Pick Gemini 3.1 Pro for largest mainstream production context (2m) or long video and document analysis. Pick GPT-4.1 Mini for very cheap high-volume text work at $0.40 in / $1.60 out per million tokens or instruction following above its weight class — 84.1% on ifeval, beating gpt-4o. On a tight budget at scale, GPT-4.1 Mini is the value pick.
Gemini 3.1 Pro (Google) and GPT-4.1 Mini (OpenAI) are two of the models people most often weigh against each other in 2026. Gemini 3.1 Pro is a 2M-token multimodal workhorse — huge breadth, but recall fades deep in the window. GPT-4.1 Mini is a cheap, fast 1M-context workhorse with strong instruction following but weak coding — already retired from ChatGPT. They diverge most on price and context window — each quantified below from the models' real specs.
Key differences
Price: GPT-4.1 Mini is about 5× cheaper on input ($0.4/$1.6 per 1M tokens vs $2/$12 per 1M tokens) — a large enough gap that at scale it can be the single biggest line item in the decision.
Context window: Gemini 3.1 Pro holds 1.9× more — 2M (~3,000 pages) vs 1M (~1,571 pages). But effective recall usually fades long before the advertised ceiling, so the bigger number only helps if the model reasons over it.
Recency: Gemini 3.1 Pro is the newer model by about 10 months (released February 19, 2026), usually meaning fresher training data and capabilities.
Specifications
Spec
Gemini 3.1 Pro
GPT-4.1 Mini
Provider
Google (US)
OpenAI (US)
Released
February 19, 2026
April 14, 2025
Context window
2M (~3,000 pages)
1M (~1,571 pages)
Price (in/out)
$2/$12 per 1M tokens
$0.4/$1.6 per 1M tokens
Open weight?
No — API only
No — API only
Modalities
text, image, audio, video, code
text, image, code
SWE-Bench Verified
Not published
23.6%
MRCR v2 @ 1M
26.3%
Not published
Who wins what
Largest mainstream production context (2M): Gemini 3.1 Pro — Its 2M window holds about 1.9× more than GPT-4.1 Mini's 1M in a single prompt.
Long video and document analysis: Gemini 3.1 Pro — A 2M-token multimodal workhorse — huge breadth, but recall fades deep in the window — and it carries the larger 2M context.
Agentic reasoning (high ARC-AGI-2): Gemini 3.1 Pro — GPT-4.1 Mini is comparatively weak here — weak at agentic coding — its 23.6% on SWE-Bench Verified sits below GPT-4o's 33.2%
Very cheap high-volume text work at $0.40 in / $1.60 out per million tokens: GPT-4.1 Mini — At $0.4/$1.6 per 1M tokens it undercuts Gemini 3.1 Pro ($2/$12 per 1M tokens), and that gap compounds at volume.
Instruction following above its weight class — 84.1% on IFEval, beating GPT-4o: GPT-4.1 Mini — A cheap, fast 1M-context workhorse with strong instruction following but weak coding — already retired from ChatGPT — and it runs cheaper at $0.4/$1.6 per 1M tokens.
Multi-turn coherence for its tier — 35.8% on MultiChallenge, roughly 1.8x GPT-4o mini: GPT-4.1 Mini — GPT-4.1 Mini lists multi-turn coherence for its tier — 35.8% on MultiChallenge, roughly 1.8x GPT-4o mini among its strengths; Gemini 3.1 Pro does not.
Lowest cost at scale: GPT-4.1 Mini — At $0.4/$1.6 per 1M tokens, it is the cheaper of the two — the gap dominates the bill on high-volume workloads.
Largest single-prompt input: Gemini 3.1 Pro — Its 2M window is about 1.9× larger than GPT-4.1 Mini's 1M, fitting roughly 3,000 pages in one prompt.
Which should you pick?
A cost-sensitive startup shipping high volume: GPT-4.1 Mini — At $0.4/$1.6 per 1M tokens it undercuts Gemini 3.1 Pro, and on millions of tokens that margin decides the monthly bill.
Someone analysing very long documents or codebases: Gemini 3.1 Pro — Larger 2M window fits more in one prompt.
Anyone whose priority is largest mainstream production context (2m): Gemini 3.1 Pro — It is specifically built for that.
Anyone whose priority is very cheap high-volume text work at $0.40 in / $1.60 out per million tokens: GPT-4.1 Mini — That is its strongest area.
Gemini 3.1 Pro: where it fits
A 2M-token multimodal workhorse — huge breadth, but recall fades deep in the window. Released February 19, 2026 by Google, it is built for largest mainstream production context (2M), long video and document analysis, agentic reasoning (high ARC-AGI-2), and multimodal understanding.
Its trade-offs are real: long-context recall drops sharply past 256K, and premium price per token. At $2 in / $12 out per million tokens, it sits in the mid price band.
GPT-4.1 Mini: where it fits
A cheap, fast 1M-context workhorse with strong instruction following but weak coding — already retired from ChatGPT. Released April 14, 2025 by OpenAI, it is built for very cheap high-volume text work at $0.40 in / $1.60 out per million tokens, instruction following above its weight class — 84.1% on IFEval, beating GPT-4o, multi-turn coherence for its tier — 35.8% on MultiChallenge, roughly 1.8x GPT-4o mini, and a full 1M context at flat pricing, with no long-context premium.
Its trade-offs: weak at agentic coding — its 23.6% on SWE-Bench Verified sits below GPT-4o's 33.2%, retired from ChatGPT in February 2026, and OpenAI's own docs now point users to GPT-5 mini instead, and a June 2024 knowledge cutoff, now roughly two years stale, and no reasoning mode. At $0.4 in / $1.6 out per million tokens, it sits in the budget price band.
The bottom line for this matchup
Gemini 3.1 Pro and GPT-4.1 Mini overlap enough that the right pick depends on your specific job. GPT-4.1 Mini costs less per token; Gemini 3.1 Pro holds the larger context; and each leads in its own area — Gemini 3.1 Pro for largest mainstream production context (2m), GPT-4.1 Mini for very cheap high-volume text work at $0.40 in / $1.60 out per million tokens. Rather than crowning one, run the same hard task through both once and let the results decide.
Frequently asked questions
Is Gemini 3.1 Pro or GPT-4.1 Mini better for coding?
Public SWE-Bench figures are not available for Gemini 3.1 Pro, so the honest test is your own repository — run an identical real bug through both. By design, Gemini 3.1 Pro leans toward largest mainstream production context (2m) while GPT-4.1 Mini leans toward very cheap high-volume text work at $0.40 in / $1.60 out per million tokens, and that positioning usually predicts which feels better on your codebase.
Which is cheaper, Gemini 3.1 Pro or GPT-4.1 Mini?
GPT-4.1 Mini is cheaper — $2/$12 per 1M tokens vs $0.4/$1.6 per 1M tokens, roughly 5× apart on input.
Which has the bigger context window?
Gemini 3.1 Pro — 2M vs 1M, about 1.9× larger. Useful only if the model actually reasons over the full window, which not all do.
Can I use both Gemini 3.1 Pro and GPT-4.1 Mini together?
Yes — a multi-model platform like LumiChats gives you Gemini 3.1 Pro, GPT-4.1 Mini 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, Gemini 3.1 Pro or GPT-4.1 Mini?
Gemini 3.1 Pro — released February 19, 2026, about 10 months after GPT-4.1 Mini.
Gemini 3.1 Pro vs GPT-4.1 Mini
Google · US | OpenAI · US · Updated June 2026
Quick verdict
Pick Gemini 3.1 Pro for largest mainstream production context (2m) or long video and document analysis. Pick GPT-4.1 Mini for very cheap high-volume text work at $0.40 in / $1.60 out per million tokens or instruction following above its weight class — 84.1% on ifeval, beating gpt-4o. On a tight budget at scale, GPT-4.1 Mini is the value pick.
Gemini 3.1 Pro (Google) and GPT-4.1 Mini (OpenAI) are two of the models people most often weigh against each other in 2026. Gemini 3.1 Pro is a 2M-token multimodal workhorse — huge breadth, but recall fades deep in the window. GPT-4.1 Mini is a cheap, fast 1M-context workhorse with strong instruction following but weak coding — already retired from ChatGPT. They diverge most on price and context window — each quantified below from the models' real specs.
Key differences at a glance
▸Price: GPT-4.1 Mini is about 5× cheaper on input ($0.4/$1.6 per 1M tokens vs $2/$12 per 1M tokens) — a large enough gap that at scale it can be the single biggest line item in the decision.
▸Context window: Gemini 3.1 Pro holds 1.9× more — 2M (~3,000 pages) vs 1M (~1,571 pages). But effective recall usually fades long before the advertised ceiling, so the bigger number only helps if the model reasons over it.
▸Recency: Gemini 3.1 Pro is the newer model by about 10 months (released February 19, 2026), usually meaning fresher training data and capabilities.
Side-by-side specs
Spec
Gemini 3.1 Pro
GPT-4.1 Mini
Provider
Google (US)
OpenAI (US)
Released
February 19, 2026
April 14, 2025
Context window
2M (~3,000 pages)
1M (~1,571 pages)
Price (in/out)
$2/$12 per 1M tokens
$0.4/$1.6 per 1M tokens
Open weight?
No — API only
No — API only
Modalities
text, image, audio, video, code
text, image, code
SWE-Bench Verified
Not published
23.6%
MRCR v2 @ 1M
26.3%
Not published
Who wins what
Largest mainstream production context (2M)
Gemini 3.1 Pro
Its 2M window holds about 1.9× more than GPT-4.1 Mini's 1M in a single prompt.
Long video and document analysis
Gemini 3.1 Pro
A 2M-token multimodal workhorse — huge breadth, but recall fades deep in the window — and it carries the larger 2M context.
Agentic reasoning (high ARC-AGI-2)
Gemini 3.1 Pro
GPT-4.1 Mini is comparatively weak here — weak at agentic coding — its 23.6% on SWE-Bench Verified sits below GPT-4o's 33.2%
Very cheap high-volume text work at $0.40 in / $1.60 out per million tokens
GPT-4.1 Mini
At $0.4/$1.6 per 1M tokens it undercuts Gemini 3.1 Pro ($2/$12 per 1M tokens), and that gap compounds at volume.
Instruction following above its weight class — 84.1% on IFEval, beating GPT-4o
GPT-4.1 Mini
A cheap, fast 1M-context workhorse with strong instruction following but weak coding — already retired from ChatGPT — and it runs cheaper at $0.4/$1.6 per 1M tokens.
Multi-turn coherence for its tier — 35.8% on MultiChallenge, roughly 1.8x GPT-4o mini
GPT-4.1 Mini
GPT-4.1 Mini lists multi-turn coherence for its tier — 35.8% on MultiChallenge, roughly 1.8x GPT-4o mini among its strengths; Gemini 3.1 Pro does not.
Lowest cost at scale
GPT-4.1 Mini
At $0.4/$1.6 per 1M tokens, it is the cheaper of the two — the gap dominates the bill on high-volume workloads.
Largest single-prompt input
Gemini 3.1 Pro
Its 2M window is about 1.9× larger than GPT-4.1 Mini's 1M, fitting roughly 3,000 pages in one prompt.
Which should you pick?
A cost-sensitive startup shipping high volume
→ GPT-4.1 Mini
At $0.4/$1.6 per 1M tokens it undercuts Gemini 3.1 Pro, and on millions of tokens that margin decides the monthly bill.
Someone analysing very long documents or codebases
→ Gemini 3.1 Pro
Larger 2M window fits more in one prompt.
Anyone whose priority is largest mainstream production context (2m)
→ Gemini 3.1 Pro
It is specifically built for that.
Anyone whose priority is very cheap high-volume text work at $0.40 in / $1.60 out per million tokens
→ GPT-4.1 Mini
That is its strongest area.
Gemini 3.1 Pro: where it fits
A 2M-token multimodal workhorse — huge breadth, but recall fades deep in the window. Released February 19, 2026 by Google, it is built for largest mainstream production context (2M), long video and document analysis, agentic reasoning (high ARC-AGI-2), and multimodal understanding.
Its trade-offs are real: long-context recall drops sharply past 256K, and premium price per token. At $2 in / $12 out per million tokens, it sits in the mid price band.
GPT-4.1 Mini: where it fits
A cheap, fast 1M-context workhorse with strong instruction following but weak coding — already retired from ChatGPT. Released April 14, 2025 by OpenAI, it is built for very cheap high-volume text work at $0.40 in / $1.60 out per million tokens, instruction following above its weight class — 84.1% on IFEval, beating GPT-4o, multi-turn coherence for its tier — 35.8% on MultiChallenge, roughly 1.8x GPT-4o mini, and a full 1M context at flat pricing, with no long-context premium.
Its trade-offs: weak at agentic coding — its 23.6% on SWE-Bench Verified sits below GPT-4o's 33.2%, retired from ChatGPT in February 2026, and OpenAI's own docs now point users to GPT-5 mini instead, and a June 2024 knowledge cutoff, now roughly two years stale, and no reasoning mode. At $0.4 in / $1.6 out per million tokens, it sits in the budget price band.
The bottom line for this matchup
Gemini 3.1 Pro and GPT-4.1 Mini overlap enough that the right pick depends on your specific job. GPT-4.1 Mini costs less per token; Gemini 3.1 Pro holds the larger context; and each leads in its own area — Gemini 3.1 Pro for largest mainstream production context (2m), GPT-4.1 Mini for very cheap high-volume text work at $0.40 in / $1.60 out per million tokens. Rather than crowning one, run the same hard task through both once and let the results decide.
Want both Gemini 3.1 Pro and GPT-4.1 Mini 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.
Is Gemini 3.1 Pro or GPT-4.1 Mini better for coding?
Public SWE-Bench figures are not available for Gemini 3.1 Pro, so the honest test is your own repository — run an identical real bug through both. By design, Gemini 3.1 Pro leans toward largest mainstream production context (2m) while GPT-4.1 Mini leans toward very cheap high-volume text work at $0.40 in / $1.60 out per million tokens, and that positioning usually predicts which feels better on your codebase.
Which is cheaper, Gemini 3.1 Pro or GPT-4.1 Mini?
GPT-4.1 Mini is cheaper — $2/$12 per 1M tokens vs $0.4/$1.6 per 1M tokens, roughly 5× apart on input.
Which has the bigger context window?
Gemini 3.1 Pro — 2M vs 1M, about 1.9× larger. Useful only if the model actually reasons over the full window, which not all do.
Can I use both Gemini 3.1 Pro and GPT-4.1 Mini together?
Yes — a multi-model platform like LumiChats gives you Gemini 3.1 Pro, GPT-4.1 Mini 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, Gemini 3.1 Pro or GPT-4.1 Mini?
Gemini 3.1 Pro — released February 19, 2026, about 10 months after GPT-4.1 Mini.
Specifications and benchmarks reflect publicly reported figures as of June 2026 and may change as providers release updates. Always verify on your own workload.