"AI Coding Tools ROI Calculator: Claude Code vs Codex CLI vs Gemini CLI Cost Analysis 2026"

ROI = (Time Saved × Developer Hourly Rate - Tool Cost) / Tool Cost × 100%

# Typical Claude Code session costs
# Small task (bug fix, simple feature): ~5K-15K tokens
# Medium task (new module, refactor): ~30K-80K tokens
# Large task (architecture review): ~100K-300K tokens

# Example: Calculate cost for a medium task via Crazyrouter
curl https://crazyrouter.com/v1/chat/completions \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $CRAZYROUTER_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "model": "claude-sonnet-4-20250514",
    "messages": [{"role": "user", "content": "Refactor this module to use dependency injection..."}],
    "max_tokens": 4096
  }'

# Cost estimation script for Codex CLI tasks
import requests

API_BASE = "https://crazyrouter.com/v1"
API_KEY = "your-crazyrouter-key"

def estimate_codex_cost(prompt: str, model: str = "gpt-4.1") -> dict:
    """Estimate cost for a Codex CLI task"""
    response = requests.post(
        f"{API_BASE}/chat/completions",
        headers={
            "Authorization": f"Bearer {API_KEY}",
            "Content-Type": "application/json"
        },
        json={
            "model": model,
            "messages": [{"role": "user", "content": prompt}],
            "max_tokens": 4096
        }
    )
    
    data = response.json()
    usage = data.get("usage", {})
    
    # Crazyrouter pricing for GPT-4.1
    input_cost = usage.get("prompt_tokens", 0) / 1_000_000 * 1.40
    output_cost = usage.get("completion_tokens", 0) / 1_000_000 * 4.20
    
    return {
        "input_tokens": usage.get("prompt_tokens", 0),
        "output_tokens": usage.get("completion_tokens", 0),
        "cost_usd": round(input_cost + output_cost, 4),
        "model": model
    }

# Example usage
result = estimate_codex_cost("Write a REST API endpoint for user authentication with JWT tokens")
print(f"Task cost: ${result['cost_usd']}")
print(f"Tokens used: {result['input_tokens']} in / {result['output_tokens']} out")

# Gemini CLI with Crazyrouter gateway
export GEMINI_API_KEY="your-crazyrouter-key"
export GEMINI_API_BASE="https://crazyrouter.com/v1"

# Run a code review task
gemini -p "Review this Python module for security issues and suggest improvements"

# ROI Calculator
def calculate_roi(
    developer_hourly_rate: float = 75.0,  # USD/hour
    tasks_per_week: dict = None,
    time_saved_per_task: dict = None,  # minutes
    monthly_tool_cost: float = 10.0
) -> dict:
    """Calculate monthly ROI for AI coding tools"""
    
    if tasks_per_week is None:
        tasks_per_week = {"small": 20, "medium": 10, "large": 2}
    
    if time_saved_per_task is None:
        time_saved_per_task = {"small": 8, "medium": 25, "large": 60}
    
    weekly_minutes_saved = sum(
        tasks_per_week[size] * time_saved_per_task[size]
        for size in tasks_per_week
    )
    
    monthly_minutes_saved = weekly_minutes_saved * 4.33
    monthly_hours_saved = monthly_minutes_saved / 60
    monthly_value_saved = monthly_hours_saved * developer_hourly_rate
    
    roi_percentage = ((monthly_value_saved - monthly_tool_cost) / monthly_tool_cost) * 100
    
    return {
        "monthly_hours_saved": round(monthly_hours_saved, 1),
        "monthly_value_saved": round(monthly_value_saved, 2),
        "monthly_tool_cost": monthly_tool_cost,
        "net_monthly_benefit": round(monthly_value_saved - monthly_tool_cost, 2),
        "roi_percentage": round(roi_percentage, 1),
        "payback_days": round(monthly_tool_cost / (monthly_value_saved / 30), 1)
    }

# Calculate for each tool via Crazyrouter
tools = {
    "Claude Code": 23.36,
    "Codex CLI": 9.96,
    "Gemini CLI": 8.48,
    "Mixed (Crazyrouter)": 7.84
}

for tool, cost in tools.items():
    roi = calculate_roi(monthly_tool_cost=cost)
    print(f"\n{tool}:")
    print(f"  Hours saved/month: {roi['monthly_hours_saved']}")
    print(f"  Value saved/month: ${roi['monthly_value_saved']}")
    print(f"  Tool cost/month: ${roi['monthly_tool_cost']}")
    print(f"  Net benefit/month: ${roi['net_monthly_benefit']}")
    print(f"  ROI: {roi['roi_percentage']}%")

// Node.js: Smart tool router via Crazyrouter
const CRAZYROUTER_BASE = "https://crazyrouter.com/v1";
const API_KEY = process.env.CRAZYROUTER_KEY;

const TASK_MODEL_MAP = {
  "bug_fix": "gemini-2.5-flash",        // Cheapest for simple tasks
  "code_review": "gemini-2.5-pro",       // Great context window
  "refactor": "claude-sonnet-4-20250514", // Best reasoning
  "architecture": "claude-opus-4-20250514", // Highest capability
  "boilerplate": "gpt-4.1-mini",         // Fast and cheap
  "documentation": "gemini-2.5-flash"     // High volume, low cost
};

async function routeTask(taskType, prompt) {
  const model = TASK_MODEL_MAP[taskType] || "gemini-2.5-flash";
  
  const response = await fetch(`${CRAZYROUTER_BASE}/chat/completions`, {
    method: "POST",
    headers: {
      "Authorization": `Bearer ${API_KEY}`,
      "Content-Type": "application/json"
    },
    body: JSON.stringify({
      model,
      messages: [{ role: "user", content: prompt }],
      max_tokens: 4096
    })
  });
  
  const data = await response.json();
  console.log(`Task: ${taskType} | Model: ${model} | Tokens: ${data.usage?.total_tokens}`);
  return data.choices[0].message.content;
}

// Usage
const review = await routeTask("code_review", "Review this authentication module...");
const fix = await routeTask("bug_fix", "Fix the null pointer in line 42...");