Step 5 Preview API

Frontier multimodal reasoning with a 1M token context, image and video input, parallel tool calling, and strict JSON schema output.

StepFunText Generation1.02M contextReleased Sep 15, 2026InternationalProprietary EndpointNew

About Step 5 Preview

Frontier multimodal reasoning with a 1M token context, image and video input, parallel tool calling, and strict JSON schema output.

Use reasoning_effort low, medium, or high to control the reasoning budget. The model returns its reasoning in reasoning_content, and those tokens bill as output tokens. Prompt-cache hits are billed at the cache-read rate. Linkup web search is available through web_search_linkup and adds $0.013 per call when invoked.

Also known as StepFun Step 5 Preview

reasoningfunction callingstructured outputvisionvideoprompt cacheagentic coding

Step 5 Preview specs

Model ID
step-5-preview
Author
StepFun
Category
Text Generation
Released
Sep 15, 2026
Context window
1.02M tokens
Max output
131,072 tokens
Input
TextImageVideo
Output
Text
Structured output
JSON Schema
Region
International
Endpoints
POST/v1/chat/completionsPOST/v1/responsesPOST/v1/messagesPOST/v1beta/models/step-5-preview:generateContent
Alternate model IDs
stepfun/step-5-preview

Step 5 Preview API pricing

Live pay-as-you-go rates from the EmpirioLabs catalog. You are billed only for what you use, with no monthly minimum.

Type
Spec
Rate
Input
per 1M prompt tokens
$1.00
Output
per 1M generated tokens
$2.70
Implicit cache read
per 1M cached input tokens
$0.10
Web Search (Linkup)
per call when invoked
$0.013
Compare on the full pricing page

How to call the Step 5 Preview API

Step 5 Preview serves the OpenAI-compatible Chat Completions API. Point any OpenAI SDK at https://api.empiriolabs.ai/v1 with your EmpirioLabs API key and use the model id step-5-preview. Get an API key from the EmpirioLabs dashboard.

cURL
curl https://api.empiriolabs.ai/v1/chat/completions \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $EMPIRIOLABS_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "model": "step-5-preview",
    "messages": [
      {"role": "user", "content": "Write a haiku about the ocean."}
    ]
  }'
Python (OpenAI SDK)
from openai import OpenAI

client = OpenAI(
    base_url="https://api.empiriolabs.ai/v1",
    api_key="YOUR_EMPIRIOLABS_API_KEY",
)

response = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="step-5-preview",
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Write a haiku about the ocean."}],
)
print(response.choices[0].message.content)
Full Step 5 Preview API reference

Step 5 Preview API parameters

Request parameters supported by the Step 5 Preview API on EmpirioLabs. Defaults apply when a field is omitted.

ParameterTypeDefaultRange / valuesDescription
temperaturenumber0.50 to 2Sampling temperature.
top_pnumber0.90.01 to 1Nucleus sampling probability mass.
max_tokensinteger40961 to 131072Maximum output tokens. Reasoning tokens count toward this limit.
stoparray--Stop sequences.
frequency_penaltynumber0-2 to 2Penalty for repeated tokens.
reasoning_effortenumlowlow, medium, highControls how much the model reasons before it answers. Higher effort spends more tokens on reasoning.
reasoning_formatenumgeneralgeneral, deepseek-styleFormat of the reasoning trace returned alongside the answer.
toolsarray--OpenAI-compatible function tools.
tool_choicestring--OpenAI-compatible tool choice.
response_formatobject--Constrain the output to valid JSON. Use JSON mode for any JSON object, or supply a JSON Schema to force an exact response shape.
web_search_linkupbooleanfalse-Optional web search powered by Linkup. When enabled, recent web sources are retrieved using your latest user message as the query and provided to the model as additional context. Adds $0.013 per call when invoked on top of the model's normal token cost. Disabled by default.
disable_formattingbooleanfalse-Return the answer without the Sources list that web search adds.

Good to know

Supports text, image, and video input with a 1M token context, parallel function tools, strict JSON schema output, and reasoning_effort low, medium, or high. Prompt-cache hits are billed at the cache-read rate. Video input supports MP4 under 128 MB, with clips under 5 minutes recommended. This is a preview release, so its behavior and identifier may change.

Step 5 Preview API: common questions

How much does the Step 5 Preview API cost?

On EmpirioLabs, Step 5 Preview is billed pay as you go: Input $1.00 per 1M prompt tokens; Output $2.70 per 1M generated tokens; Implicit cache read $0.10 per 1M cached input tokens; Web Search (Linkup) $0.013 per call when invoked. The live rate card on this page always matches what the API charges.

What is the context window of Step 5 Preview?

Step 5 Preview supports a 1.02M-token context window with up to 131,072 output tokens per response.

Is the Step 5 Preview API OpenAI-compatible?

Yes. Step 5 Preview serves the OpenAI-compatible Chat Completions API, so existing OpenAI SDKs work by pointing base_url at https://api.empiriolabs.ai/v1 and setting the model id to step-5-preview.

Can I try Step 5 Preview in the browser before integrating?

Yes. The EmpirioLabs playground runs Step 5 Preview in the browser with the same parameters the API exposes, so you can test prompts before writing code.

How do I get a Step 5 Preview API key?

Create an EmpirioLabs account, then generate a key under API Keys in the dashboard. Billing is pay-as-you-go credits, so you only pay for the requests you make.

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