Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 is $1.74 cheaper per 1M input tokens (87% lower; 7.69x difference).
API cost decision in 10 seconds
Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent vs Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15
Pick Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 for lower cost; pick Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent only if the larger context window matters more.
Pricing data updated:
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 Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent 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 $5 for Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent, saving $3.96 (79.2% lower).
Cost-first pickQwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15
Context-first pickGrok 4.20 Multi-Agent
Sample savings$3.9679.2%
10x traffic gap$39.6
Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent has more context, but Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 saves $3.96 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $39.6. 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 | Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent | Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Input-heavy / RAG | 5M input + 500K output | Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 | $13 | $2.08 |
| Balanced workload | 1M input + 1M output | Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 | $8 | $1.82 |
| Output-heavy chatbot | 1M input + 5M output | Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 | $32 | $8.06 |
Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 is $4.44 cheaper per 1M output tokens (74% lower; 3.85x difference).
Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent has 1M more context (2x larger).
Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 is $3.96 cheaper on the standard workload (79.2% 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; Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent 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 $5 for Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent and $1.04 for Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15.
Choose Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent 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 $5 for Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent, saving $3.96 (79.2% lower).
- Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 is $3.96 cheaper on the standard workload (79.2% lower).
- Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 is $1.74 cheaper per 1M input tokens (87% lower; 7.69x difference).
- Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 is $4.44 cheaper per 1M output tokens (74% lower; 3.85x difference).
- Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent has 1M more context (2x larger).
| Feature | Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent (xAI) | Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 (Qwen) |
|---|---|---|
| Input Price prompt tokens per 1M | $2 | $0.26 |
| Completion Price per 1M tokens | $6 | $1.56 |
| Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output | $5 | $1.04 |
| Context Window | 2M | 1M |
| Release Date |
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 $5 for Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent, saving $3.96 (79.2% 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 | Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent | A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files. |
Related Alternatives
- Grok Build 0.1 can replace Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent when lower sample workload cost matters most: $2.
- Grok 4.3 can replace Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent when lower sample workload cost matters most: $2.5.
- Grok 4.20 can replace Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent when lower sample workload cost matters most: $2.5.
- Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct (free) can replace Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-02-15 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
- Llama 4 Scout offers 10M context with $0.23 sample workload cost.
- No popular competitor is currently available.
Cheaper alternatives
Review low-cost models sorted by a standard 1M input plus 500K output workload.
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