AI Cost Intelligence

Choose the unit you need to understand

A task can involve several model requests, paid lookups, unsuccessful attempts and fixed services. Start with the smallest unit you can verify, then account for the work needed to reach an outcome.

1. One AI request: use the AI Token Cost & Monthly Budget Calculator for token charges and whole requests affordable within a token budget.
2. A task with several steps: use the AI Workflow & Agent Cost Calculator for repeat executions, external fees, success and overhead.
3. A monthly project budget: follow How to Estimate an AI Project Budget to reproduce low, base and high scenarios.
4. More advanced analysis: run separate scenarios with consistent task and success definitions. Change one assumption at a time to understand its effect before combining changes.

How do I find my input and output token counts?

Use usage reported by your AI provider when available. For initial planning, try the optional sample-text counters on a representative prompt and a past response, then deliberately transfer each estimate into the calculator.

The counters use cl100k_base for the supplied text. Other model encodings, omitted context, tools and hidden output can change actual billed usage. Use representative averages across similar requests and refine them with observed usage; a sample response cannot predict a future answer’s length.

Build the estimate in four layers

First, measure the model request. Input and output can carry different rates. Instructions, history and retrieved material increase input; longer answers increase output. Use recorded billable usage rather than treating word counts as exact token counts.

Second, list the execution path: model calls and paid services needed for one task. Attach each service fee to its step. A once-per-task fee belongs in a separate step if other work repeats more often. Account for both model tokens and an external fee when both are billed.

Third, include repeated work and success. An average of 1.2 executions describes many tasks. Use observed averages when failures stop at different steps. The whole-task retry mode assumes independent attempts, constant failure probability and identical expected billable work on every attempt.

Fourth, add the project around the requests. Include recurring overhead once. Keep labour, human review, storage, taxes and currency conversion visible. Enter applicable fixed costs or external charges, or calculate excluded categories separately.

Make a comparison that means something

Two configurations can differ in output length, retry frequency and the expected fraction of tasks that succeed. Price per million tokens alone misses those differences. Hold task volume and success criteria constant, estimate billable usage for each configuration, then compare monthly spending and cost per expected success.

A lower estimate does not establish acceptable quality, latency or reliability. Define the quality threshold, measure representative tasks and compare configurations that meet it. The calculators do not score those properties.

Improve the inputs before adding complexity

Write down what starts a task and what counts as completion. Record per-step token usage, executions and external charges over a representative sample. Check rate units, currency and effective dates. Keep low, base and high workload assumptions separate; they are not probability bounds.

After a pilot, reconcile estimates with invoices. A mismatch can reveal omitted services, cached-token pricing, longer outputs or repeated work. Revise the assumptions before relying on a more elaborate model.

What the results can tell you

These tools calculate consequences of entered assumptions. CAD/USD labels do not convert currencies. No live prices or provider presets are supplied. Caching, batch discounts and tiered prices need separate accounting; the workflow model uses flat rates for each step.

Numeric inputs and optional sample text are processed in your browser without API keys. The workflow form does not save inputs. Downloads include entered assumptions, so handle exported files according to the sensitivity of the costs you enter. Positive very small results use threshold labels rather than misleading zeroes.

Check the billing rules

References checked October 17, 2026: OpenAI API pricing, Anthropic pricing and understanding tokens. Worked examples use hypothetical rates. Standard arithmetic and original explanations are documented under our editorial standards.