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DeepSeek API — Flash and Pro pricing for coding tools

Compare DeepSeek Flash and Pro token tiers, thinking mode, and how Claude Code points at the same API.

  • LLM API
  • Coding Agent
  • Thinking Mode
  • Vision
Publisher
DeepSeek
Type
LLM API
Pricing
Paid
Reviewed
25 September 2026
Official site

Quick verdict

Use when

  • OpenAI-compatible model API
  • Flash or Pro token billing
  • Thinking mode and tool calls
  • Coding tools pointed at this API

Skip when

  • Need image generation
  • Want a local model only
  • Need the agent harness, not the API
  • Need a fixed monthly seat

DeepSeek API vs common model APIs

DeepSeek next to two APIs developers already cross-shop: how you pay, how you call it, how far a request goes, and where the model runs.

Tap a dimension to focus

Pricing

  1. DeepSeek API — docs
  2. DeepSeek API — models and pricing
  3. DeepSeek API — thinking mode
  4. DeepSeek API — Claude Code integration
  5. OpenAI API — platform
  6. Anthropic API — official page

Preview of DeepSeek API - not the live app. Confirm details on the official site.

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Learn more

Details below the decision summary—features, workflow, and scope notes.

What is the DeepSeek API?

Compare DeepSeek Flash and Pro token tiers, thinking mode, and how Claude Code points at the same API.

What it costs

How the two live model ids are billed. Confirm rates on the pricing page.
Free tier
No
Pricing summary
The API bills tokens from a topped-up balance or a granted balance, and spends the granted balance first when both exist. The pricing page lists deepseek-flash and deepseek-v4-pro, with separate cache-hit and cache-miss input rates, and peak versus off-peak windows. Off-peak token rates are half of peak rates. That is not an unlimited free API and not a named monthly coding subscription.

Reviewed on 25 September 2026 · DeepSeek API — models and pricing

What the current API actually offers

Facts from the models and pricing page, not older release notes.

  • Two model ids

    Call deepseek-flash (DeepSeek-V4.1-Flash) or deepseek-v4-pro (DeepSeek-V4-Pro-0813). Legacy names deepseek-v4-flash and deepseek-v4-flash-vision-exp still route to Flash and bill at the Flash rate.

  • Thinking mode by default

    Both models support thinking and non-thinking. Thinking is the default. The chain of thought comes back as reasoning_content, separate from the final answer.

  • Tool calls and JSON output

    Both models list JSON output, tool calls, the Responses API, and an Anthropic-compatible API. FIM completion is beta and only in non-thinking mode.

  • Vision on Flash only

    deepseek-flash accepts images as input. deepseek-v4-pro does not. The pricing table does not list an image-generation model.

  • Coding tools as a backend

    Docs say Claude Code, GitHub Copilot, and OpenCode can use this API as the model without a custom client. Those calls still bill as tokens.

How to call the DeepSeek API

Path from the first API call page and the pricing table.

  1. Create an API key

    The docs tell you to apply for a key on the DeepSeek platform before the first request. Billing draws from that account balance.

  2. Pick a base URL

    OpenAI-format clients use https://api.deepseek.com. Anthropic-format clients use https://api.deepseek.com/anthropic.

  3. Choose Flash or Pro

    Use deepseek-flash for the faster tier, including image input. Use deepseek-v4-pro when you want the Pro model id. Both share a 1M context and a 384K max output.

  4. Point a coding tool at it

    For Claude Code, follow the agent integrations guide in the docs instead of writing a new SDK. The same token rates still apply.

Who the DeepSeek API is for

Teams choosing a hosted model, not a chat login.

  • Developers pricing an API

    You need Flash versus Pro, cache hits, and peak versus off-peak before you commit a product to the endpoint.

  • People wiring coding agents

    Claude Code and similar tools can use this API as the backend model when you already have a key.

  • Builders who want thinking mode

    Tool-using agents need the documented way to pass reasoning_content back when the request includes tools.

When the DeepSeek API is the right pick

Choose the DeepSeek API when you want an OpenAI-compatible or Anthropic-compatible endpoint and will pick Flash or Pro by the job. Skip it when you need generated images, a fully local model, or the open-source agent harness instead of hosted inference.

Platform notes

Limits from the models and pricing page, reviewed with the page.
Context and output
Both listed models show a 1M context length and a maximum output of 384K tokens. There is no separate long-context surcharge on that page.
Concurrency
The pricing table lists a concurrency limit of 2500 for deepseek-flash and 500 for deepseek-v4-pro. Rate-limit details live on the rate limit page.
Not DeepSeek Harness
This page is the hosted API. DeepSeek Harness is a separate open-source agent runtime with its own overview.

Frequently Asked Questions

Quick answers about this tool—open a question to read more.