n8n AI Cost Calculator

Cost Optimization Tips

• Use gpt-4o-mini for most tasks — 95% cheaper than gpt-4o with similar quality for classification, extraction, and simple generation
• Batch similar requests — reduce API call overhead by processing multiple items in a single prompt
• Cache repeated queries — identical inputs produce identical outputs; cache them to avoid redundant API calls
• Use free models for development — Groq (free tier) and local Ollama models cost nothing; switch to paid models only in production
• Keep system prompts concise — every token in your system prompt is sent with every request; trim unnecessary instructions
• Use structured output (JSON mode) — reduces output tokens by eliminating verbose natural language wrappers
• Set max_tokens wisely — cap output length to prevent runaway costs on edge cases