API cost decision in 10 seconds

GLM 5.1 vs Qwen3 Max Thinking

Pick GLM 5.1 for lower cost; pick Qwen3 Max Thinking only if the larger context window matters more.

Pricing data updated: 2026-05-26T11:08:00Z Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output

Budget verdict

Pick GLM 5.1 for lower cost; pick Qwen3 Max Thinking only if the larger context window matters more.

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, GLM 5.1 is estimated at $2.52 vs $2.73 for Qwen3 Max Thinking, saving $0.21 (7.7% lower).

Cost-first pickGLM 5.1

Context-first pickQwen3 Max Thinking

Sample savings$0.217.7%

10x traffic gap$2.1

Qwen3 Max Thinking has more context, but GLM 5.1 saves $0.21 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $2.1. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.

Cost sensitivity

Workload Sensitivity

Same prices, different token mixes.

Cost winner changes by workload shape: input-heavy / RAG favors Qwen3 Max Thinking, balanced workload favors GLM 5.1, and output-heavy chatbot favors GLM 5.1.

Workload shape	Token mix	Better pick	GLM 5.1	Qwen3 Max Thinking
Input-heavy / RAG	5M input + 500K output	Qwen3 Max Thinking	$6.44	$5.85
Balanced workload	1M input + 1M output	GLM 5.1	$4.06	$4.68
Output-heavy chatbot	1M input + 5M output	GLM 5.1	$16.38	$20.28

Cheaper input Qwen3 Max Thinking $0.98 vs $0.78 / 1M

Qwen3 Max Thinking is $0.2 cheaper per 1M input tokens (20.4% lower; 1.26x difference).

Cheaper output GLM 5.1 $3.08 vs $3.9 / 1M

GLM 5.1 is $0.82 cheaper per 1M output tokens (21% lower; 1.27x difference).

Larger context Qwen3 Max Thinking 202.75K vs 262.14K

Qwen3 Max Thinking has 59.39K more context (1.29x larger).

Sample workload GLM 5.1 $2.52 vs $2.73

GLM 5.1 is $0.21 cheaper on the standard workload (7.7% lower).

Estimate your workload cost

Your Workload Cost

Prices are normalized to USD per 1M tokens.

Monthly input tokens Monthly output tokens

GLM 5.1 Calculating… Estimated API cost

Qwen3 Max Thinking 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 Max Thinking has the lower input price; GLM 5.1 has the lower output price; Qwen3 Max Thinking offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, GLM 5.1 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 $2.73 for Qwen3 Max Thinking.

Best Fit

Choose GLM 5.1 when you care most about lower output-token price.

Choose Qwen3 Max Thinking when you care most about lower input-token price, and larger context window.

Decision Notes

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, GLM 5.1 is estimated at $2.52 vs $2.73 for Qwen3 Max Thinking, saving $0.21 (7.7% lower).
GLM 5.1 is $0.21 cheaper on the standard workload (7.7% lower).
Qwen3 Max Thinking is $0.2 cheaper per 1M input tokens (20.4% lower; 1.26x difference).
GLM 5.1 is $0.82 cheaper per 1M output tokens (21% lower; 1.27x difference).
Qwen3 Max Thinking has 59.39K more context (1.29x larger).

Head-to-Head Specs

Feature	GLM 5.1 (Z.ai)	Qwen3 Max Thinking (Qwen)
Input Price prompt tokens per 1M	$0.98	$0.78
Completion Price per 1M tokens	$3.08	$3.9
Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output	$2.52	$2.73
Context Window	202.75K	262.14K
Release Date	2026-04-07	2026-02-09

Use-Case Decision Matrix

Use case	Better pick	Why
Budget-constrained production	GLM 5.1	On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, GLM 5.1 is estimated at $2.52 vs $2.73 for Qwen3 Max Thinking, saving $0.21 (7.7% lower).
High-volume input processing	Qwen3 Max Thinking	Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill.
Long responses and chatbots	GLM 5.1	Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens.
RAG or long-document work	Qwen3 Max Thinking	A 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.
Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite offers 1.05M context with $1 sample workload cost.

Popular competitors

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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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

Review all tracked Z.ai models before deciding whether this matchup is the right shortlist.

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Qwen catalog

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

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GLM 5.1

GLM-5.1 delivers a major leap in coding capability, with particularly significant gains in handling long-horizon tasks. Unlike previous models built around minute-level interactions, GLM-5.1 can work independently and continuously on...

Qwen3 Max Thinking

Qwen3-Max-Thinking is the flagship reasoning model in the Qwen3 series, designed for high-stakes cognitive tasks that require deep, multi-step reasoning. By significantly scaling model capacity and reinforcement learning compute, it...