Claude 3.5 Sonnet vs GPT-4o vs Gemini 1.5 Pro: 2025 AI Coding Showdown

Why these models

This guide drops speculative "GPT-5.x" and fictional Opus releases. We focus on the highest-performing shipping coding models with public pricing and wide IDE support as of December 6, 2025.

• Claude 3.5 Sonnet (Anthropic) — quality-first coding model with 200K context and strong safety.
• GPT-4o (OpenAI) — fast, multimodal generalist that powers Copilot and ChatGPT.
• Gemini 1.5 Pro (Google) — longest context of the three, strong multimodal/tool use in the Google stack.

Quick comparison

| Feature | Claude 3.5 Sonnet | GPT-4o | Gemini 1.5 Pro | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Release | Jun 2024 (Artifacts launch) | May 2024 | GA mid-2024 (AI Studio/Vertex) | | Context window | 200K tokens | 128K tokens | 1M default; up to 2M where available | | Input price (API) | $3 / 1M tokens | $5 / 1M tokens | $3.50 / 1M (128K tier); $7 / 1M (1M tier) | | Output price (API) | $15 / 1M tokens | $15 / 1M tokens | $10.50 / 1M (128K); $21 / 1M (1M) | | Strength | Code quality & safety | Speed + tool calling | Extreme context + multimodal | | Best for | Production-grade coding & reviews | Fast interactive coding & agents | Whole-repo analysis & long RAG prompts |

Pricing pulled from platform.claude.com/docs/en/pricing, openai.com/pricing, and ai.google.dev/pricing on Dec 6, 2025.

Model deep dives

Claude 3.5 Sonnet

• What it is: Anthropic's flagship balanced model (June 2024) with 200K context and strong coding + safety.
• Why it stands out: High-quality code edits, solid tool calling, and safer defaults; supports vision and JSON/formatted outputs.
• Access: Anthropic API, Amazon Bedrock, Google Vertex AI, Claude.ai, Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf (BYOK supported).
• Best for: Refactors, code reviews, and regulated environments where safety and predictability matter.

GPT-4o

• What it is: OpenAI's fast multimodal model (May 2024) used across ChatGPT and Copilot.
• Why it stands out: Low latency, strong tool calling, good multilingual coding, and robust audio/vision support. 128K context is enough for most repos with retrieval.
• Access: OpenAI API, ChatGPT (Plus/Team/Enterprise), GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Windsurf, many CLIs and agent frameworks.
• Best for: Rapid interactive coding, automated tool-heavy agents, and mixed text/code tasks where speed matters.

Gemini 1.5 Pro

• What it is: Google's long-context multimodal model (1M default, up to 2M) available in AI Studio and Vertex AI; powers Gemini Code Assist.
• Why it stands out: Longest context of the three, strong document/code ingestion, and native grounding with Google ecosystem services. Good for reading entire repos or mixed code + PDF specs.
• Access: AI Studio, Vertex AI, Gemini Code Assist, Replit, and API SDKs; check regional availability for 1M/2M context tiers.
• Best for: Whole-codebase analysis, long compliance or spec ingestion, and Google Cloud–centric workflows.

Pricing and access

API pricing (verified Dec 6, 2025)

| Model | Input price (per 1M) | Output price (per 1M) | Context notes | Source | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Claude 3.5 Sonnet | $3 | $15 | 200K standard context | platform.claude.com/docs/en/pricing | | GPT-4o | $5 | $15 | 128K context | openai.com/pricing | | Gemini 1.5 Pro (128K tier) | $3.50 | $10.50 | 128K prompts | ai.google.dev/pricing | | Gemini 1.5 Pro (1M tier) | $7 | $21 | 1M prompts; 2M available in select regions | ai.google.dev/pricing |

User-facing plans

• ChatGPT: Plus $20/mo; Team seats typically $30/mo (or $25/mo annual); Enterprise/Custom via sales.
• Claude: Claude Pro $20/mo; Claude Team $30/user/mo; Enterprise via sales; Claude Code ships inside Claude.ai for Pro+.
• Gemini: Google One AI Premium (Gemini Advanced) ~$19.99/mo; Gemini Code Assist via Workspace/Cloud with usage-based billing.

Always confirm the live pricing pages before budgeting large runs; vendors adjust tokens, caps, and throughput regularly.

Capability snapshot

| Capability | Claude 3.5 Sonnet | GPT-4o | Gemini 1.5 Pro | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Coding quality | Excellent; vendor reports state-of-the-art coding evals | Strong, optimized for tool use | Strong, especially on long-context analysis | | Tool calling / functions | Yes (multi-tool, JSON mode) | Yes (mature function calling) | Yes (function calling + grounding) | | Multimodal | Text, vision | Text, vision, audio | Text, vision, audio, video | | Context strength | 200K, good compaction | 128K, fast retrieval loops | 1–2M for whole-repo ingestion | | IDE reach | Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf, VS Code via API | GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Windsurf, many CLIs | Gemini Code Assist, AI Studio UI, Vertex AI SDKs |

Recommendations

• Pick Claude 3.5 Sonnet if you want the best mix of code quality, safety defaults, and multi-cloud availability (Anthropic + Bedrock + Vertex). Great for refactors, code review, and regulated teams.
• Pick GPT-4o if you need speed, polished tool calling, and broad ecosystem coverage (Copilot, ChatGPT, agent frameworks). Ideal for rapid interactive coding and automated fixes.
• Pick Gemini 1.5 Pro if you need to fit the most context into one call (1–2M tokens) or you are already invested in Google Cloud. Ideal for large-spec ingestion and repo-wide reasoning.
• Use a hybrid: route short iterative tasks to GPT-4o, long-context analysis to Gemini 1.5 Pro, and high-precision edits/reviews to Claude 3.5 Sonnet to balance cost, latency, and quality.

How we verified (Dec 6, 2025)

• Pricing and context limits pulled from: platform.claude.com/docs/en/pricing, openai.com/pricing, ai.google.dev/pricing.
• Release timing and availability confirmed from vendor launch posts (Anthropic June 2024 Artifacts update; OpenAI May 2024 GPT-4o launch; Google AI Studio/Vertex GA announcements mid-2024).
• IDE availability checked against official product pages (Copilot, Claude Code, Gemini Code Assist) and current API documentation.

Ready to choose?

• Claude API
• GPT-4o overview
• Gemini API
• Compare all AI coding tools