Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 is $4.74 cheaper per 1M input tokens (94.8% lower; 19.2x difference).
API cost decision in 10 seconds
🔥GPT-5.5 vs Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15
Pick Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 for lower cost; pick GPT-5.5 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 Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 for lower cost; pick GPT-5.5 only if the larger context window matters more.
On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 is estimated at $1.04 vs $20 for GPT-5.5, saving $18.96 (94.8% lower).
Cost-first pickQwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15
Context-first pickGPT-5.5
Sample savings$18.9694.8%
10x traffic gap$189.6
GPT-5.5 has more context, but Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 saves $18.96 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $189.6. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.
Cost sensitivity
Workload Sensitivity
Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.
| Workload shape | Token mix | Better pick | GPT-5.5 | Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Input-heavy / RAG | 5M input + 500K output | Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 | $40 | $2.08 |
| Balanced workload | 1M input + 1M output | Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 | $35 | $1.82 |
| Output-heavy chatbot | 1M input + 5M output | Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 | $155 | $8.06 |
Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 is $28.44 cheaper per 1M output tokens (94.8% lower; 19.2x difference).
GPT-5.5 has 50K more context (1.05x larger).
Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 is $18.96 cheaper on the standard workload (94.8% 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
Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 has the lower input price; Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 has the lower output price; GPT-5.5 offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 is cheaper for the standard workload.
For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $20 for GPT-5.5 and $1.04 for Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15.
Choose GPT-5.5 when you care most about larger context window.
Choose Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 when you care most about lower input-token price, and lower output-token price.
- On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 is estimated at $1.04 vs $20 for GPT-5.5, saving $18.96 (94.8% lower).
- Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 is $18.96 cheaper on the standard workload (94.8% lower).
- Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 is $4.74 cheaper per 1M input tokens (94.8% lower; 19.2x difference).
- Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 is $28.44 cheaper per 1M output tokens (94.8% lower; 19.2x difference).
- GPT-5.5 has 50K more context (1.05x larger).
| Feature | 🔥GPT-5.5 (OpenAI) | Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 (Qwen) |
|---|---|---|
| Input Price prompt tokens per 1M | $5 | $0.26 |
| Completion Price per 1M tokens | $30 | $1.56 |
| Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output | $20 | $1.04 |
| Context Window | 1.05M | 1M |
| Release Date | ||
| Popularity | #17 |
Use-Case Decision Matrix
| Use case | Better pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Budget-constrained production | Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 | On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 is estimated at $1.04 vs $20 for GPT-5.5, saving $18.96 (94.8% lower). |
| High-volume input processing | Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 | Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill. |
| Long responses and chatbots | Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 | Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens. |
| RAG or long-document work | GPT-5.5 | A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files. |
Related Alternatives
- gpt-oss-120b (free) can replace GPT-5.5 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- gpt-oss-20b (free) can replace GPT-5.5 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- gpt-oss-20b can replace GPT-5.5 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.1.
- gpt-oss-120b can replace GPT-5.5 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.13.
- Llama 4 Scout offers 10M context with $0.23 sample workload cost.
- Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent offers 2M context with $5 sample workload cost.
- Grok 4.20 offers 2M context with $2.5 sample workload cost.
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