Model comparison

Claude Fable 5.1 vs Claude Opus 4.6

Pricing, context window and real answers (September 2026)

Claude Fable 5.1 (Anthropic) and Claude Opus 4.6 (Anthropic), compared as you can actually call them on FastMetal. Both are served from the same OpenAI-compatible endpoint and API key; switching is a change to the model string.

Specs and pricing

anthropic logoClaude Fable 5.1anthropic logoClaude Opus 4.6
ProviderAnthropicAnthropic
Input (per 1M tokens)¥1,787¥850
Output (per 1M tokens)¥8,935¥4,200
Typical cost (1,000 in + 500 out tokens × 1,000 calls)¥6,255¥2,950
Context window1,000,000 tokens1,000,000 tokens
Release date9/1/20262/4/2026
Input modalitiestext, image, filetext, image
Arena · overall#3 · ELO 1,504#6 · ELO 1,498
Arena · JapaneseUnranked#16 · ELO 1,481
Arena · coding#34 · ELO 1,517#5 · ELO 1,546

Prices are FastMetal's yen rates before tax. Arena ranks are as of the latest leaderboard scrape.

Which should you pick?

  • On price, Claude Opus 4.6: ¥4,200 per 1M output tokens, 53% less than Claude Fable 5.1.
  • On the Overall arena board, Claude Fable 5.1 ranks higher (#3; Claude Opus 4.6 is #6).
  • On the Coding arena board, Claude Opus 4.6 ranks higher (#5; Claude Fable 5.1 is #34).
  • If in doubt, try both on the same key. Switching is a change to the model string, and each is billed at its own rate.

Real answers to the same prompts

Exactly what the FastMetal gateway returned, side by side. Not benchmark scores: actual output.

Count the number of 'r's in 'strawberry'

Count the number of 'r's in 'strawberry'. Explain your reasoning step by step.

Claude Fable 5.1

**Step 1: Write out the word letter by letter.** s - t - r - a - w - b - e - r - r - y **Step 2: Number each position.** 1. s 2. t 3. **r** 4. a 5. w 6. b 7. e 8. **r** 9. **r** 10. y **Step 3: Identify which positions contain 'r'.** - Position 3: r (in "str-") - Position 8: r (in "-ber-") - Position 9: r (in "-rry") **Step 4: Count them.** 3 + 1 + 1 = **3** **Answer: There are 3 'r's in "strawberry."** A helpful way to check: split the word into its parts — "straw" (1 r) + "berry" (2 r's) = 3 r's total.
7.9s259 output tokens

Claude Opus 4.6

I need to count the number of 'r's in the word 'strawberry'. Let me go through it letter by letter. **s** - not an r **t** - not an r **r** - this is an r ✓ (count: 1) **a** - not an r **w** - not an r **b** - not an r **e** - not an r **r** - this is an r ✓ (count: 2) **r** - this is an r ✓ (count: 3) **y** - not an r There are **3** r's in 'strawberry'.
3.2s158 output tokens

Debug This Error

I'm getting the following error in my Node.js application: TypeError: Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'map') at UserList (/app/components/UserList.js:12:25) at renderWithHooks (/app/node_modules/rea…

Claude Fable 5.1

The error means that when `UserList` rendered, the `users` prop was `undefined`, so calling `.map()` on it failed. This typically happens because: 1. **The parent isn't passing the prop** (or misspelled it, e.g. `<UserList user={...} />`), or 2. **The data hasn't loaded yet.** A common pattern is fetching users in a `useEffect` and storing them in state whose initial value is `undefined` (e.g. `useState()`), so the first render happens before the data arrives. **Fixes** Give the prop a default value so the component is safe to render with no data: ```jsx function UserList({ users = [] }) { return ( <ul> {users.map(user => <li key={user.id}>{user.name}</li>)} </ul> ); }…
10.8s564 output tokens

Claude Opus 4.6

# Understanding the Error The error `Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'map')` means that **`users` is `undefined`** when the component renders. You're trying to call `.map()` on a value that doesn't exist yet. This typically happens when: - The parent component doesn't pass the `users` prop - The data is being fetched asynchronously and hasn't loaded yet - The prop name is misspelled ## Solutions ### 1. Add a Default Parameter Value (Simplest Fix) ```javascript function UserList({ users = [] }) { return ( <ul> {users.map(user => <li key={user.id}>{user.name}</li>)} </ul> ); } ``` ### 2. Add a Guard with Optional Chaining ```javascript function UserList({…
10.5s599 output tokens

Code Review

Please review the following Python function and suggest improvements for readability, performance, and best practices: def get_data(url, retries=3): import requests import time for i in range(retries):…

Claude Fable 5.1

Here's a review of the function organized by category, followed by a refactored version. ## Issues ### Correctness / robustness 1. **Bare `except:`** — This catches *everything*, including `KeyboardInterrupt`, `SystemExit`, and bugs like `KeyError` from `item["active"]`. A malformed response would be silently retried three times and then swallowed. Catch `requests.RequestException` (and `ValueError` for bad JSON) specifically. 2. **Retrying non-retryable errors** — A 404 or 400 will never succeed on retry. Only retry on transient failures (timeouts, connection errors, 5xx, 429). 3. **Silent failure** — Returning `[]` after exhausting retries is indistinguishable from "the endpoint legitima…
27.7s2028 output tokens

Claude Opus 4.6

# Code Review: `get_data` Function ## Original Issues Identified 1. **Imports inside function** – reduces clarity and adds per-call overhead 2. **Bare `except`** – catches everything including `KeyboardInterrupt` and `SystemExit` 3. **`== True` comparison** – non-Pythonic 4. **Manual list building** – could use a list comprehension 5. **No logging** – failures happen silently 6. **No response validation** – assumes JSON is always a list of dicts with specific keys 7. **Magic numbers** – `timeout=10`, `sleep(2)` unexplained 8. **Vague function/variable names** – `r`, `data`, `get_data` --- ## Improved Version ```python import logging import time from typing import Any import requests fr…
19.9s1223 output tokens

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Frequently asked questions

Which is cheaper, Claude Fable 5.1 or Claude Opus 4.6?
Per 1M output tokens, Claude Fable 5.1 is ¥8,935 and Claude Opus 4.6 is ¥4,200 on FastMetal (yen, before tax), so Claude Opus 4.6 is cheaper.
How do the context windows of Claude Fable 5.1 and Claude Opus 4.6 compare?
Claude Fable 5.1 takes 1,000,000 tokens; Claude Opus 4.6 takes 1,000,000.
Which ranks higher, Claude Fable 5.1 or Claude Opus 4.6?
Claude Fable 5.1 ranks higher on the public arena (Claude Fable 5.1 #3, Claude Opus 4.6 #16). Ranks move as the leaderboard updates.
Can I use Claude Fable 5.1 and Claude Opus 4.6 with the same API key?
Yes. On FastMetal's OpenAI-compatible endpoint, switch by passing "anthropic-claude-fable-5-1" or "anthropic-claude-opus-4-6" as the model. Each is billed at its own rate from the same prepaid balance.

Try both on one API key

Create an account and add credit to call Claude Fable 5.1 and Claude Opus 4.6 from the browser chat and the API. No monthly fee.

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