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Groq currently lacks context caching support, which limits the platform's viability for many sustained usage scenarios.

What is Context Caching: Context caching allows reusing previously processed context tokens across API calls without reprocessing them. When you have a long system prompt, codebase context, or document that remains constant across multiple requests, caching eliminates the need to reprocess those tokens each time, significantly reducing costs for repetitive workflows.

Why This Matters: Context caching would make numerous use cases more sustainable on Groq:

  • Long-running coding sessions with large codebases
  • Document analysis workflows with consistent reference materials
  • Multi-turn conversations with extensive system prompts
  • Educational applications with persistent course content
  • Research workflows analyzing the same datasets

Real-World Impact Example: For coding tasks specifically, the lack of context caching creates unsustainable costs. A typical coding session involves repeatedly sending the same codebase context with small iterative changes. Additionally, AI models making tool calls trigger multiple API requests in sequence - each requiring the same context to be reprocessed. Without caching, each "small" code modification currently costs around $0.50, and tool-heavy workflows can multiply this cost significantly, making development workflows financially prohibitive. This forces developers to choose competitors like Cursor or Claude Code, which offers 250+ messages per month with advanced models at sustainable rates.

Current Status: Confirmed by support that this feature is not available.

Developer Experience Learnings: Research into current implementations reveals key pain points that Groq could address:

  • TTL Management: Anthropic's 5-minute cache expiration is too short for active development sessions; Google's 1-hour default is more practical
  • Cache Invalidation: Minor prompt changes shouldn't invalidate entire cache hierarchies - partial invalidation would be more efficient
  • Developer Tooling: Limited visibility into cache performance, hit rates, and cost impacts across current providers

Implementation Suggestions for Groq:

  • Configurable cache duration (15 minutes to 2 hours) with auto-refresh on active use
  • Smart partial cache invalidation instead of full hierarchy breaks
  • Built-in cache analytics showing hit rates and cost savings
  • Hybrid approach: automatic caching for large prompts + optional manual control

Request: Implement context caching to unlock Groq's speed advantages for sustained, production workflows across multiple domains.

References:

https://docs.anthropic.com/en/docs/build-with-claude/prompt-caching

https://platform.openai.com/docs/guides/prompt-caching

https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/caching

Worth highlighting, Groq is a game changer. In my tests, it was extremely quick and I was amazed how instant my request is done by my code agent.

I wrote a prompt then hit enter, I instantly got a response in the blink of an eye then it started calling tools. Groq was faster than the IDE saving the file! It took ~5 seconds to see the results of my request.

This could potentially open a new era of vibe-coding where you don't wait for your results of your requests and don't need to run agents in parallel. You will be able to finish tasks faster and focus on one thing at a time. This is additionally important in the current era where our attention spans got smaller and smaller to the point we started switching context in seconds.

As Cal Newport argues in "Deep Work," our ability to focus without distraction on cognitively demanding tasks is becoming increasingly rare yet increasingly valuable. Groq's instant responses could help preserve that deep focus state by eliminating the wait times that typically break our concentration and tempt us to context switch.

Hi there, thanks for taking the time to write a detailed request for this feature! I agree that this would be a game changer.

 

We are working on adding prefix caching right now! We don’t have an estimated launch date for it yet, but we are working on it, and it will hopefully be available soon.

 

I’m really glad to hear that you’ve been enjoying using Groq so far. I’ve passed your suggestions onto the team.

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