Ling-2.6-1T is $0.18 cheaper per 1M input tokens (71.2% lower; 3.47x difference).
API cost decision in 10 seconds
Ling-2.6-1T vs Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15
Pick Ling-2.6-1T for lower cost; pick Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 only if the larger context window matters more.
Page updated:
Data confirmed:
Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens
Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output
Budget verdict
Pick Ling-2.6-1T for lower cost; pick Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 only if the larger context window matters more.
On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Ling-2.6-1T is estimated at $0.39 vs $1.04 for Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15, saving $0.65 (62.7% lower).
Cost-first pickLing-2.6-1T
Context-first pickQwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15
Sample savings$0.6562.7%
10x traffic gap$6.53
Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 has more context, but Ling-2.6-1T saves $0.65 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $6.53. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.
Cost sensitivity
Workload Sensitivity
Ling-2.6-1T stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.
| Workload shape | Token mix | Better pick | Ling-2.6-1T | Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Input-heavy / RAG | 5M input + 500K output | Ling-2.6-1T | $0.69 | $2.08 |
| Balanced workload | 1M input + 1M output | Ling-2.6-1T | $0.7 | $1.82 |
| Output-heavy chatbot | 1M input + 5M output | Ling-2.6-1T | $3.2 | $8.06 |
Ling-2.6-1T is $0.94 cheaper per 1M output tokens (59.9% lower; 2.5x difference).
Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 has 737.86K more context (3.81x larger).
Ling-2.6-1T is $0.65 cheaper on the standard workload (62.7% lower).
Estimate your workload cost
Your Workload Cost
This estimate uses normalized public API pricing per 1M tokens. It is a planning aid, not a billing quote. Verify provider pricing, limits, and terms before production use.
Quick Decision
Ling-2.6-1T has the lower input price; Ling-2.6-1T has the lower output price; Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, Ling-2.6-1T is cheaper for the standard workload.
For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $0.39 for Ling-2.6-1T and $1.04 for Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15.
Choose Ling-2.6-1T when you care most about lower input-token price, and lower output-token price.
Choose Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 when you care most about larger context window.
- On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Ling-2.6-1T is estimated at $0.39 vs $1.04 for Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15, saving $0.65 (62.7% lower).
- Ling-2.6-1T is $0.65 cheaper on the standard workload (62.7% lower).
- Ling-2.6-1T is $0.18 cheaper per 1M input tokens (71.2% lower; 3.47x difference).
- Ling-2.6-1T is $0.94 cheaper per 1M output tokens (59.9% lower; 2.5x difference).
- Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 has 737.86K more context (3.81x larger).
| Feature | Ling-2.6-1T (inclusionAI) | Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 (Qwen) |
|---|---|---|
| Input Price prompt tokens per 1M | $0.075 | $0.26 |
| Completion Price per 1M tokens | $0.625 | $1.56 |
| Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output | $0.39 | $1.04 |
| Context Window | 262.14K | 1M |
| Release Date |
Use-Case Decision Matrix
| Use case | Better pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Budget-constrained production | Ling-2.6-1T | On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Ling-2.6-1T is estimated at $0.39 vs $1.04 for Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15, saving $0.65 (62.7% lower). |
| High-volume input processing | Ling-2.6-1T | Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill. |
| Long responses and chatbots | Ling-2.6-1T | Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens. |
| RAG or long-document work | Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 | A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files. |
Related Alternatives
- Ling-2.6-flash can replace Ling-2.6-1T when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.03.
- Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct (free) can replace Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B (free) can replace Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- Qwen2.5 7B Instruct can replace Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.09.
- Llama 4 Scout offers 10M context with $0.23 sample workload cost.
- Owl Alpha offers 1.05M context with $0 sample workload cost.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash offers 1.05M context with $0.2 sample workload cost.
- DeepSeek V4 Pro offers 1.05M context with $0.87 sample workload cost.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash · DeepSeek · #1
- Hy3 preview · Tencent · #2
- Claude Opus 4.7 · Anthropic · #3
- Claude Sonnet 4.6 · Anthropic · #4
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