o4-mini
o4-mini advances OpenAI's compact reasoning model line with stronger performance and greater efficiency than o3-mini, adding native tool use and image reasoning.
import { streamText } from 'ai'
const result = streamText({ model: 'openai/o4-mini', prompt: 'Why is the sky blue?'})Playground
Try out o4-mini by OpenAI. Usage is billed to your team at API rates. Free users (those who haven't made a payment) get $5 of credits every 30 days.
o4-mini
o4-mini
Providers
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More models by OpenAI
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|---|
| 1.1M | 1.3s | 59tps | $5.00/M | $30.00/M | Read: $0.5/M Write: $6.25/M | $10.00/K + input costs | — | +4 |  | 07/09/2026 | |||
| 1.1M | 1.1s | 176tps | $1.00/M | $6.00/M | Read: $0.1/M Write: $1.25/M | $10.00/K + input costs | — | +4 | | 07/09/2026 | |||
| 1M | 0.6s | 73tps | $5.00/M | $30.00/M | Read: $0.5/M Write: — | $10.00/K + input costs | — | +4 |  | 04/24/2026 | |||
| 400K | 0.8s | 214tps | $0.75/M | $4.50/M | Read:$0.07/M Write:— | $10.00/K + input costs | — | +4 | | 03/17/2026 | |||
| 1.1M | 0.9s | 58tps | $2.50/M | $15.00/M | Read: $0.25/M Write: — | $10.00/K + input costs | — | +4 | | 03/05/2026 | |||
| 131K | 0.2s | 313tps | $0.35/M | $0.75/M | Read:$0.25/M Write:— | — | — |   +5 | 08/05/2025 |
About o4-mini
o4-mini was released on April 16, 2025 alongside o3 as a cost-efficient reasoning model from OpenAI. It advances the compact reasoning model line (following o1-mini and o3-mini) with improvements across reasoning quality, efficiency, and multimodal capability.
A key advancement is native vision support: o4-mini can reason over images, diagrams, mathematical notation, and screenshots, combining visual understanding with chain-of-thought analysis. Earlier mini reasoning models were text-only. This opens up visual reasoning tasks at the affordable mini-tier pricing.
The model supports function calling and tool use, making it suitable as the reasoning layer in lightweight agent architectures. Combined with the reasoning_effort parameter, it lets you build cost-optimized pipelines that apply just enough reasoning to each request.
What To Consider When Choosing a Provider
- Configuration: o4-mini incorporates advances beyond o3-mini, including native vision support. It's a strong option for projects that need affordable chain-of-thought reasoning.
- Configuration: Unlike earlier mini reasoning models, o4-mini natively supports vision input, enabling reasoning over images, diagrams, and documents.
- Zero Data Retention: AI Gateway supports Zero Data Retention for this model via direct gateway requests (BYOK is not included). To configure this, check the documentation.
- Authentication: AI Gateway authenticates requests using an API key or OIDC token. You do not need to manage provider credentials directly.
When to Use o4-mini
Best for
- Affordable chain-of-thought reasoning: Per-request deliberation on technical tasks at scale
- Visual reasoning: Analyzing diagrams, charts, mathematical notation, and screenshots with step-by-step thinking
- Tool-using agents: Lightweight reasoning backbone for agents that call external tools and APIs
- Math and code reasoning: Competition-level problems and algorithmic analysis at accessible cost
- Mixed-difficulty pipelines: Using
reasoning_effortto optimize cost across varied query complexity
Consider alternatives when
- Maximum reasoning depth: O3 or o3-pro for the hardest problems requiring exhaustive deliberation
- General-purpose tasks: GPT-5 mini for workloads that don't benefit from chain-of-thought
- Coding agent workflows: Codex models for autonomous software engineering
- Non-reasoning speed: GPT-5.1 instant for the fastest possible general-purpose responses
Conclusion
o4-mini combines stronger reasoning performance than o3-mini with native vision and tool use at an affordable price point. For technical workloads on AI Gateway that need per-request reasoning with multimodal support, it advances the cost-efficient reasoning tier.