Released05/2026
Speed0 tokens/s
Time to first token0.00s
Input price$5/1M
Output price$25/1M
Rankings
Review
Opus 4.8 is a top pick for medium-to-large programming projects and in-depth consulting thanks to its exceptional context comprehension. However, high costs and weaker performance in reasoning/agents keep it from being a universal choice—use Sonnet 5 for high volume or Haiku for quick tasks.
Strengths
- General conversation ranks in the top 3 on AIM—understands nuanced context, responds naturally, and suits in-depth advisory work
- Strong coding performance (top 4 on AIM)—handles complex code, delivers clean refactors, and grasps architecture well
- Long context window—processes large codebases and long documents while maintaining analytical depth
Weaknesses
- Weak on AI agents (#9 on AIM)—not the right choice for autonomous workflows or complex task orchestration
- Reasoning is not top-tier (#10 on AIM)—suboptimal for multi-step deduction or difficult mathematical reasoning
- High cost and slower speeds—not economical for simple tasks; Sonnet 5 or Haiku are better alternatives
Use cases
Medium-to-large software projects: writing, reviewing, and refactoring code in complex codebasesIn-depth consulting: architectural design analysis, solving business problems, and producing high-quality contentIntegration into quality-first applications: premium chatbots, AI tutors, coding assistants
Guides & videos
Access via claude.ai for immediate use, or via Claude Code/API using model ID 'claude-opus-4-8'. Best for complex programming, data analysis, and automated task execution. Tip: use the 'effort' parameter (low/medium/high/xhigh/max) to tune thinking depth; fast mode runs 2.5x faster at 3x lower cost than the legacy model.