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Upstage review

Updated September 28, 2026 · DeployCue Editorial Team · Facts checked September 26, 2026

We earn a commission when you sign up through links on this site. Partner status can affect where a brand appears in our rankings. Partners with a live offer in your country come first, then every other brand by score.

Our verdict

Upstage suits developers who want a single vendor's Solar models behind an OpenAI-compatible API and a published compliance set. Input fees of $0.10 to $0.30 and output fees of $0.40 to $1.20 are the trade to weigh, and the flagship Solar Pro 4 opens a 512,000 token context window.

Key facts

Best for
A single Solar vendor with an OpenAI-compatible API and a published compliance set.
Input price from
$0.10 to $0.30↗
Output price from
$0.40 to $1.20↗
Models offered
Solar Pro 4, Solar Pro 3, Solar Pro 2, Solar Mini 4, Solar Mini↗
Largest context window
512,000↗
Free credits
10 free runs per Studio agent, no credit card required↗
OpenAI-compatible API
Yes↗
Compliance certifications
SOC 2, ISO/IEC 27001, ISO/IEC 27701, HIPAA↗
Legal entity
Upstage Co., Ltd.↗
Headquarters
South Korea↗
Founded
2020↗
Support channels
Email, Phone, Help-centre, Community↗
Official website
upstage.ai

Facts checked September 26, 2026, 4 sources

Apps and profiles

Elsewhere
WikidataWikipediaLinkedInXhuggingface.coopenrouter.ai

Pros and cons

Pros

  • An OpenAI-compatible API, so OpenAI client code and tooling point at Upstage unchanged.
  • A published compliance set of SOC 2, ISO/IEC 27001 and ISO/IEC 27701 for procurement-heavy buyers.
  • Studio agents come with 10 free runs per Studio agent, no credit card required, so a first proof needs no card.

Cons

  • Input fees of $0.10 to $0.30 and output fees of $0.40 to $1.20 rank 43 of the brands compared.
  • The catalogue is Solar Pro 4, Solar Pro 3 and Solar Pro 2, one vendor's line, so model choice is narrow.
  • A 512,000 token window, below the group maximum of 10,000,000.
Upstage

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Scored 9.0 / 10 by DeployCue.

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Who it suits

  • Developers who want a single vendor's models behind an OpenAI-compatible API.
  • Document workloads that fit inside a 512,000 token context window.
  • Enterprise buyers who need SOC 2, ISO/IEC 27001 and ISO/IEC 27701 on the vendor checklist.

Who should look elsewhere

  • Buyers chasing the lowest input rate, since Salad lists $0.06 for input.
  • Teams wanting many vendors at once, which Supascale AI's DeepSeek V4 Pro, GPT 5.6 Sol and GPT 5.6 Terra cover.
  • Teams after Azure AI Foundry's embedding, image and audio models, which the Solar Pro 4, Solar Pro 3 and Solar Pro 2 listed here do not cover.

Pricing

Pricing runs per token across the Solar range, from Solar Mini up to Solar Pro 4. Input fees of $0.10 to $0.30 and output fees of $0.40 to $1.20 cover the spread from the cheapest model to the flagship. Each Studio agent starts with a set of runs and no credit card required, so a small proof of concept costs nothing before metered use begins.

Who runs it

Upstage Co., Ltd. is the legal entity behind the service, founded in 2020 and headquartered in South Korea. Support runs through email, phone and help centre, which puts email and phone next to a help centre and a community forum. That mix suits buyers who want a named counterparty on paper before signing anything.

How Upstage compares

Frequently asked questions

How much does Upstage cost per token?+

Upstage prices the Solar range per token. Input fees run $0.10 to $0.30 and output fees run $0.40 to $1.20, covering everything from Solar Mini to Solar Pro 4. That lands Upstage in the middle of this comparison on both input and output price, so model scope matters more here than a headline rate.

Is there a free allowance to try Upstage?+

Every Studio agent starts with a set of runs and no credit card required, so a real prompt can go through the API before any spend. Starter allowances are common: 81.7% of the brands in this comparison have a free tier, so treat Upstage's as a starting allowance rather than a standing plan.

Which models does the Upstage API serve?+

The catalogue is Solar Pro 4, Solar Pro 3 and Solar Pro 2. Solar Pro 4 is the flagship for demanding work and long inputs, Solar Mini is the light option, and the rest sit in between. You can step up or down a tier as prompts get harder or easier without leaving the vendor.

How much context can Solar Pro 4 hold?+

Solar Pro 4 is the widest model here, at 512,000 tokens. That puts Upstage at rank 47 of 72 on this measure, while the largest windows in the group reach 10,000,000. Very long documents may need a bigger window elsewhere.

What compliance certifications does Upstage hold?+

Upstage publishes SOC 2, ISO/IEC 27001 and ISO/IEC 27701. That set covers the usual procurement checklist for enterprise buyers, including handling of health data, so regulated workloads can be assessed before a contract is signed. These certifications describe the platform's controls rather than the behavior of any model.

How does Upstage compare with Salad on price?+

Salad lists input fees of $0.06, below Upstage's $0.10 to $0.30. Upstage answers with a published compliance set, SOC 2, ISO/IEC 27001 and ISO/IEC 27701, and its own Solar models under a 512,000 token window. If token cost is the only criterion, Salad wins on input; if vendor paperwork is the criterion, Upstage has it stated.

Sources

  • upstage.ai checked September 26, 2026

    Backs: Compliance certifications, Headquarters, Legal entity, Support channels

    “AICPA SOC | HIPAA | Mark of Trust - Multi - ISO_IEC 27001 and ISO_IEC 27701”

  • upstage.ai/about checked September 26, 2026

    Backs: Founded

    “Founded in 2020, we're a dynamic team of 100+ top AI researchers”

  • upstage.ai/blog/en/solar-pro-4 checked September 26, 2026

    Backs: Largest context window, OpenAI-compatible API

    “Solar Pro 4 supports a 512K context with up to 128K output tokens”

  • upstage.ai/pricing/api checked September 26, 2026

    Backs: Free credits, Input price from, Models offered, Output price from

    “Every agent includes 10 free runs - test with real documents, no credit card required.”

Compiled from 4 source pages, checked September 26, 2026. We did not open an account.

Upstage

Upstage

A single Solar vendor with an OpenAI-compatible API and a published compliance set.

9.0/10See alternatives