Lowest price
Either one
Both cost $32.00 / 1M audio tokens.
GPT-Realtime-2 vs GPT-Realtime-2.1: price, context and capabilities
Choose GPT-Realtime-2.1 for the latest release; on the other points the two are level or the data is missing.
In short
- Both cost the same at the headline price ($32.00 / 1M audio tokens).
- Both accept 128k tokens per request.
- GPT-Realtime-2.1 is the newer model (Jul 6, 2026, against May 7, 2026).
Which should you choose?
Each answer below comes straight from the published prices, specifications and independent benchmark results.
Latest release
Choose GPT-Realtime-2.1
GPT-Realtime-2.1 is the newer release (Jul 6, 2026, against May 7, 2026 for GPT-Realtime-2).
Specifications side by side
| GPT-Realtime-2 | GPT-Realtime-2.1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | OpenAI | OpenAI |
| Category | Voice and realtime | Voice and realtime |
| Status | Legacy | Generally available |
| Headline price | $32.00 / 1M audio tokens | $32.00 / 1M audio tokens |
| Context window | 128k | 128k |
| Max output | 32k | 32k |
| Released | May 7, 2026 | Jul 6, 2026 |
| Knowledge cutoff | September 2024 | September 2024 |
| Licence | Proprietary | Proprietary |
| Capabilities | Audio input, Reasoning, Tool calling | Audio input, Reasoning, Tool calling |
| API model id | gpt-realtime-2 | gpt-realtime-2.1 |
Frequently asked questions
Should I choose GPT-Realtime-2 or GPT-Realtime-2.1?
Choose GPT-Realtime-2.1 for the latest release; on the other points the two are level or the data is missing.
Which is cheaper, GPT-Realtime-2 or GPT-Realtime-2.1?
Both cost the same at the headline price ($32.00 / 1M audio tokens).
Which has the larger context window, GPT-Realtime-2 or GPT-Realtime-2.1?
Both accept 128k tokens per request.
What is the difference between GPT-Realtime-2 and GPT-Realtime-2.1?
GPT-Realtime-2 is made by OpenAI and GPT-Realtime-2.1 by OpenAI. Both cost the same at the headline price ($32.00 / 1M audio tokens). Both accept 128k tokens per request. GPT-Realtime-2.1 is the newer model (Jul 6, 2026, against May 7, 2026).
Which is newer, GPT-Realtime-2 or GPT-Realtime-2.1?
GPT-Realtime-2.1 was released on Jul 6, 2026 and GPT-Realtime-2 on May 7, 2026.