How I judge whether AI saves me time

AI gets me to a first draft faster. Whether it saves me time depends on how much work that draft needs.

I still have to check whether the change solves the problem, handle edge cases, and make sure it fits the rest of the code. Sometimes a quick draft just gives me more code to inspect.

That's the part a token price doesn't tell me. A cheaper model can lower the bill without making the whole task cheaper. If I spend longer fixing its output, some of that saving has moved into my own time.

So I judge a workflow by the complete change, including the time I spend explaining the task, reviewing the draft, and fixing it. Some workflows save time across all of that. Others mostly make the beginning feel fast. I keep the ones that help me finish a change I can understand and use.