How to Choose the Right Model

Three trade-offs

Every model choice balances quality, latency, and cost. Bigger frontier models are smartest but slower and pricier; small models are fast and cheap.

A practical workflow

1. Prototype with a strong model to prove the task is possible.
2. Then try to downgrade to a smaller/cheaper model and measure if quality holds.
3. Route easy requests to small models and hard ones to large models.

Don't forget context and tools

Sometimes the win isn't a bigger model but a better prompt, retrieval, or letting the model call a calculator or search. Capability often comes from the system, not just the model.