Priority tier

How it works

A priority tier is an option where the provider handles your requests ahead of standard traffic, aiming for more consistent latency and fewer capacity errors at busy times. It is priced above the standard rate or sold as committed capacity.

Makers structure it differently: some charge a per-token premium when you set a service tier on the request, others require a contract for a level of usage, and some publish availability targets. Which models support it varies; this site shows it when the maker documents it.

Consider it when peak-hour slowdowns hurt a customer-facing product. For background work, the standard, flex or batch tiers are usually better value.

Worked example

Illustrative: at $5 per 1M output tokens standard and $8.75 priority, a product generating 50M output tokens a month pays $250 on standard or $437.50 on priority, an extra $187.50 for steadier response times.

Common mistakes

• 1Paying priority rates for background jobs that would run fine on standard or batch.
• 2Assuming priority raises your rate limits; check, because limits may be set separately.
• 3Not checking whether a commitment is required and how usage above it is billed.