AI & LLMs
Plan high, execute cheap
Almost none of a coding agent's tokens go to hard thinking. They go to the grind: the thirtieth file edit, re-reading the same module, run-test-read-error-fix, over and over. Pay premium rates for that long loop and it bleeds you. Keep the expensive model for the short, rare planning and run the loop on a cheaper one. Put in your numbers and see the split.
All on the premium model$285
Plan premium, execute cheap$80
- You cut
- 72%
- Saved / month
- $205
- Saved / year
- $2,460
The expensive model touches the project for the twenty minutes that matter (the plan); the cheap one does the eight hours of reps. Same work, same quality bar. The ratio is the point, not the exact dollar figure.