Current as of March 2026. GPT-5.2 steps up from 5.1 on both price and capability: $1.75/$14 vs $1.25/$10, with stronger reasoning built in. The 272K context and 128K output ceiling are identical. The question is whether the reasoning upgrade justifies the higher output cost for your specific workload.
Specs
| Provider | OpenAI |
| Input cost | $1.75 / M tokens |
| Output cost | $14 / M tokens |
| Context window | 272K tokens |
| Max output | 128K tokens |
| Parameters | N/A |
| Features | function_calling, vision, reasoning, web_search |
What it’s good at
128K Output with Reasoning
You get the same long output ceiling as 5.1, but the reasoning layer means fewer errors in the output itself. For complex code generation, that matters.
Multi-step Tool Chains
Nested logic and sequential tool calls are where this model earns the price premium. Edge cases that trip up GPT-4o are handled more reliably here.
Large Context
272K tokens. Feed in entire repositories or multi-document sets without hitting limits.
Where it falls short
$14/M Output
Eight times the input rate. Verbose agent loops will drain budget quickly. This is the main reason to consider 5.1 instead.
TTFT Latency
Reasoning overhead adds delay before the first token. Don’t put this on a path where users are watching a spinner.
Best use cases with OpenClaw
- Complex Agentic Workflows — Multi-step tool chains where 5.1’s reasoning isn’t quite holding up.
- Large-scale Refactoring — Ingest a full codebase and rewrite significant portions. Both the context window and output ceiling are large enough for serious work.
Not ideal for
- Simple Chat — $1.75/$14 for Q&A is wasteful. Use GPT-4o-mini.
- High-frequency Status Checks — Too slow and expensive for polling tasks.
Run it through Haimaker
Skip juggling API keys. One Haimaker key gives you access to every model on the platform. Tell OpenClaw:
Add Haimaker as a custom provider to my OpenClaw config. Use these details:
- Provider name: haimaker
- Base URL: https://api.haimaker.ai/v1
- API key: [PASTE YOUR HAIMAKER API KEY HERE]
- API type: openai-completions
Add the auto-router model:
- haimaker/auto (reasoning: false, context: 128000, max tokens: 32000)
Create an alias "auto" for easy switching. Apply the config when done.
Or skip model selection entirely — Haimaker’s auto-router picks the best model for each task so you don’t have to.
OpenClaw setup
OpenClaw treats this as a first-class model. You only need to export your OPENAI_API_KEY and the framework handles the rest without requiring custom provider configurations.
export OPENAI_API_KEY="your-key-here"
That’s it. OpenClaw picks up OpenAI models automatically.
How it compares
- vs GPT-5.1 — 5.1 is cheaper ($10/M output). Use 5.2 when the reasoning upgrade is actually needed, not by default.
- vs Claude 3.5 Sonnet — Sonnet is faster and cheaper for output, but its 8K output cap is a real constraint for large generation tasks.
Bottom line
Choose 5.2 over 5.1 when you’re hitting reasoning failures, not just because it’s the newer model. The $4/M output premium should be earned.
For setup instructions, see our API key guide. For all available models, see the complete models guide.