The situation is less about Sonnet 4.5 being a disappointment and more about a strategic shift in how the AI models are being offered. For power users, the key takeaway is that the workflow must now adapt. Opus 4.1 remains the superior tool for deep, complex tasks, but it is now positioned as a premium, limited resource. Sonnet 4.5 is the new, faster default for everything else. The frustration is a natural consequence of this transition, especially when the communication and marketing don't fully articulate this nuanced strategy to the most dedicated segment of the user base. Answer from AryaN_2348 on reddit.com
Reddit
reddit.com › r/claudecode › is claude code sonnet 4.5 really better than opus 4.1? not seeing it.
r/ClaudeCode on Reddit: Is Claude Code Sonnet 4.5 Really Better Than Opus 4.1? Not Seeing It.
October 3, 2025 -
How are people genuinely praising Claude Code Sonnet 4.5? I have no idea what’s happening…but from my experience it’s pretty disappointing. Sorry if that stings, but I’m honestly curious about what others see in it.
I’m speaking as someone who uses Claude Code daily easily 7+ hours per day and who has been deeply involved with it since the beginning. I consider myself a power user and truly understand the capabilities it should have. Maybe I’m missing something crucial here…but BESIDES that point I’m really dissatisfied and frustrated with Anthropic right now.
On top of that, the marketing hype around Sonnet 4.5 feels like the same garbage AI slot promotion we saw everywhere with ChatGPT lol. It’s being marketed as the “best model in the world,” likely to people who barely even scratch its surface.
I’ve also just hit a usage limit on Opus 4.1. I’m on the max 200 plan and now there’s some kind of cap in place…for what, a week? Why? If Sonnet is sooooo good why are they placing weekly limits on opus 4.1? So stupid. Can someone explain what’s going on here?
Top answer 1 of 20
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Sonnet 4.5 solved a complex deadlock bug in two shots that Opus 4.1, Gemini 2.5 pro, and codex 5 cli thinking have spent weeks on. I’ve been impressed and I’ve gone from only Opus 4.1 to only Sonnet 4.5 with no noticeable degradation.
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The situation is less about Sonnet 4.5 being a disappointment and more about a strategic shift in how the AI models are being offered. For power users, the key takeaway is that the workflow must now adapt. Opus 4.1 remains the superior tool for deep, complex tasks, but it is now positioned as a premium, limited resource. Sonnet 4.5 is the new, faster default for everything else. The frustration is a natural consequence of this transition, especially when the communication and marketing don't fully articulate this nuanced strategy to the most dedicated segment of the user base.
CodeRabbit
coderabbit.ai › blog › claude-sonnet-45-better-performance-but-a-paradox
Claude Sonnet 4.5: Better performance but a paradox
October 3, 2025 - We benchmarked Claude Sonnet 4.5 as it narrows the gap with Opus 4.1 in code review, catching more critical bugs with 41% important hits at lower cost.
Sonnet 4.5 vs Opus 4.1
I just tried it and opus 4.1 is still superior. Had a cookie issue that sonnet 4.5 introduced and after 5+ attempts to fix it, I switched back to opus 4.1 and it fixed it in one try. This is just one scenario but Makes me think the benchmarks are meaningless Update: I had sonnet 4.5 also working on a different issue and it decided to create a completely new simplified file instead of just modifying the one we’ve been working on. Maybe this model just needs very specific instructions but it was pretty much obvious to opus 4.1. More on reddit.com
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September 29, 2025Is Claude Code Sonnet 4.5 Really Better Than Opus 4.1? Not Seeing It.
The situation is less about Sonnet 4.5 being a disappointment and more about a strategic shift in how the AI models are being offered. For power users, the key takeaway is that the workflow must now adapt. Opus 4.1 remains the superior tool for deep, complex tasks, but it is now positioned as a premium, limited resource. Sonnet 4.5 is the new, faster default for everything else. The frustration is a natural consequence of this transition, especially when the communication and marketing don't fully articulate this nuanced strategy to the most dedicated segment of the user base. More on reddit.com
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October 3, 2025If Sonnet 4.5 is "better" than Opus 4.1, why use opus?
For now, using Claude Sonnet 4.5 is the de-facto model we should be using. Claude Opus 4.5 is gonna be crazy expensive performant. More on reddit.com
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September 29, 2025Sonnet 4.5 with extended thinking better than Opus 4.1?
I spent 2 hours yesterday on sonnet to get something fixed and each time one issue would resolve and another would pop up. Switched model to opus and was able to resolve it in first try. I think maybe opus is still better but Claude for most of the remaining tasks was amazing More on reddit.com
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October 3, 2025Videos
08:10
Claude Sonnet 4.5 vs Opus 4.1 Coding Test | Which is the Best Coding ...
07:23
Anthropic is NOT holding back with THIS model | Sonnet 4.5 vs Opus ...
24:14
Claude 4.5 Sonnet Is Here! Better Than Opus? - YouTube
03:25
Claude Sonnet 4.5 Is Here… And It’s BETTER Than Opus?! (First ...
r/ClaudeAI on Reddit: Introducing Claude Haiku 4.5: our latest ...
Lisa Peyton
lisapeyton.com › home › claude 4.1 opus vs. claude 4.5 sonnet: a real-world showdown for content marketers
Claude 4.1 Opus vs. Claude 4.5 Sonnet: A Real-World Showdown for Content Marketers | Lisa Peyton
October 2, 2025 - Claude 4.1 Opus came out swinging with energy. The opening line—”Let’s talk real talk: You’re not getting replaced by AI”—hits hard and immediately establishes a conversational vibe.
Bind AI IDE
blog.getbind.co › 2025 › 09 › 30 › claude-sonnet-4-5-vs-gpt-5-vs-claude-opus-4-1-ultimate-coding-comparison
Claude Sonnet 4.5 vs GPT-5 vs Claude Opus 4.1 – Ultimate Coding Comparison
September 30, 2025 - Sonnet 4.5 puts particularly heavy emphasis on safer behavior: reduced sycophancy, delusion, power seeking, prompt injection resilience, and alignment to user intent. Those claims are baked into the launch narrative.
Anthropic
anthropic.com › news › claude-sonnet-4-5
Introducing Claude Sonnet 4.5
Claude Sonnet 4.5 is our most powerful model to date. See footnotes for methodology. Experts in finance, law, medicine, and STEM found Sonnet 4.5 shows dramatically better domain-specific knowledge and reasoning compared to older models, including Opus 4.1.
Creole Studios
creolestudios.com › home › claude sonnet 4.5 vs opus 4.1: which model wins for coding, agents, and long runs?
Sonnet 4.5 vs Opus 4.1: Which one is best for Coding & Agents?
October 9, 2025 - Consistent latency on their existing infra and tooling. If Opus is your incumbent and performs well on your repos, it absolutely deserves a head-to-head against Sonnet 4.5—especially on deeply analytical or policy-driven agent tasks.
AutonomyAI
autonomyai.io › home › sonnet 4.5 vs. opus 4.1 – enterprise vibe coding
Sonnet 4.5 vs. Opus 4.1: Speed Today or Maintainability Tomorrow?
October 1, 2025 - We benchmarked Sonnet 4.5 against Opus 4.1. Opus delivers faster first results, while Sonnet (inside an agentic framework) produces cleaner, more accessible, and maintainable code. Here’s what tech leaders need to know.
Reddit
reddit.com › r/claudeai › sonnet 4.5 vs opus 4.1
r/ClaudeAI on Reddit: Sonnet 4.5 vs Opus 4.1
September 29, 2025 -
I've been using fully Claude Opus 4.1 in my terminal setup for coding, reasoning, and agent-like tasks. it's been solid for complex workflows. But now that Sonnet 4.5 is out, I'm wondering if I should switch. From benchmarks, it seems to match or beat Opus in areas like coding (higher scores on SWE-Bench and agentic tasks), visual reasoning, and handling nuanced instructions with better efficiency for iterative sessions. If you've tried both in a CLI/terminal environment, what's your take? Does Sonnet hold up for deep reasoning and long-chain planning, or does Opus still edge it out there?
For complex workflows, would you recommend switching? Experiences appreciated!
Top answer 1 of 5
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I just tried it and opus 4.1 is still superior. Had a cookie issue that sonnet 4.5 introduced and after 5+ attempts to fix it, I switched back to opus 4.1 and it fixed it in one try. This is just one scenario but Makes me think the benchmarks are meaningless Update: I had sonnet 4.5 also working on a different issue and it decided to create a completely new simplified file instead of just modifying the one we’ve been working on. Maybe this model just needs very specific instructions but it was pretty much obvious to opus 4.1.
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Better than Opus so far, for me.
Claude Docs
platform.claude.com › docs › en › about-claude › models › overview
Models overview - Claude Docs
If you're unsure which model to use, we recommend starting with Claude Sonnet 4.5. It offers the best balance of intelligence, speed, and cost for most use cases, with exceptional performance in coding and agentic tasks.
Medium
medium.com › @ayaanhaider.dev › sonnet-4-5-vs-haiku-4-5-vs-opus-4-1-which-claude-model-actually-works-best-in-real-projects-7183c0dc2249
Sonnet 4.5 vs Haiku 4.5 vs Opus 4.1 — Which Claude Model Actually Works Best in Real Projects | by Ayaan haider | Medium
October 18, 2025 - Sonnet 4.5 Sonnet is the all-rounder. It’s the model I trust for daily work — writing logic, managing state, connecting APIs, and handling multiple files. It’s reliable, consistent, and doesn’t freeze easily.
Every
every.to › vibe-check › vibe-check-claude-sonnet-4-5
Vibe Check: Claude Sonnet 4.5
September 29, 2025 - Anthropic just rolled out Claude Sonnet 4.5, and, of course, we spent the weekend using it to code and running long agentic tasks with it. The headline: It’s noticeably faster, more steerable, and more reliable than · Opus 4.1—especially ...
X
x.com › ArtificialAnlys › status › 1972854742167761204
Anthropic's new Claude 4.5 Sonnet is now the #4 most ...
Anthropic’s new Claude 4.5 Sonnet ... Claude 4.5 Sonnet offers a clear upgrade for Claude 4.1 Opus and Claude 4 Sonnet users, with greater intelligence at the same price and token efficiency as Claude 4 Sonnet...
The New Stack
thenewstack.io › home › anthropic launches claude sonnet 4.5
Anthropic Launches Claude Sonnet 4.5 - The New Stack
September 29, 2025 - On OSWorld, a benchmark that tests how well AI models perform in real-world computer use tasks, Sonnet 4.5 is now at the top of the charts with a success rate of 61.4%. That’s a major leap over Sonnet 4, which previously topped the list with ...
CNBC
cnbc.com › 2025 › 09 › 29 › anthropic-claude-ai-sonnet-4-5.html
Anthropic launches Claude Sonnet 4.5, its latest AI model that's 'more of a colleague'
September 29, 2025 - It has reduced "concerning behaviors" like deception, power seeking and sycophancy, which is when a model tells a user what they want to hear. Claude Sonnet 4.5 is also more resistant to prompt injection attacks, where a model can get tricked ...
Anthropic
anthropic.com › claude-sonnet-4-5-system-card pdf
Claude Sonnet 4.5 System Card
October 10, 2025 - Anthropic · Google SSO · . · Back to top · Download reason · Please specify the reason for this download · Cancel
Skywork
skywork.ai › home › claude sonnet 4.5 vs opus: das bessere ki-modell?
Claude Sonnet 4.5 vs Opus: Das bessere KI-Modell? - Skywork ai
October 5, 2025 - Wenn du heute entscheiden müsstest, würde ich ganz klar sagen: Claude Sonnet 4.5 ist die bessere Wahl – stabiler, günstiger im Betrieb und mit echter Produktivitätssteigerung.
Simon Willison
simonwillison.net › 2025 › Nov › 24 › claude-opus
Claude Opus 4.5, and why evaluating new LLMs is increasingly difficult
November 24, 2025 - The core characteristics of Opus 4.5 are a 200,000 token context (same as Sonnet), 64,000 token output limit (also the same as Sonnet), and a March 2025 “reliable knowledge cutoff” (Sonnet 4.5 is January, Haiku 4.5 is February).
Sider
sider.ai › blog › ai-tools › claude-sonnet-4_5-vs-claude-opus-4_1-capability-cost-curves-and-the-ai-strategy-frontier
Claude Sonnet 4.5 vs Claude Opus 4.1: Capability, Cost Curves, and the AI Strategy Frontier
September 29, 2025 - Opus 4.1 pushes the reasoning frontier further—more consistent multi-step logic, better tool-augmented problem solving, and improved performance on long-context synthesis—at a higher implied cost per token and generally higher latency. Claude Sonnet 4.5: Tuned for high-throughput ...
Vertu
vertu.com › best post › claude opus 4.5 vs sonnet 4.5 vs opus 4.1: the evolution of anthropic’s ai models
Claude Opus 4.5 vs Sonnet 4.5: Pricing Revolution & Performance Comparison | Anthropic
November 25, 2025 - Claude automatically summarizes earlier context as needed, allowing chats to continue indefinitely. This benefits all three models but particularly enhances Opus 4.5's utility for extended agentic workflows.