diff --git a/litellm/proxy/spend_tracking/budget_reservation.py b/litellm/proxy/spend_tracking/budget_reservation.py
index f4999d26d6f..87a9206825a 100644
--- a/litellm/proxy/spend_tracking/budget_reservation.py
+++ b/litellm/proxy/spend_tracking/budget_reservation.py
@@ -1045,6 +1045,21 @@ def _estimate_request_max_cost_for_model(
     return max(valid_estimates) if valid_estimates else None
 
 
+_TIER_OUTPUT_RATE_KEYS: Final = ("output_cost_per_token", "output_cost_per_reasoning_token")
+
+
+def _tier_output_rate(tier: Mapping[str, object], model_info: Mapping[str, object]) -> float:
+    """Output rate to reserve for a request billed at ``tier``.
+
+    A tier table that prices only input falls back to the model's own output rates when
+    the request is billed, so reserving the tier's missing rate as 0 leaves every
+    completion under-reserved. The reasoning-token share is unknown before the request
+    runs, so the higher of the two rates is used either way.
+    """
+    rates: Final = tier if any(key in tier for key in _TIER_OUTPUT_RATE_KEYS) else model_info
+    return max(_to_float(rates.get(key)) or 0.0 for key in _TIER_OUTPUT_RATE_KEYS)
+
+
 def _max_cost_for_cost_info(
     request_body: dict,
     route: str,
@@ -1079,12 +1094,8 @@ def _max_cost_for_cost_info(
     if isinstance(tiered_pricing, list) and tiered_pricing:
         tier: Final = select_tier_for_input(tiered_pricing=tiered_pricing, input_tokens=estimated_input_tokens)
         if tier is not None:
-            output_rate = max(
-                tier_rate(tier, "output_cost_per_token"),
-                tier_rate(tier, "output_cost_per_reasoning_token"),
-            )
             return (estimated_input_tokens * tier_rate(tier, "input_cost_per_token")) + (
-                output_tokens * output_multiplier * output_rate
+                output_tokens * output_multiplier * _tier_output_rate(tier=tier, model_info=model_info)
             )
 
     input_cost_per_token: Final = _to_float(model_info.get("input_cost_per_token"))
diff --git a/tests/test_litellm/proxy/test_budget_reservation.py b/tests/test_litellm/proxy/test_budget_reservation.py
index 9c88daa9990..d837a7372e2 100644
--- a/tests/test_litellm/proxy/test_budget_reservation.py
+++ b/tests/test_litellm/proxy/test_budget_reservation.py
@@ -1124,7 +1124,7 @@ def test_reservation_uses_most_expensive_deployment_in_group():
     ],
     ids=["litellm_params", "model_info"],
 )
-def test_free_deployment_of_tiered_model_reserves_nothing(deployment_overrides):
+def test_free_deployment_of_tiered_model_reserves_nothing(deployment_overrides: dict[str, dict[str, int]]):
     """A deployment priced at 0 on a model whose published entry carries a tier table
     must not be estimated against that table. Spend tracking bills such a deployment at
     its own rates, so reserving the published tier rate consumed, and rejected requests
@@ -1223,6 +1223,46 @@ def test_deployment_declaring_own_tier_table_keeps_it():
     assert estimated is not None and estimated > 0
 
 
+def test_input_only_tier_reserves_the_models_own_output_rate():
+    """A tier table that prices only input is billed with the model's own output rates,
+    so reserving the tier's absent output rate as 0 would leave every completion
+    unreserved and let a budgeted caller run past their limit."""
+    output_tokens = 500
+    router = Router(
+        model_list=[
+            {
+                "model_name": "input-tiered",
+                "litellm_params": {
+                    "model": "dashscope/qwen-plus-latest",
+                    "api_key": "sk-fake",
+                    "input_cost_per_token": 1e-06,
+                    "output_cost_per_token": 5e-06,
+                    "tiered_pricing": [{"range": [0, 32000], "input_cost_per_token": 2e-06}],
+                },
+            }
+        ]
+    )
+    request_body = {
+        "model": "input-tiered",
+        "messages": [{"role": "user", "content": "hello " * 100}],
+        "max_tokens": output_tokens,
+    }
+
+    input_cost = estimate_request_input_cost(
+        request_body=request_body,
+        route="/chat/completions",
+        llm_router=router,
+    )
+    estimated = estimate_request_max_cost(
+        request_body=request_body,
+        route="/chat/completions",
+        llm_router=router,
+    )
+
+    assert input_cost is not None and input_cost > 0
+    assert estimated == pytest.approx(input_cost + (output_tokens * 5e-06))
+
+
 @pytest.mark.asyncio
 async def test_should_clamp_reservation_to_model_ceiling_when_caller_overrequests(
     spend_counter_state,