Beam 1.0 vs Claude Sonnet 5.5
| Spec | Beam 1.0 | Claude Sonnet 5.5 |
|---|---|---|
| Respan Index | 39.6 (#61) | 73.1 (#2) |
| Blended price per 1M | $0.438 | $2 |
| Context window | 1.0M | 1M |
| Input / output per 1M | $0.25 / $1 | $1 / $5 |
| Max output | 131K | 128K |
| Input | text | text, vision |
| Released | 2026-10-16 | 2026-09-28 |
Respan Index by category
Each category is scored 0 to 100, and how far ahead the winner is. Leads under a point are close to even.
| Category | Beam 1.0 | Claude Sonnet 5.5 |
|---|---|---|
| Coding | 17.1 Beam 1.0 | 79.6 Claude Sonnet 5.5 |
| Agents | 56.7 Beam 1.0 | 78.4 Claude Sonnet 5.5 |
| Reasoning | 39.4 Beam 1.0 | 79.0 Claude Sonnet 5.5 |
| Knowledge & language | 35.4* Beam 1.0 | 48.5 Claude Sonnet 5.5 |
| Human preference | 51.6 Beam 1.0 | 60.2 Claude Sonnet 5.5 |
* Estimated: no published scores in that category. How the Respan Index works
Benchmarks both report
Claude Sonnet 5.5 leads on 6 of the 6 benchmarks both report. Higher is better. Each score links to where it was published.
FAQ
Is Beam 1.0 better than Claude Sonnet 5.5?
Claude Sonnet 5.5 scores 73.1 on the Respan Index (#2), ahead of Beam 1.0 at 39.6 (#61). Claude Sonnet 5.5 leads on 6 of the 6 benchmarks both report.
Which is cheaper, Beam 1.0 or Claude Sonnet 5.5?
Beam 1.0 lists at $0.25 input and $1 output per 1M tokens; Claude Sonnet 5.5 at $1 and $5. Beam 1.0 is 4.6x cheaper per token at list price.
Which has the larger context window?
Beam 1.0 accepts 1.0M tokens and Claude Sonnet 5.5 1M tokens.