Routing (Classifier + Handler)
Cheap classifier then specialized handler.
API Calls per Conversation
Low
2
Mid
2
High
3
Best Use Cases
Customer support triageMulti-domain assistantsCost-optimized model selectionIntent classification + specialized handlers
Cost Drivers
- •Classifier call is cheap (use Haiku or Mini)
- •Handler call varies by complexity — simple handlers are cheap, complex ones are expensive
- •Misrouting wastes tokens on wrong handlers
Monthly Cost Scenarios
100/day
Haiku router + Sonnet handler
$120-240/mo
1,000/day
Haiku router + Sonnet handler
$1,200-2,400/mo
5,000/day
Mini router + mixed handlers
$3,000-6,000/mo
Optimization Tips
- →Use the cheapest possible model for the routing classifier
- →Route 60-70% of simple queries to cheap models (measured in our experiments)
- →Monitor misroute rate — each misroute costs you 2x (wrong handler + correct handler)
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