Claude Opus 4.6
Head-to-head comparison
Claude Opus 4.6 vs. DeepSeek-V4-Flash
Compare published benchmark results from matching versions and cohorts, API pricing, and technical specifications. Any documented test setup differences remain visible.
- shared result series
- 8
- distinct benchmark metrics
- 1
- latest retrieval
- 2026-10-16
Change model selection
Specifications
General specifications
Release date, availability, context window, architecture, and published parameter counts at a glance. Undisclosed details remain marked as unavailable.
| Attribute | Claude Opus 4.6 | DeepSeek-V4-Flash |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | Anthropic | DeepSeek |
| Released | Feb 2026 | Apr 24, 2026 |
| Availability | Active | Limited access |
| Model type | Proprietary | Open Weights |
| Parameters | Not published | 284B, 13B active |
| Architecture | Not published | Mixture of Experts |
| Context window | 1,000,000 tokens | 1,000,000 tokens |
| Knowledge cutoff | May 2025 | Not published |
| Technical sources | Model, Context | Model |
Pricing
API pricing compared
The table compares official standard API rates per 1M tokens, including published cache pricing. Batch, fast, priority, regional surcharges, tool calls, and cloud platform pricing are excluded.
| Price type | Claude Opus 4.6 | DeepSeek-V4-Flash |
|---|---|---|
| API input | $5 | $0.14 |
| API output | $25 | $0.28 |
| Cache read | $0.5 | Not listed |
| Cache write (5 min.) | $6.25 | Not listed |
| Cache write (1 hr.) | $10 | Not listed |
| Price verified | 09/22/2026 Source | 10/26/2026 Source |
Claude Opus 4.6DeepSeek-V4-Flash
API inputUSD per 1M tokens, base tier
Claude Opus 4.6$5
DeepSeek-V4-FlashLower price$0.14
API outputUSD per 1M tokens, base tier
Claude Opus 4.6$25
DeepSeek-V4-FlashLower price$0.28
Key to the marks:better valuebetter, but not conclusivetie
Pricing by provider
Direct developer pricing and provider endpoint tariffs routed through OpenRouter are listed separately. Prices are in USD per 1M tokens. Context-dependent direct tiers plus regional, Flex, Priority, and other OpenRouter tariffs remain individually identifiable.
| Model | Provider | Purchase route and tariff | Input per 1M tokens | Output per 1M tokens | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Opus 4.6 | Anthropic | Direct from developerStandard API | Lowest listed price: $5 | Lowest listed price: $25 | Source09/22/2026 |
| Amazon Bedrock | Via OpenRouteramazon-bedrock | Lowest listed price: $5 | Lowest listed price: $25 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| Anthropic | Via OpenRouteranthropic | Lowest listed price: $5 | Lowest listed price: $25 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| Azure | Via OpenRouterazure/global | Lowest listed price: $5 | Lowest listed price: $25 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| Claude Platform on AWS | Via OpenRouterclaude-on-aws | Lowest listed price: $5 | Lowest listed price: $25 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| Via OpenRoutergoogle-vertex/europe | $5.5 | $27.5 | Source10/26/2026 | ||
| Via OpenRoutergoogle-vertex/global | Lowest listed price: $5 | Lowest listed price: $25 | Source10/26/2026 | ||
| DeepSeek-V4-Flash | Alibaba | Via OpenRouteralibaba/us-east-1 | $0.374 | $1.122 | Source10/26/2026 |
| AtlasCloud | Via OpenRouteratlas-cloud/fp4 | $0.44 | $1.32 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| Baidu | Via OpenRouterbaidu/fp8 | $0.44 | $1.32 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| BaseTen | Via OpenRouterbaseten/fp32 | $0.13 | $0.26 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| BaseTen | Via OpenRouterbaseten/fp8 | $0.13 | $0.26 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| Cloudflare | Via OpenRoutercloudflare | $0.44 | $1.32 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| Cohere | Via OpenRoutercohere | $0.14 | $0.28 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| CoreWeave | Via OpenRoutercoreweave/fp8 | $0.13 | $0.28 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| DeepInfra | Via OpenRouterdeepinfra/fp8 | $0.06 | $0.18 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| DigitalOcean | Via OpenRouterdigitalocean | $0.119 | $0.238 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| GMICloud | Via OpenRoutergmicloud/fp8 | $0.286 | $0.858 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| Inceptron | Via OpenRouterinceptron/fp4 | $0.11 | $0.4125 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| Mancer 2 | Via OpenRoutermancer/fp8 | $0.2 | $0.6 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| Novita | Via OpenRouternovita/fp8 | $0.4092 | $1.2276 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| Parasail | Via OpenRouterparasail/fp8 | $0.14 | $0.28 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| Phala | Via OpenRouterphala | $0.308 | $0.924 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| Reka | Via OpenRouterreka | $0.05 | $0.28 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| Relace | Via OpenRouterrelace/fp4 | Lowest listed price: $0.0475 | $0.1568 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| Sail Research | Via OpenRoutersail-research/fp4 | $0.15 | Lowest listed price: $0.15 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| Sail Research | Via OpenRoutersail-research/us | $0.15 | Lowest listed price: $0.15 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| SiliconFlow | Via OpenRoutersiliconflow/fp8 | $0.22 | $0.66 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| StreamLake | Via OpenRouterstreamlake/fp8 | $0.132 | $0.396 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| Venice | Via OpenRoutervenice | $0.13 | $0.26 | Source10/26/2026 | |
| Wafer | Via OpenRouterwafer/fast | $0.14 | $0.23 | Source10/26/2026 |
Benchmark index
Benchmark index compared
The index combines independent benchmarks on a scale from 0 to 100. A lead only counts when a model comes first in at least 95% of 200 recalculations with randomly redrawn test families. Otherwise both count as level.
Claude Opus 4.6 leads in 1 of 2 shared areas. One area is tied.
| Area | Claude Opus 4.6 | DeepSeek-V4-Flash |
|---|---|---|
| Coding | 43.8 | 19.7 |
| Agentstied | 48.0 | 38.4 |
Performance
Shared benchmarks
Only published results with the same benchmark version, task, metric, and comparison cohort are paired. Different reasoning levels, agents, harnesses, or output limits appear directly in the table.
Capability profile from matched benchmarks
Each axis averages directly matched benchmark families. A value of 100 means the stronger value within this pair, not a universal quality score.
Not enough directly matched categories for a reliable radar
Only 1 of at least 5 categories have comparable, direct model measurements. The benchmark tables below show the available evidence without filling missing axes.
Claude Opus 4.6DeepSeek-V4-Flash
LMArena Code Arena WebDevOverall. Higher is better. Test setup not documented as identical
Claude Opus 4.6Higher measured value1,537.258
DeepSeek-V4-Flash1,430.632
LMArena Code Arena WebDevOverall. Higher is better. No documented setup difference
Claude Opus 4.6Winner1,546.362
DeepSeek-V4-Flash1,430.632
LMArena Code Arena WebDevWebdev. Higher is better. Test setup not documented as identical
Claude Opus 4.6Higher measured value1,537.258
DeepSeek-V4-Flash1,430.632
LMArena Code Arena WebDevWebdev. Higher is better. No documented setup difference
Claude Opus 4.6Winner1,546.362
DeepSeek-V4-Flash1,430.632
LMArena Code Arena WebDevWebdev-html. Higher is better. Test setup not documented as identical
Claude Opus 4.6Higher measured value1,546.218
DeepSeek-V4-Flash1,416.219
LMArena Code Arena WebDevWebdev-html. Higher is better. No documented setup difference
Claude Opus 4.6Winner1,558.715
DeepSeek-V4-Flash1,416.219
LMArena Code Arena WebDevWebdev-react. Higher is better. Test setup not documented as identical
Claude Opus 4.6Higher measured value1,528.416
DeepSeek-V4-Flash1,421.593
LMArena Code Arena WebDevWebdev-react. Higher is better. No documented setup difference
Claude Opus 4.6Winner1,538.872
DeepSeek-V4-Flash1,421.593
Key to the marks:better valuebetter, but not conclusivetie
| Benchmark and task | Claude Opus 4.6 | DeepSeek-V4-Flash | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
LMArena Code Arena WebDevOverallTest detailsTest setup not documented as identicalNo direct winnerVersion: webdevMetric: WebDev Arena Bradley-Terry ratingScoring: Higher is betterClaude Opus 4.6: Snapshot: claude-opus-4-6, Harness: Arena Code Arena WebDev DeepSeek-V4-Flash: Snapshot: deepseek-v4-flash-high-preview, Reasoning: high, Harness: Arena Code Arena WebDevClaude Opus 4.6: Arena rating from 20,698 published pairwise votes.DeepSeek-V4-Flash: Arena rating from 10,152 published pairwise votes. | Higher measured value1,537.258 95% confidence interval: ±5.345The Arena score measures human preference rather than a fixed capability test. The confidence interval, Arena category, and model configuration are part of the result. | 1,430.632 95% confidence interval: ±6.942The Arena score measures human preference rather than a fixed capability test. The confidence interval, Arena category, and model configuration are part of the result. | LMArenaSource detailsData as of: 10/13/2026 |
LMArena Code Arena WebDevOverallTest detailsNo documented difference in the test setupVersion: webdevMetric: WebDev Arena Bradley-Terry ratingScoring: Higher is betterClaude Opus 4.6: Snapshot: claude-opus-4-6-high, Reasoning: high, Harness: Arena Code Arena WebDev DeepSeek-V4-Flash: Snapshot: deepseek-v4-flash-high-preview, Reasoning: high, Harness: Arena Code Arena WebDevClaude Opus 4.6: Arena rating from 19,443 published pairwise votes.DeepSeek-V4-Flash: Arena rating from 10,152 published pairwise votes. | Winner1,546.362 95% confidence interval: ±5.46The Arena score measures human preference rather than a fixed capability test. The confidence interval, Arena category, and model configuration are part of the result. | 1,430.632 95% confidence interval: ±6.942The Arena score measures human preference rather than a fixed capability test. The confidence interval, Arena category, and model configuration are part of the result. | LMArenaSource detailsData as of: 10/13/2026 |
LMArena Code Arena WebDevWebdevTest detailsTest setup not documented as identicalNo direct winnerVersion: webdevMetric: WebDev Arena Bradley-Terry ratingScoring: Higher is betterClaude Opus 4.6: Snapshot: claude-opus-4-6, Harness: Arena Code Arena WebDev DeepSeek-V4-Flash: Snapshot: deepseek-v4-flash-high-preview, Reasoning: high, Harness: Arena Code Arena WebDevClaude Opus 4.6: Arena rating from 20,698 published pairwise votes.DeepSeek-V4-Flash: Arena rating from 10,152 published pairwise votes. | Higher measured value1,537.258 95% confidence interval: ±5.345The Arena score measures human preference rather than a fixed capability test. The confidence interval, Arena category, and model configuration are part of the result. | 1,430.632 95% confidence interval: ±6.942The Arena score measures human preference rather than a fixed capability test. The confidence interval, Arena category, and model configuration are part of the result. | LMArenaSource detailsData as of: 10/13/2026 |
LMArena Code Arena WebDevWebdevTest detailsNo documented difference in the test setupVersion: webdevMetric: WebDev Arena Bradley-Terry ratingScoring: Higher is betterClaude Opus 4.6: Snapshot: claude-opus-4-6-high, Reasoning: high, Harness: Arena Code Arena WebDev DeepSeek-V4-Flash: Snapshot: deepseek-v4-flash-high-preview, Reasoning: high, Harness: Arena Code Arena WebDevClaude Opus 4.6: Arena rating from 19,443 published pairwise votes.DeepSeek-V4-Flash: Arena rating from 10,152 published pairwise votes. | Winner1,546.362 95% confidence interval: ±5.46The Arena score measures human preference rather than a fixed capability test. The confidence interval, Arena category, and model configuration are part of the result. | 1,430.632 95% confidence interval: ±6.942The Arena score measures human preference rather than a fixed capability test. The confidence interval, Arena category, and model configuration are part of the result. | LMArenaSource detailsData as of: 10/13/2026 |
LMArena Code Arena WebDevWebdev-htmlTest detailsTest setup not documented as identicalNo direct winnerVersion: webdevMetric: WebDev Arena Bradley-Terry ratingScoring: Higher is betterClaude Opus 4.6: Snapshot: claude-opus-4-6, Harness: Arena Code Arena WebDev DeepSeek-V4-Flash: Snapshot: deepseek-v4-flash-high-preview, Reasoning: high, Harness: Arena Code Arena WebDevClaude Opus 4.6: Arena rating from 2,623 published pairwise votes.DeepSeek-V4-Flash: Arena rating from 1,165 published pairwise votes. | Higher measured value1,546.218 95% confidence interval: ±12.521The Arena score measures human preference rather than a fixed capability test. The confidence interval, Arena category, and model configuration are part of the result. | 1,416.219 95% confidence interval: ±18.033The Arena score measures human preference rather than a fixed capability test. The confidence interval, Arena category, and model configuration are part of the result. | LMArenaSource detailsData as of: 10/13/2026 |
LMArena Code Arena WebDevWebdev-htmlTest detailsNo documented difference in the test setupVersion: webdevMetric: WebDev Arena Bradley-Terry ratingScoring: Higher is betterClaude Opus 4.6: Snapshot: claude-opus-4-6-high, Reasoning: high, Harness: Arena Code Arena WebDev DeepSeek-V4-Flash: Snapshot: deepseek-v4-flash-high-preview, Reasoning: high, Harness: Arena Code Arena WebDevClaude Opus 4.6: Arena rating from 2,474 published pairwise votes.DeepSeek-V4-Flash: Arena rating from 1,165 published pairwise votes. | Winner1,558.715 95% confidence interval: ±13.217The Arena score measures human preference rather than a fixed capability test. The confidence interval, Arena category, and model configuration are part of the result. | 1,416.219 95% confidence interval: ±18.033The Arena score measures human preference rather than a fixed capability test. The confidence interval, Arena category, and model configuration are part of the result. | LMArenaSource detailsData as of: 10/13/2026 |
LMArena Code Arena WebDevWebdev-reactTest detailsTest setup not documented as identicalNo direct winnerVersion: webdevMetric: WebDev Arena Bradley-Terry ratingScoring: Higher is betterClaude Opus 4.6: Snapshot: claude-opus-4-6, Harness: Arena Code Arena WebDev DeepSeek-V4-Flash: Snapshot: deepseek-v4-flash-high-preview, Reasoning: high, Harness: Arena Code Arena WebDevClaude Opus 4.6: Arena rating from 16,319 published pairwise votes.DeepSeek-V4-Flash: Arena rating from 8,109 published pairwise votes. | Higher measured value1,528.416 95% confidence interval: ±5.908The Arena score measures human preference rather than a fixed capability test. The confidence interval, Arena category, and model configuration are part of the result. | 1,421.593 95% confidence interval: ±7.665The Arena score measures human preference rather than a fixed capability test. The confidence interval, Arena category, and model configuration are part of the result. | LMArenaSource detailsData as of: 10/13/2026 |
LMArena Code Arena WebDevWebdev-reactTest detailsNo documented difference in the test setupVersion: webdevMetric: WebDev Arena Bradley-Terry ratingScoring: Higher is betterClaude Opus 4.6: Snapshot: claude-opus-4-6-high, Reasoning: high, Harness: Arena Code Arena WebDev DeepSeek-V4-Flash: Snapshot: deepseek-v4-flash-high-preview, Reasoning: high, Harness: Arena Code Arena WebDevClaude Opus 4.6: Arena rating from 15,177 published pairwise votes.DeepSeek-V4-Flash: Arena rating from 8,109 published pairwise votes. | Winner1,538.872 95% confidence interval: ±6.058The Arena score measures human preference rather than a fixed capability test. The confidence interval, Arena category, and model configuration are part of the result. | 1,421.593 95% confidence interval: ±7.665The Arena score measures human preference rather than a fixed capability test. The confidence interval, Arena category, and model configuration are part of the result. | LMArenaSource detailsData as of: 10/13/2026 |
Key to the marks:better valuebetter, but not conclusivetie | |||
Our model tests
Our tests
SVG short test
One SVG prompt and fixed output settings. Captures are shown only with 0 reported reasoning tokens or documented lack of reasoning controls. Identical test conditions do not make the models' internal compute identical.
Shared test round: 43b8c5c46830
DeepSeek-V4-Flash
Earlier tests
Pelican on a bicycle
A community classic for free-form SVG drawing.
Claude Opus 4.6
Reasoning (requested): high
Current attempt
- Run date
- Oct 1, 2026
- API provider
- openrouter
- Requested API model
- anthropic/claude-opus-4.6
- API model reported in response
- anthropic/claude-opus-4.6
- Reasoning setting
- high
- Pinned endpoint
- Anthropic | anthropic/claude-4.6-opus-20260205
- Temperature
- Provider default
- Token limit including reasoning
- 8,192 tokens
- Test protocol
- community-visual-tests-v1
- Technical checks
- Passed, not a quality rating
- Response time
- 85.1 s
Visually reviewed. This individual test does not establish overall model quality.
DeepSeek-V4-Flash
The response reached the token limit. No complete recording is available.
Reasoning (requested): high
Current attempt
- Run date
- Oct 5, 2026
- API provider
- openrouter
- Requested API model
- deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash-0731
- API model reported in response
- deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash-0731
- Reasoning setting
- high
- Pinned endpoint
- StreamLake | deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash-20260731
- Temperature
- Provider default
- Token limit including reasoning
- 8,192 tokens
- Test protocol
- community-visual-tests-v1
- Technical checks
- Failed
- Response time
- 97.8 s
Not yet visually reviewed. A successful recording does not confirm correct physics or full compliance with the prompt.
Earlier attempts (3)
- Oct 2, 2026API request failedReasoning setting: high
- Oct 1, 2026API request failedReasoning setting: high
- Sep 7, 2026API request failedReasoning setting: high
Prompt and test conditions
Generate an SVG of a pelican riding a bicycle
Token limit including reasoning: 8,192 tokens
Task origin (Simon Willison)How to read this comparison
Winning one benchmark is not an overall verdict
Your workload, budget, and required context length matter most. A coding benchmark says little about visual understanding or agent performance.
The standard price table uses direct developer rates. The provider comparison labels OpenRouter endpoints, regions, and special tariffs separately.
Every result links to its measurement source and retrieval date. Labels distinguish vendor reports, official benchmark leaderboards, and independent evaluations. Disputed or archived results are excluded.
More matchups
Related LLM comparisons
Compare Claude Opus 4.6 and DeepSeek-V4-Flash with other leading models using the same data and benchmark logic.