Savings estimate · prices checked 2026-11-03
Gemini 3.8 Flash vs Levanto Sage 2 for classification calls
List prices
| Model | $ per M input | $ per M output | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gemini 3.8 Flash | $0.75 | $3.75 | Google pricing |
| Gemini 3.1 Flash-Lite | $0.25 | $1.5 | Google pricing |
| Levanto Sage 2 | $0.05 | $1 | Levanto list price |
Checked 2026-11-03. Same table the public prices endpoint serves. Gemini 3.8 Flash: introductory price through Dec 31, 2026, then $1.50 / $7.50. At the later price Gemini 3.8 Flash would cost about $1.69 per 1,000 calls (break-even share 32%). Prices change; the audit always uses the current table.
Cost per call: our assumptions
- 500 input tokens per call (a ~100-token message plus a 400-token prompt, the audit’s defaults).
- 5 visible output tokens (“yes”/“no” plus formatting).
- 120 reasoning tokens at Gemini 3.8 Flash’s API default effort (
medium), billed as output. This is our estimate, not a provider figure. - Levanto Sage 2 charged the same 500 input tokens (conservative: it needs no instruction prompt) and 2 output tokens, since it returns a decision and a probability.
That gives an estimated $0.844 per 1,000 calls on Gemini 3.8 Flash, against $0.027 on Levanto Sage 2.
Effort level changes the bill
Reasoning tokens are billed at the output price, so the effort setting can change Gemini 3.8 Flash’s cost a lot. Estimated cost per 1,000 calls by effort level:
| Effort | Est. reasoning tokens | Per 1,000 calls |
|---|---|---|
| low | 40 | $0.544 |
| medium (API default) | 120 | $0.844 |
| high | 320 | $1.59 |
If a lower effort still gives the answers you need, that is a saving with no new vendor. Test it the same way.
Monthly estimate by volume
“Share kept” is a scenario, not a prediction: the share of calls where Levanto Sage 2 is confident enough to keep. The rest go to Gemini 3.8 Flash too, so the hybrid pays for both on those calls.
| Calls / month | All on Gemini 3.8 Flash | Hybrid, 50% kept | 70% kept | 90% kept |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10,000 | $8.44 | $4.49 | $2.80 | $1.11 |
| 100,000 | $84.38 | $44.89 | $28.01 | $11.14 |
| 1,000,000 | $844 | $449 | $280 | $111 |
Estimates at the assumptions above. A full switch to Levanto Sage 2 would cost $2.70 at 100,000 calls, but only makes sense if it agrees with Gemini 3.8 Flash on nearly everything.
When the switch is worth it
The audit only recommends a hybrid when it is at least 30% cheaper than staying put. With these prices that needs Levanto Sage 2 to keep at least 33% of calls at your agreement target. Below that, the saving rarely pays for the change.
- Good fit: the same yes/no or labelling prompt runs thousands of times (lead qualification, ticket triage, spam or intent checks, field extraction).
- Keep Gemini 3.8 Flash: free-text answers, tool use, multi-step reasoning, or inputs that differ a lot call to call.
Check it on your own calls
Paste 10 to 25 inputs with the answers Gemini 3.8 Flash already gave into the free cutover audit. It measures agreement, picks the confidence threshold that holds your target and projects the cost with your token counts. How it works · Choosing a threshold · Other model pairs · Gemini 3.8 Flash extraction cost · Reasoning effort cost