API cost decision in 10 seconds

GLM 5.1 vs Qwen3.5 397B A17B

Pick Qwen3.5 397B A17B when budget and context both matter.

Page updated:  Data confirmed:  Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output

Budget verdict

Pick Qwen3.5 397B A17B when budget and context both matter.

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Qwen3.5 397B A17B is estimated at $1.56 vs $2.52 for GLM 5.1, saving $0.96 (38.1% lower).

Cost-first pickQwen3.5 397B A17B
Context-first pickQwen3.5 397B A17B
Sample savings$0.9638.1%
10x traffic gap$9.6

Qwen3.5 397B A17B is cheaper on the standard workload and also has the larger context window. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $9.6. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.

Cost sensitivity

Workload Sensitivity

Same prices, different token mixes.

Qwen3.5 397B A17B stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.

Workload shapeToken mixBetter pickGLM 5.1Qwen3.5 397B A17B
Input-heavy / RAG5M input + 500K outputQwen3.5 397B A17B$6.44$3.12
Balanced workload1M input + 1M outputQwen3.5 397B A17B$4.06$2.73
Output-heavy chatbot1M input + 5M outputQwen3.5 397B A17B$16.38$12.09
Cheaper input Qwen3.5 397B A17B $0.98 vs $0.39 / 1M

Qwen3.5 397B A17B is $0.59 cheaper per 1M input tokens (60.2% lower; 2.51x difference).

Cheaper output Qwen3.5 397B A17B $3.08 vs $2.34 / 1M

Qwen3.5 397B A17B is $0.74 cheaper per 1M output tokens (24% lower; 1.32x difference).

Larger context Qwen3.5 397B A17B 202.75K vs 262.14K

Qwen3.5 397B A17B has 59.39K more context (1.29x larger).

Sample workload Qwen3.5 397B A17B $2.52 vs $1.56

Qwen3.5 397B A17B is $0.96 cheaper on the standard workload (38.1% lower).

Estimate your workload cost

Your Workload Cost

Prices are normalized to USD per 1M tokens.
GLM 5.1 Calculating… Estimated API cost
Qwen3.5 397B A17B Calculating… Estimated API cost
Cheaper for this workload Calculating… Difference: calculating…

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

Verdict

Qwen3.5 397B A17B has the lower input price; Qwen3.5 397B A17B has the lower output price; Qwen3.5 397B A17B offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, Qwen3.5 397B A17B is cheaper for the standard workload.

For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $2.52 for GLM 5.1 and $1.56 for Qwen3.5 397B A17B.

Best Fit

Choose GLM 5.1 when its provider, model quality, latency, or availability is more important than the numeric price/context winner.

Choose Qwen3.5 397B A17B when you care most about lower input-token price, lower output-token price, and larger context window.

Decision Notes
  • On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Qwen3.5 397B A17B is estimated at $1.56 vs $2.52 for GLM 5.1, saving $0.96 (38.1% lower).
  • Qwen3.5 397B A17B is $0.96 cheaper on the standard workload (38.1% lower).
  • Qwen3.5 397B A17B is $0.59 cheaper per 1M input tokens (60.2% lower; 2.51x difference).
  • Qwen3.5 397B A17B is $0.74 cheaper per 1M output tokens (24% lower; 1.32x difference).
  • Qwen3.5 397B A17B has 59.39K more context (1.29x larger).
Head-to-Head Specs
FeatureGLM 5.1
(Z.ai)		Qwen3.5 397B A17B
(Qwen)
Input Price
prompt tokens per 1M		$0.98$0.39
Completion Price
per 1M tokens		$3.08$2.34
Sample Workload Cost
1M input + 500K output		$2.52$1.56
Context Window202.75K262.14K
Release Date

Use-Case Decision Matrix

Use caseBetter pickWhy
Budget-constrained productionQwen3.5 397B A17BOn the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Qwen3.5 397B A17B is estimated at $1.56 vs $2.52 for GLM 5.1, saving $0.96 (38.1% lower).
High-volume input processingQwen3.5 397B A17BLower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill.
Long responses and chatbotsQwen3.5 397B A17BLower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens.
RAG or long-document workQwen3.5 397B A17BA larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files.

Related Alternatives

Same-provider lower-cost swaps
  • GLM 4.5 Air (free) can replace GLM 5.1 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
  • GLM 4 32B can replace GLM 5.1 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.15.
  • GLM 4.7 Flash can replace GLM 5.1 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.26.
  • GLM 4.5 Air can replace GLM 5.1 when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.55.
Larger context near this budget
  • Llama 4 Scout offers 10M context with $0.23 sample workload cost.
  • Grok 4.20 offers 2M context with $2.5 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.

Cheaper alternatives

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Larger context alternatives

Find models with larger context windows for RAG, long documents, and codebase review.

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Provider catalogs

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Z.ai catalog

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Qwen catalog

Check other Qwen models with comparable pricing, context, or release timing.

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