Sonar vs Sonar Pro
Sonar leads Sonar Pro on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index, 7.7 to 7.6, and Sonar costs 15.0x less per output token ($1.00 vs $15.00 per million). Updated October 21, 2026; 5 benchmarks have a result for both.
Sonar or Sonar Pro: which to pick
Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding.
Pick Sonar for output tokens 15.0x cheaper ($1.00 vs $15.00 per million) and work measured by GPQA Diamond (Artificial Analysis run) or Humanity's Last Exam (Artificial Analysis run), where it leads.
- Shared results
- 5
- Sonar only
- 0
- Sonar Pro only
- 0
- Like-for-like categories
- 4 of 9
Only benchmarks that tested both models count toward a pick; a result only one model has is shown but not compared.
Which one for your work
Each card is decided by one number both models carry. Where only one has it, the card says so and makes no call.
Coding
Vibe Coding Index, six public coding benchmarks
No call
Neither has a coding score yet.
One side not measured
Intelligence
AA Intelligence Index
Sonar
Sonar leads, 7.7 against 7.6.
Same board, both measured
Long documents
Listed context window
Sonar Pro
Sonar Pro takes 200K tokens against 127K.
Listed by OpenRouter
Everyday cost
1K input + 500 output tokens
Sonar
Sonar $0.0015, Sonar Pro $0.011 per turn.
List prices
At a glance
- Coding index
- Sonar not benchmarked, Sonar Pro not benchmarked.
- Widest category
- Knowledge, 6.6 points apart on average over 1 shared benchmark.
- Widest single gap
- GPQA Diamond (Artificial Analysis run): Sonar 47.1% against Sonar Pro 57.8%, 10.7 points apart on a 0 to 100 scale.
- Output price
- Sonar $1.00 against Sonar Pro $15.00 per million output tokens, 15.0x apart.
- Context window
- Sonar takes 127K tokens, Sonar Pro 200K.
Benchmark by benchmark
First the score: boards each model leads, per category, where both have a result. Then every board, a category to a fold; bars are each result on a 0 to 100 scale, so compare the two in a row, not one row with another.
| Category | Sonar | Bars | Sonar Pro | Ties |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coding | 1 | 0 | ||
| Intelligence | 1 | 0 | ||
| Reasoning | 0 | 2 | ||
| Knowledge | 0 | 1 | ||
| All shared boards | 2 | 3 |
CodingLike-for-likeSix of these boards feed the Vibe Coding Index10
| Benchmark | Sonar | Sonar Pro | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| LiveCodeBench (Artificial Analysis run) | 29.5% | 27.5% | Sonar |
| Neither model has a result on the other 37 boards here | |||
IntelligenceLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index10
| Benchmark | Sonar | Sonar Pro | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA Intelligence Index | 7.7 | 7.6 | Sonar |
| Neither model has a result on the other 1 board here | |||
Agentic workNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Sonar | Sonar Pro | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 39 boards here | |||
ReasoningLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index02
| Benchmark | Sonar | Sonar Pro | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| GPQA Diamond (Artificial Analysis run) | 47.1% | 57.8% | Sonar Pro |
| Humanity's Last Exam (Artificial Analysis run) | 4.9% | 6.6% | Sonar Pro |
| Neither model has a result on the other 19 boards here | |||
MathNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Sonar | Sonar Pro | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 13 boards here | |||
KnowledgeLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index01
| Benchmark | Sonar | Sonar Pro | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| MMLU Pro (Artificial Analysis run) | 68.9% | 75.5% | Sonar Pro |
| Neither model has a result on the other 16 boards here | |||
Web designNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Sonar | Sonar Pro | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 9 boards here | |||
GeneralNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Sonar | Sonar Pro | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 46 boards here | |||
Image generationNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | Sonar | Sonar Pro | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 5 boards here | |||
What each workload costs
Three fixed token mixes at each model's listed price, so per-token rates become a bill.
Chat turn
1K input + 500 output tokens
Sonar costs less
Repository review
50K input + 3K output tokens
Sonar costs less
Agent loop
200K input + 10K output tokens
Sonar costs less
Listed OpenRouter rates, without cache or batch discounts. A workload that does not fit a model's context window would need splitting.
Specification differences
The leading value in a row is marked; a row with a missing value names no leader. Our two rows are marked in red.
| Specification | Perplexity Sonar | Perplexity Sonar Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Maker | Perplexity | Perplexity |
| Weights | No public weights listed | No public weights listed |
| Released | January 27, 2025 | March 7, 2025 |
| Context window | 127K | 200K |
| Input $/Mtok | $1.00 | $3.00 |
| Output $/Mtok | $1.00 | $15.00 |
| Coding index | Not benchmarked | Not benchmarked |
| Independent measurements behind it | 0 | 0 |
| Cost per solved task | Not computable | Not computable |
| Source | OpenRouter listing | OpenRouter listing |
Questions
Is Sonar better than Sonar Pro for coding?
Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding. Pick Sonar for output tokens 15.0x cheaper ($1.00 vs $15.00 per million) and work measured by GPQA Diamond (Artificial Analysis run) or Humanity's Last Exam (Artificial Analysis run), where it leads.
Which is cheaper, Sonar or Sonar Pro?
Sonar costs $1.00 per million input tokens and $1.00 per million output tokens; Sonar Pro costs $3.00 and $15.00. Cost per solved task is known for neither of them.
Which has the bigger context window, Sonar or Sonar Pro?
Sonar Pro, with 200K tokens against 127K.
How many benchmarks is the Sonar vs Sonar Pro comparison based on?
5 benchmarks have a result for both models as of October 21, 2026. Sonar's coding index rests on 0 independent benchmarks and Sonar Pro's on 0. Where only one model has a result, the page says so instead of naming a winner.