| Total AA cost (lower is better) | $188.66 | $1,190.26 | +530.9% Step 5 Preview is 6.3× more expensive |
| End-to-end time (lower is better) | 58.72s | 12.06s | −79.5% Step 5 Preview is 79.5% faster |
| Price per 1M tokens (in / out) | $0.25 / $2.00 | $1.00 / $2.70 | |
| Input modalities | Text, Image | Text, Image |
Step 5 Preview vs GPT-5 mini (High): 160.1% more intelligence, 530.9% more cost to run the AA benchmark, and 79.5% faster end-to-end.
Today's Pareto frontier
Against the frontier
- GPT-5 mini (High) is off the frontier: at the same or lower cost, Claude Haiku 5.5 (Xhigh) scores 41.20 for $158.
- Step 5 Preview is off the frontier: at the same or lower cost, GPT-6.1 Sol (Max) scores 51.80 for $1082.
GPT-5 mini (High)Step 5 PreviewToday's Pareto frontierOpen-weights frontierEvery other model
Matchup
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Accept: text/markdown or ?format=md returns this page as Markdown. JSON: /api/v1/compare/gpt-5-mini/step-5 · Markdown: /api/v1/compare/gpt-5-mini/step-5?format=md · llms.txt · agent skill