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Lambda vs Together AI

Lambda logo

Lambda

Cloud

GPU supercomputers for AI training and inference at enterprise scale

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Together AI logo

Together AI

AI

Open-source AI at scale

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Together AI has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Lambda no free tier or trial, requiring immediate commitment for testing; Together AI free tier limits not clearly specified in pricing documentation
  • They diverge on capability: Lambda covers Superclusters, Together AI covers Open-source models.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Lambda and Together AI actually diverge.

Attributes where Lambda and Together AI differ
AttributeLambdaTogether AI
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelPay-as-you-go hourly pricing with volume discounts for reserved capacityusage-based
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsCloudApi, Cloud
CategoryCloudAI
Founded20122022

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Lambda

  • Superclusters
  • 1-Click Clusters
  • On-demand instances
  • Liquid cooling
  • InfiniBand networking
  • Managed orchestration
  • Co-engineering support

Only in Together AI

  • Open-source models
  • Fine-tuning
  • Fast inference
  • Embeddings
  • REST API
  • Python SDK
  • OpenAI compatible
  • Api support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Lambda

  • Training foundation models at scale with dedicated GPU infrastructurenot Together AI
  • Large-scale inference serving on enterprise-grade hardwarenot Together AI
  • Multi-GPU distributed training with InfiniBand networkingnot Together AI
  • Single-tenant secure compute for regulated industriesnot Together AI
  • AI lab infrastructure for frontier model developmentnot Together AI

Together AI

  • LLM inference for production AI applicationsnot Lambda
  • Content generation at scalenot Lambda
  • Code execution and embeddingsnot Lambda
  • Model fine-tuning and trainingnot Lambda
  • Startup and enterprise AI deploymentnot Lambda

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Lambda

  • No free tier or trial, requiring immediate commitment for testing
  • Single-tenant Superclusters require custom pricing discussions
  • Pricing complexity across multiple GPU types and cluster sizes
  • Less suitable for experimentation or small teams with tight budgets

Together AI

  • Free tier limits not clearly specified in pricing documentation
  • Pricing varies significantly by model and use case
  • Requires account setup for production access
  • Batch API discounts apply only to non-urgent workloads

Pricing, plan by plan

Lambda

On request
  • 1-Click Clusters B200$undefined/hourly
    • 16 GPUs: $9.86/GPU/hour
    • 256+ GPUs: $8.87/GPU/hour
    • 1-year+ reserved discounts available
  • 1-Click Clusters H100$undefined/hourly
    • 16 GPUs: $6.16/GPU/hour
    • 256+ GPUs: $5.54/GPU/hour
  • On-Demand Instances B200$undefined/hourly
    • SXM6: $6.69/GPU/hour
  • On-Demand Instances H100$undefined/hourly
    • SXM: $3.99/GPU/hour

Together AI

Free
  • Serverless Inference$0.03/1M input tokens
    • Chat and Vision models
    • Image generation
    • Video generation
  • Provisioned Throughput$21600/month
    • Up to 83% savings vs commercial alternatives
    • Reserved capacity
    • Guaranteed throughput
  • Dedicated Inference$5.49/hour
    • H100 GPU instance
    • Single-tenant deployment
    • No resource sharing
  • GPU Clusters$3.99/GPU-hour
    • On-demand capacity
    • Volume discounts available
    • Reserved options with up to 35% savings

Which should you pick?

Choose Lambda if

  • You need superclusters.
  • You work on Cloud.
  • You also want 1-click clusters.
Lambda review

Choose Together AI if

  • You need open-source models.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Api, Cloud.
  • You also want fine-tuning.
Together AI review

Questions people ask

Is Lambda or Together AI better?
Neither clearly leads. Lambda starts at On request and Together AI at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Lambda or Together AI?
Together AI has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Lambda and Free for Together AI.
Does Lambda or Together AI run on more platforms?
Lambda runs on Cloud. Together AI runs on Api, Cloud.
Can I use Together AI for free?
Yes. Together AI has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Lambda starts at On request.
What is Lambda best used for?
Lambda is most often used for training foundation models at scale with dedicated gpu infrastructure, large-scale inference serving on enterprise-grade hardware, multi-gpu distributed training with infiniband networking, single-tenant secure compute for regulated industries. Of those, training foundation models at scale with dedicated gpu infrastructure and large-scale inference serving on enterprise-grade hardware are not what Together AI is typically brought in for.
What can Lambda do that Together AI cannot?
Lambda covers Superclusters, 1-Click Clusters, On-demand instances, Liquid cooling. Together AI covers Open-source models, Fine-tuning, Fast inference, Embeddings.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Lambda: What makes Lambda's infrastructure different?

Lambda offers single-tenant Superclusters with exclusive GPU access, liquid cooling, and NVIDIA Quantum-2 InfiniBand networking. The company is 100% focused on AI infrastructure with co-engineering support from teams who built infrastructure for major AI labs.

Source
Together AI: Does Together AI offer a free tier?

Yes, Together AI advertises 'Start for free, scale on demand,' but specific free tier usage limits are not detailed on the pricing page.

Source
Lambda: How does pricing work for large clusters?

1-Click Clusters pricing ranges from $5.54-$9.86 per GPU/hour depending on GPU type and cluster size, with volume discounts for 256+ GPUs. Reserved capacity is available at custom pricing for 1-year+ commitments.

Source
Together AI: What are Together AI's highest model prices?

Serverless inference pricing ranges from free for base models up to $4.40 per 1M input tokens for premium models. Video generation costs $0.14 to $3.20 per video depending on resolution.

Source
Lambda: Which GPU types are available?

Lambda offers NVIDIA B200, H100, A100, and Tesla V100 GPUs. Individual instances range from V100 at $0.79/hour to B200 SXM6 at $6.69/hour. Newer models like Vera Rubin are available in Superclusters.

Source
Together AI: How much can I save with Provisioned Throughput?

Together AI offers up to 83% savings compared to commercial alternatives when using their Provisioned Throughput option with reserved capacity.

Source
Together AI: What is Together AI's fine-tuning pricing?

Standard fine-tuning costs $0.48 to $2.90 per 1M tokens depending on model size, with a minimum charge of $4.00 per job.

Source
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