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Coding Agent Cost per Task

What does a coding agent cost per accepted task?

How this tool works

This calculator estimates cost per accepted coding-agent task across fixed subscription spend, direct API token usage, local fallback runtime, acceptance rate, and task-attempt overhead. Use it when developer-month or seat-plan math is too broad and the decision depends on useful tasks delivered.

Use this when

  • You need cost per accepted task for an internal agent, review bot, or self-serve coding workflow.
  • You want rework and acceptance rate visible before comparing tool plans.
  • You need a chargeback, package price, or budget guardrail per accepted task.

How It Works

  1. Set worker count, accepted task volume, and acceptance rate.
  2. Split task attempts across subscription, API, and local fallback lanes.
  3. Compare cost per accepted task, monthly spend, and break-even task price.

Formulas

accepted_tasks_monthly = active_workers * accepted_tasks_per_worker_month

task_attempts_monthly = accepted_tasks_monthly / acceptance_rate

cost_per_accepted_task = (subscription + api_model + local_fallback + infra) / accepted_tasks_monthly

Assumptions and Units

  • Currency: USD
  • Task unit: accepted coding task
  • Acceptance rate creates rework attempts before cost is allocated to accepted tasks
  • Subscription spend is entered as a fixed worker-month budget
  • Pricing source: daily pricing snapshot in repo, no runtime scraping

Worked Example

If 4 active workers each accept 35 tasks per month at a 72 percent acceptance rate, the system must fund about 194 task attempts. Routing 25 percent through API and 15 percent through local fallback keeps the fixed-plan lane visible while still pricing overflow and fallback work.

FAQs

How is this different from cost per developer? Developer-month cost is a rollout budget view. Accepted-task cost is a workflow unit view for pricing, chargebacks, and agent stop conditions.

Where should I compare Codex, Claude Code, Cursor, or Copilot plans? Use AI Coding Plan Comparison for fixed-plan buying decisions, then return here when task volume and acceptance rate are known.

Related resources: AI Coding Plan Comparison, Codex vs Claude Cost, AI Coding Agent Cost, PR Review Cost, Coding Agent Cost per Task, AI Coding Agent Cost per Developer, PR Review Cost, Best AI Coding Plan for My Usage, Codex vs Claude Cost, Fixed Plan vs API Pricing for Coding Tools, Model Selection: Quality vs Unit Cost, How Many Tokens Per Request?.

Pricing snapshot: 2026-06-15Provider: OpenAIModel: GPT-5.3 CodexAccepted tasks: 140/mo

Decision Signal

Lean

This scenario costs $5.80 per accepted coding-agent task and needs $19.32 per task at the target margin.

Rework multiplier: 1.39 attempts per accepted task.

Step 1 Throughput

Set task volume and acceptance before model routing. These determine how many attempts the spend must cover.

Repo-aware coding workflows where active developer usage, context load, and model routing move unit cost fast.

Step 2 Model Lane

API token spend uses the selected provider/model row from the current snapshot.

Step 3 Routing and Overhead

Split task attempts across fixed subscriptions, direct API, and local fallback. The remaining share is the subscription lane.

Subscription lane receives 60.0% of attempts after API and local shares.

Scenario actions

Copy scenario URL

Paste into ChatGPT or Claude, or share with a teammate.

Save and track this scenario

Track pricing drift on this scenario and get an email if the latest result changes.

How tracking works

After you click Save and track, we carry this exact calculator state into the tracked-scenarios page so you can sign in and confirm the save.

We save your assumptions and the pricing snapshot used for this result.

When a newer pricing snapshot lands, we recompute the same scenario, show what changed, and email you if the latest result moved.

1 tracked scenario free, then $12/mo or $120/yr for up to 25 tracked scenarios.

Cost / accepted task

$5.80

Accepted tasks / month

140

Monthly agent cost

$811.53

API model requests / month

243

Top Cost Drivers

Largest change in cost per accepted task when each input is moved up.
Subscription budget / worker+$0.57
Accepted tasks / worker-$0.52
Local fallback share+$0.01

Totals

Accepted-task economics after rework and routing assumptions.
Cost / accepted task
$5.80
Cost / task attempt
$4.17
Break-even task price
$19.32
Monthly agent cost
$811.53
Cost / accepted task$5.80
Cost / task attempt$4.17
Break-even task price$19.32
Monthly agent cost$811.53

Routing

Task attempts by execution lane after acceptance-rate rework.
Subscription laneTask attempts covered by fixed worker-month spend.
Share
60.0%
Attempts / month
117
API laneTask attempts priced from token usage in the selected model row.
Share
25.0%
Attempts / month
49
Local fallback laneTask attempts priced from local runtime assumptions.
Share
15.0%
Attempts / month
29
MetricShareAttempts / month
Subscription laneTask attempts covered by fixed worker-month spend.60.0%117
API laneTask attempts priced from token usage in the selected model row.25.0%49
Local fallback laneTask attempts priced from local runtime assumptions.15.0%29

Component Breakdown

Monthly cost blocks behind the accepted-task result.
SubscriptionFixed worker-month plan or seat budget.
$800.00
Api ModelDirect API token spend for task attempts routed through API usage.
$2.98
Local FallbackLocal or self-hosted fallback runtime spend.
$4.67
InfraNon-model orchestration, sandbox, CI, and storage overhead.
$3.89
SubscriptionFixed worker-month plan or seat budget.$800.00
Api ModelDirect API token spend for task attempts routed through API usage.$2.98
Local FallbackLocal or self-hosted fallback runtime spend.$4.67
InfraNon-model orchestration, sandbox, CI, and storage overhead.$3.89

Assumptions and Units

Units and definitions used by this calculator.
  • CurrencyUSD
  • Task unitAccepted coding task after review and rework
  • Acceptance modelLower acceptance increases task attempts before cost is allocated to accepted tasks
  • Subscription laneFixed worker-month spend stays explicit and is not converted into hidden quotas
  • Pricing sourceDated pricing snapshot, no live fetch in the request path

Sources and Snapshot

Pricing comes from the current dated snapshot.

Active API Pricing Row

Selected API model

OpenAI / GPT-5.3 Codex

  • Input tokens$1.75 / 1M
  • Output tokens$14 / 1M

Recommended Next Step

Use these links after task volume, rework, and routing assumptions are explicit.

After task cost is clear, compare the fixed-plan lane or model a PR review workflow with the same pricing context.

Compare the buying lane next

AI Coding Plan ComparisonCodex vs Claude CostPR Review CostAI Coding Agent Cost

Compare infra providers

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