Claude Sonnet 5.5 vs GPT-6 Luna
Anthropic · US | OpenAI · US · Updated June 2026
Quick verdict
Pick Claude Sonnet 5.5 for terminal-bench 4.0 agentic coding jumps to 70.6%, up from claude sonnet 5's 10.3% or same $2/$10 per million token pricing as sonnet 5, with cache-read price cut 50% to $0.10/mtok as of october 7, 2026. Pick GPT-6 Luna for openai's cheapest gpt-6 tier — $0.10/$0.50 per million tokens, optimized for fast responses at high volume or available to free and go plan users in the chatgpt desktop app, not gated to paid tiers. On a tight budget at scale, GPT-6 Luna is the value pick.
Claude Sonnet 5.5 (Anthropic) and GPT-6 Luna (OpenAI) are two of the models people most often weigh against each other in 2026. Claude Sonnet 5.5 is anthropic's September 28, 2026 mid-tier update — same $2/$10 pricing as Sonnet 5 but a large agentic-coding jump (Terminal-Bench 4.0: 70.6% vs 10.3%). GPT-6 Luna is openAI's cheapest GPT-6 tier, released September 22, 2026 alongside GPT-6 Sol — $0.10/$0.50 per million tokens, built for speed over depth. They diverge most on price and context window — each quantified below from the models' real specs.
Key differences at a glance
- ▸Price: GPT-6 Luna is about 20× cheaper on input ($0.1/$0.5 per 1M tokens vs $2/$10 per 1M tokens) — a large enough gap that at scale it can be the single biggest line item in the decision.
- ▸Context window: 1M tokens vs 1.05M tokens — within a few percent of each other, so treat this as a tie and test on your own long inputs, since usable recall varies by model.
Side-by-side specs
| Spec | Claude Sonnet 5.5 | GPT-6 Luna |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | Anthropic (US) | OpenAI (US) |
| Released | September 28, 2026 | September 22, 2026 |
| Context window | 1M tokens (~1,500 pages) | 1.05M tokens (~1,575 pages) |
| Price (in/out) | $2/$10 per 1M tokens | $0.1/$0.5 per 1M tokens |
| Open weight? | No — API only | No — API only |
| Modalities | text, image, code | text, image |
| SWE-Bench Verified | Not published | Not published |
| MRCR v2 @ 1M | Not published | Not published |
Who wins what
Terminal-Bench 4.0 agentic coding jumps to 70.6%, up from Claude Sonnet 5's 10.3%
Claude Sonnet 5.5
Anthropic's September 28, 2026 mid-tier update — same $2/$10 pricing as Sonnet 5 but a large agentic-coding jump (Terminal-Bench 4.0: 70.6% vs 10.3%) — and it is the newer of the two.
Same $2/$10 per million token pricing as Sonnet 5, with cache-read price cut 50% to $0.10/MTok as of October 7, 2026
Claude Sonnet 5.5
Claude Sonnet 5.5 lists same $2/$10 per million token pricing as Sonnet 5, with cache-read price cut 50% to $0.10/MTok as of October 7, 2026 among its strengths; GPT-6 Luna does not.
Scores close to Opus 5.5 on several benchmarks (e.g. GDPval-AA v2.1 knowledge-work Elo) at a fraction of the cost
Claude Sonnet 5.5
Claude Sonnet 5.5 lists scores close to Opus 5.5 on several benchmarks (e.g. GDPval-AA v2.1 knowledge-work Elo) at a fraction of the cost among its strengths; GPT-6 Luna does not.
OpenAI's cheapest GPT-6 tier — $0.10/$0.50 per million tokens, optimized for fast responses at high volume
GPT-6 Luna
At $0.1/$0.5 per 1M tokens it undercuts Claude Sonnet 5.5 ($2/$10 per 1M tokens), and that gap compounds at volume.
Available to Free and Go plan users in the ChatGPT desktop app, not gated to paid tiers
GPT-6 Luna
Claude Sonnet 5.5 is comparatively weak here — 1M-token context isn't uniformly available across every platform/plan, consistent with the rest of the 5.5 family
Cache reads at $0.01/MTok — a 90% discount, the cheapest in the GPT-6 family
GPT-6 Luna
OpenAI's cheapest GPT-6 tier, released September 22, 2026 alongside GPT-6 Sol — $0.10/$0.50 per million tokens, built for speed over depth — and it runs cheaper at $0.1/$0.5 per 1M tokens.
Lowest cost at scale
GPT-6 Luna
At $0.1/$0.5 per 1M tokens, it is the cheaper of the two — the gap dominates the bill on high-volume workloads.
Which should you pick?
A cost-sensitive startup shipping high volume
→ GPT-6 Luna
At $0.1/$0.5 per 1M tokens it undercuts Claude Sonnet 5.5, and on millions of tokens that margin decides the monthly bill.
Someone analysing very long documents or codebases
→ GPT-6 Luna
Larger 1.05M tokens window fits more in one prompt.
Anyone whose priority is terminal-bench 4.0 agentic coding jumps to 70.6%, up from claude sonnet 5's 10.3%
→ Claude Sonnet 5.5
It is specifically built for that.
Anyone whose priority is openai's cheapest gpt-6 tier — $0.10/$0.50 per million tokens, optimized for fast responses at high volume
→ GPT-6 Luna
That is its strongest area.
Claude Sonnet 5.5: where it fits
Anthropic's September 28, 2026 mid-tier update — same $2/$10 pricing as Sonnet 5 but a large agentic-coding jump (Terminal-Bench 4.0: 70.6% vs 10.3%). Released September 28, 2026 by Anthropic, it is built for terminal-Bench 4.0 agentic coding jumps to 70.6%, up from Claude Sonnet 5's 10.3%, same $2/$10 per million token pricing as Sonnet 5, with cache-read price cut 50% to $0.10/MTok as of October 7, 2026, scores close to Opus 5.5 on several benchmarks (e.g. GDPval-AA v2.1 knowledge-work Elo) at a fraction of the cost, and anthropic highlights stronger document/slide generation, spreadsheet work, and visual chart recognition (Chartography: 61.6%).
Its trade-offs are real: anthropic is explicit that Opus 5.5 'remains clearly stronger' on complex, open-ended work requiring sustained judgment, 1M-token context isn't uniformly available across every platform/plan, consistent with the rest of the 5.5 family, and mid-tier update released a week after Opus 5.5 (Sept 22) — Haiku 5.5 followed Oct 7 to complete the family. At $2 in / $10 out per million tokens, it sits in the mid price band.
GPT-6 Luna: where it fits
OpenAI's cheapest GPT-6 tier, released September 22, 2026 alongside GPT-6 Sol — $0.10/$0.50 per million tokens, built for speed over depth. Released September 22, 2026 by OpenAI, it is built for openAI's cheapest GPT-6 tier — $0.10/$0.50 per million tokens, optimized for fast responses at high volume, available to Free and Go plan users in the ChatGPT desktop app, not gated to paid tiers, cache reads at $0.01/MTok — a 90% discount, the cheapest in the GPT-6 family, and 1.05M-token context window carried down from the flagship tier.
Its trade-offs: less reasoning capability than sibling GPT-6 Sol — built for speed and volume, not hard problems, and as the entry-level tier, expect it to be the first model swapped out when OpenAI ships the next cost-tier refresh. At $0.1 in / $0.5 out per million tokens, it sits in the budget price band.
The bottom line for this matchup
Claude Sonnet 5.5 and GPT-6 Luna overlap enough that the right pick depends on your specific job. GPT-6 Luna costs less per token; GPT-6 Luna holds the larger context; and each leads in its own area — Claude Sonnet 5.5 for terminal-bench 4.0 agentic coding jumps to 70.6%, up from claude sonnet 5's 10.3%, GPT-6 Luna for openai's cheapest gpt-6 tier — $0.10/$0.50 per million tokens, optimized for fast responses at high volume. Rather than crowning one, run the same hard task through both once and let the results decide.
Want both Claude Sonnet 5.5 and GPT-6 Luna without two subscriptions? LumiChats gives you these plus 40+ models under one ₹69/day pass (about $1/day) — draft with one, cross-check with the other.
See pricingFrequently asked questions
Is Claude Sonnet 5.5 or GPT-6 Luna better for coding?
Public SWE-Bench figures are not available for either model, so the honest test is your own repository — run an identical real bug through both. By design, Claude Sonnet 5.5 leans toward terminal-bench 4.0 agentic coding jumps to 70.6%, up from claude sonnet 5's 10.3% while GPT-6 Luna leans toward openai's cheapest gpt-6 tier — $0.10/$0.50 per million tokens, optimized for fast responses at high volume, and that positioning usually predicts which feels better on your codebase.
Which is cheaper, Claude Sonnet 5.5 or GPT-6 Luna?
GPT-6 Luna is cheaper — $2/$10 per 1M tokens vs $0.1/$0.5 per 1M tokens, roughly 20× apart on input.
Which has the bigger context window?
Effectively neither — 1M tokens vs 1.05M tokens is a difference of a few percent. Remember advertised ≠ usable: recall typically degrades before the ceiling.
Can I use both Claude Sonnet 5.5 and GPT-6 Luna together?
Yes — a multi-model platform like LumiChats gives you Claude Sonnet 5.5, GPT-6 Luna and 40+ others under one ₹69/day pass (about $1/day), so you can draft with one and cross-check with the other instead of buying two subscriptions.
Which is newer, Claude Sonnet 5.5 or GPT-6 Luna?
Claude Sonnet 5.5 — released September 28, 2026, about 6 days after GPT-6 Luna.
Related comparisons
Specifications and benchmarks reflect publicly reported figures as of June 2026 and may change as providers release updates. Always verify on your own workload.