GPT-5 Nano is $0.01 cheaper per 1M input tokens (23.1% lower; 1.3x difference).
API cost decision in 10 seconds
Qwen3.5-Flash vs GPT-5 Nano
Pick Qwen3.5-Flash when budget and context both matter.
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Data confirmed:
Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens
Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output
Budget verdict
Pick Qwen3.5-Flash when budget and context both matter.
On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Qwen3.5-Flash is estimated at $0.2 vs $0.25 for GPT-5 Nano, saving $0.05 (22% lower).
Cost-first pickQwen3.5-Flash
Context-first pickQwen3.5-Flash
Sample savings$0.0522%
10x traffic gap$0.55
Qwen3.5-Flash is cheaper on the standard workload and also has the larger context window. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $0.55. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.
Cost sensitivity
Workload Sensitivity
Cost winner changes by workload shape: input-heavy / RAG favors GPT-5 Nano, balanced workload favors Qwen3.5-Flash, and output-heavy chatbot favors Qwen3.5-Flash.
| Workload shape | Token mix | Better pick | Qwen3.5-Flash | GPT-5 Nano |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Input-heavy / RAG | 5M input + 500K output | GPT-5 Nano | $0.46 | $0.45 |
| Balanced workload | 1M input + 1M output | Qwen3.5-Flash | $0.33 | $0.45 |
| Output-heavy chatbot | 1M input + 5M output | Qwen3.5-Flash | $1.36 | $2.05 |
Qwen3.5-Flash is $0.14 cheaper per 1M output tokens (35% lower; 1.54x difference).
Qwen3.5-Flash has 600K more context (2.5x larger).
Qwen3.5-Flash is $0.05 cheaper on the standard workload (22% 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
GPT-5 Nano has the lower input price; Qwen3.5-Flash has the lower output price; Qwen3.5-Flash offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, Qwen3.5-Flash is cheaper for the standard workload.
For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $0.2 for Qwen3.5-Flash and $0.25 for GPT-5 Nano.
Choose Qwen3.5-Flash when you care most about lower output-token price, and larger context window.
Choose GPT-5 Nano when you care most about lower input-token price.
- On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Qwen3.5-Flash is estimated at $0.2 vs $0.25 for GPT-5 Nano, saving $0.05 (22% lower).
- Qwen3.5-Flash is $0.05 cheaper on the standard workload (22% lower).
- GPT-5 Nano is $0.01 cheaper per 1M input tokens (23.1% lower; 1.3x difference).
- Qwen3.5-Flash is $0.14 cheaper per 1M output tokens (35% lower; 1.54x difference).
- Qwen3.5-Flash has 600K more context (2.5x larger).
| Feature | Qwen3.5-Flash (Qwen) | GPT-5 Nano (OpenAI) |
|---|---|---|
| Input Price prompt tokens per 1M | $0.065 | $0.05 |
| Completion Price per 1M tokens | $0.26 | $0.4 |
| Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output | $0.2 | $0.25 |
| Context Window | 1M | 400K |
| Release Date | ||
| Popularity | #25 | #68 |
Use-Case Decision Matrix
| Use case | Better pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Budget-constrained production | Qwen3.5-Flash | On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Qwen3.5-Flash is estimated at $0.2 vs $0.25 for GPT-5 Nano, saving $0.05 (22% lower). |
| High-volume input processing | GPT-5 Nano | Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill. |
| Long responses and chatbots | Qwen3.5-Flash | Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens. |
| RAG or long-document work | Qwen3.5-Flash | A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files. |
Related Alternatives
- Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct (free) can replace Qwen3.5-Flash when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B (free) can replace Qwen3.5-Flash when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- Qwen2.5 7B Instruct can replace Qwen3.5-Flash when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.09.
- Qwen3.5-9B can replace Qwen3.5-Flash when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.11.
- 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.
- Gemini 2.5 Flash Lite offers 1.05M context with $0.3 sample workload cost.
- DeepSeek V4 Flash · DeepSeek · #1
- Hy3 preview · Tencent · #2
- Claude Opus 4.7 · Anthropic · #3
- Claude Sonnet 4.6 · Anthropic · #4
Cheaper alternatives
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