Seed 2.1 Turbo: pricing, context and performance
Seed 2.1 Turbo in numbers: price per token, context window, independent benchmark scores and comparable models, based on public data checked on October 22, 2026.
Data as of October 22, 2026
Key figures
| Developer | ByteDance Seed |
|---|---|
| Released | June 23, 2026 |
| Context window | 262,144 tokens (≈ 393 pages) |
| Maximum output | 235,929 tokens |
| Input price | $0.50 per million tokens (median of 9 providers) |
| Output price | $2.5 per million tokens |
| Open weights | No |
| Reasoning mode | Yes |
| Tool calling | Yes |
| Structured output (JSON) | Yes |
| Accepted inputs | text, image, video |
| Providers offering it | 9 |
Overview
ByteDance Seed released Seed 2.1 Turbo on June 23, 2026. It has a reasoning mode: it can "think" before answering, which helps with multi-step problems but uses more tokens, and therefore more money. It is a closed model: you access it through an API, from ByteDance Seed or one of the 9 providers listed on models.dev. That makes it 4 months old as of October 22, 2026.
We file it under mid-range models (34 models in this category on the site).
Benchmark results
As of October 22, 2026, Epoch AI publishes no score for Seed 2.1 Turbo on our basket's benchmarks. To place it, rely on its specifications and price, then test it on your own cases.
How much does Seed 2.1 Turbo cost?
Seed 2.1 Turbo costs $0.50 per million input tokens and $2.5 per million output tokens (median of 9 providers, checked on October 22, 2026).
To put it in perspective: reading 20,000 tokens (about thirty pages) and writing 2,000 costs roughly $0.015; a thousand of those tasks, $15.
That is 1.8 times cheaper than the median output price of mid-range models ($4.38).
To estimate your own budget, use the agent cost calculator.
What it can do
Its context window reaches 262,144 tokens, roughly 393 pages of text at 500 words per page: enough for a long report or several contracts at once. A single answer can run to 235,929 tokens.
It accepts as input: text, image and video.
It can call tools (functions, APIs) and return structured JSON output, which makes it a possible foundation for an AI agent.
What is it good for?
Given its category, Seed 2.1 Turbo is mainly aimed at a balance between quality and cost, for everyday uses that do not justify a frontier model.
Before adopting it, test it on your own examples: benchmarks measure standard tasks, not your job.
Alternatives
In the same category, the models closest to Seed 2.1 Turbo are:
- Grok 4.3 (xAI, index 76.8)
- Grok 4.20 (Reasoning) (xAI, index 74.6)
- Gemini 3.5 Flash Lite (Google DeepMind, index 53.9)
- Nova 2 Lite (Amazon, $2.5 per million output tokens)
Similar models
- Grok 4.3 · xAI · index 76.8
- Grok 4.20 (Reasoning) · xAI · index 74.6
- Gemini 3.5 Flash Lite · Google DeepMind · index 53.9
- Nova 2 Lite · Amazon
Other ByteDance Seed models
- Seed 2.0 Code · February 14, 2026
- Seed 2.0 Mini · February 14, 2026
- Seed 2.0 Lite · February 14, 2026
- Seed 2.0 Pro · February 14, 2026
Frequently asked questions
How much does Seed 2.1 Turbo cost?
As of October 22, 2026, Seed 2.1 Turbo costs $0.50 per million input tokens and $2.5 per million output tokens (median of 9 providers). A task that reads 20,000 tokens and writes 2,000 costs about $0.015.
What is the context window of Seed 2.1 Turbo?
262,144 tokens, roughly 393 pages of text. An answer can reach 235,929 tokens.
Is Seed 2.1 Turbo open source?
No. It is a closed ByteDance Seed model, available only through an API.
When was Seed 2.1 Turbo released?
Seed 2.1 Turbo was released on June 23, 2026, according to models.dev.
Can you build an agent with Seed 2.1 Turbo?
Yes: it can call tools and return structured JSON, the two basic building blocks of an agent.
Data sources
- Models.dev — Model data: models.dev (open-source project)
- OpenRouter — Market prices cross-checked with OpenRouter
Data as of October 22, 2026
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