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OpenAI Advanced

GPT-5.6 Terra

GPT-5.6 Terra is OpenAI's balanced GPT-5.6 model with 1.05M context, 128K output and standard pricing of $2/M input and $12/M output.

General Purpose Language ModelTextImage Paid
In plain English

What is this model and why does it matter?

GPT-5.6 Terra is OpenAI's balanced GPT-5.6 model for teams that want high intelligence at a lower cost than Sol.

Production assistantsCodingAgentsBusiness automationHigh-quality general workloads
Model overview

GPT-5.6 Terra: features, use cases and important details

GPT-5.6 Terra is OpenAI’s GPT-5.6 model designed to balance intelligence and cost.

Verified model facts

It has the same 1.05M context window and 128K maximum output as Sol, with a February 16 2026 knowledge cutoff, text and image input and support for functions, structured outputs and OpenAI tools.

Current status

Terra is active on the OpenAI API and sits below Sol on price while retaining the core GPT-5.6 feature set.

Best fit

It is a strong fit for production assistants, coding, agents and business automation where cost matters.

Limitations

It is less capable than the flagship tiers on the hardest tasks, and requests above 272K input tokens cost more.

Get started

How to use this model

  1. Create an OpenAI API key.
  2. Use model gpt-5.6-terra.
  3. Select reasoning effort based on latency and quality needs.
  4. Add functions or built-in tools when needed.
  5. Track context size because requests above 272K use higher pricing.
Copy and try

Example prompts

  • Draft and validate a production implementation plan.
  • Review this code and return a structured list of fixes.
  • Analyze these documents and answer the business question.
Capabilities

What it can do

  • 1.05M context
  • 128K output
  • Reasoning
  • Vision
  • Function calling
  • Structured outputs
  • OpenAI tools
Best for

Practical use cases

  • Production chat
  • Coding
  • Agents
  • Document analysis
  • Business workflows
Pricing

What does it cost?

$2.00 per 1M input tokens, $0.20 per 1M cached input and $12.00 per 1M output. Prompts above 272K input tokens use higher long-context rates.

Input$2.00 / 1M tokens
Output$12.00 / 1M tokens
Simple summaryTerra costs $2/M input and $12/M output at standard context lengths, making it the middle GPT-5.6 price tier.

What stands out

  • Lower price than Sol
  • Same large context and output limits
  • Strong tool support
  • Balanced capability and cost

Things to consider

  • Less capable than Sol/Astra on hardest tasks
  • Proprietary
  • Long-context surcharge
Limitations

Important restrictions and trade-offs

  • Static February 2026 cutoff without tools
  • Can hallucinate
  • Hardest tasks may benefit from Sol or Astra
SimplifyAITools verdict

Our editorial take

Probably the best GPT-5.6 starting point for production teams balancing quality and API spend.

References

Primary sources

  1. Open source 1 ↗
  2. Open source 2 ↗
  3. Open source 3 ↗
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