Claude Fable 5.1 vs Claude Sonnet 5.5

$2.98 / task
Wins 7 of 9 benchmarks
$0.88 / task
Wins 0 of 9 benchmarks
Fable 5.144.9
Sonnet 5.543.9
Fable 5.1at max49
Sonnet 5.544.3
Fable 5.1at max1,743
Sonnet 5.51,710
Fable 5.1at high99.1
Sonnet 5.5at xhigh95.8
Fable 5.1at high92.2
Sonnet 5.5at xhigh70.6
Fable 5.156.4
Sonnet 5.553.7
Fable 5.1at max43.3
Sonnet 5.534.3
Fable 5.1—
Sonnet 5.5at max70.5
MirrorCode?
Fable 5.1at high73.3
Sonnet 5.5—

Specs

SpecFable 5.1Sonnet 5.5
Input, per 1M$10$2
Output, per 1M$50$10
Cost per task?$2.98$0.88
Speed, tok/s56106
Context1M1M
WeightsClosedClosed
ReleasedSep 2026Sep 2026
See images✓✓
Read PDFsPartial✓
Hear audio——
Watch video——
Call tools✓✓
Force a tool callPartial—
Return strict JSON✓✓
Search the web?✓
Run code?✓
Use a computer?✓

What breaks when you switch

Fable 5.1 → Sonnet 5.5
No forced tool use›

Forced tool_choice any or tool returns HTTP 400; remove the forced choice.

Replace disabled thinking›

Disabled thinking returns HTTP 400; use between_tools for the lowest thinking setting.

No manual thinking budgets›

Manual thinking budgets and extra between_tools fields return HTTP 400; remove manual budgets and send between_tools without display, budget_tokens or block_binding.

Remove sampling parameters›

Non-default temperature, top_p or top_k returns HTTP 400; remove these parameters.

No assistant prefill›

A prefilled final assistant turn returns HTTP 400; remove that prefill.

Old computer tool rejected · Claude API / Google Cloud›

The computer_20251124 tool returns HTTP 400 on the Claude API and Google Cloud; use computer_toolset_20260801 there.

Sonnet 5.5 → Fable 5.1
Replace forced tool_choice›

Forced tool_choice returns HTTP 400; use auto with an explicit instruction and strict tools, or JSON outputs.

Adaptive thinking is always on›

Disabled thinking or manual budget_tokens returns HTTP 400; omit thinking or use adaptive thinking.

No non-default sampling values›

Non-default temperature, top_p or top_k returns HTTP 400; omit non-default sampling values.

Requires 30-day data retention · Claude API›

A Claude API organization or workspace without 30-day retention receives HTTP 400; configure workspace retention or contact the Anthropic account team.

Thinking blocks bind to conversations›

Where conversation binding is enforced, replaying an invalidated block returns HTTP 400; use the documented drop_block control to continue without it.

No assistant prefill›

Assistant prefill returns HTTP 400; use system prompt instructions instead.