---
title: "LLM Costing for Database AI Apps. Live Experience. Live App. Open Source"
slug: llm-costing-for-database-ai-apps-live-experience-live-app-open-source
date_published: 2025-09-03T10:00:00.000Z
original_url: https://www.tigzig.com/post/llm-costing-for-database-ai-apps-live-experience-live-app-open-source
source: migrated
processed_at: 2025-01-12T10:00:00.000Z
---

# LLM Costing for Database AI Apps. Live Experience. Live App. Open Source

On costing, a hard rule: Published API rates are a fantasy. Always test your specific use case and check the actual charged cost. Takeaways from 250+ structured tests and live experiences:

## Key Findings

**1. The Workhorse (80% of jobs):** Single-step agents. Cost: approx. $0.50 - $2.00 per 100 questions.

**2. The Specialist (Critical tasks):** Multi-agent setups. Warning: a 10X-50X cost multiplier. Cost $15-$20 per 100 questions. Use surgically.

**3. The Top Tier (Reasoning):** Claude Sonnet 4 still leads. GPT-5 is close but its costs are volatile. No client migrations till cost and latencies stabilize.

## Database AI Suite - v4 (DATS-4)

DATS-4 is live. It's an open-source full-stack tool for natural language to SQL applications.

Live Apps. Source Code. Full 49-page Field Guide. All Available now.

**Access:** [app.tigzig.com](https://app.tigzig.com) - Path: Database AI & SQL Apps