API cost decision in 10 seconds

NewGLM Latest vs Laguna XS 2.1

Pick Laguna XS 2.1 for lower cost; pick GLM Latest only if the larger context window matters more.

Page updated: 2026-08-19T15:08:00Z Data confirmed: 2026-08-23T12:07:48Z Prices normalized to USD per 1M tokens Sample workload: 1M input + 500K output

Budget verdict

Pick Laguna XS 2.1 for lower cost; pick GLM Latest only if the larger context window matters more.

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Laguna XS 2.1 is estimated at $0.12 vs $3.6 for GLM Latest, saving $3.48 (96.7% lower).

Cost-first pickLaguna XS 2.1

Context-first pickGLM Latest

Sample savings$3.4896.7%

10x traffic gap$34.8

GLM Latest has more context, but Laguna XS 2.1 saves $3.48 on the standard workload. At 10x that traffic, the same price gap is about $34.8. Use the calculator below to replace the sample workload with your own token volume.

Cost sensitivity

Workload Sensitivity

Same prices, different token mixes.

Laguna XS 2.1 stays cheaper across input-heavy, balanced, and output-heavy sample workloads.

Workload shape	Token mix	Better pick	GLM Latest	Laguna XS 2.1
Input-heavy / RAG	5M input + 500K output	Laguna XS 2.1	$9.2	$0.36
Balanced workload	1M input + 1M output	Laguna XS 2.1	$5.8	$0.18
Output-heavy chatbot	1M input + 5M output	Laguna XS 2.1	$23.4	$0.66

Cheaper input Laguna XS 2.1 $1.4 vs $0.06 / 1M

Laguna XS 2.1 is $1.34 cheaper per 1M input tokens (95.7% lower; 23.3x difference).

Cheaper output Laguna XS 2.1 $4.4 vs $0.12 / 1M

Laguna XS 2.1 is $4.28 cheaper per 1M output tokens (97.3% lower; 36.7x difference).

Larger context GLM Latest 1.05M vs 262.14K

GLM Latest has 786.43K more context (4x larger).

Sample workload Laguna XS 2.1 $3.6 vs $0.12

Laguna XS 2.1 is $3.48 cheaper on the standard workload (96.7% lower).

Estimate your workload cost

Your Workload Cost

Prices are normalized to USD per 1M tokens.

Monthly input tokens Monthly output tokens

GLM Latest Calculating… Estimated API cost

Laguna XS 2.1 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

Laguna XS 2.1 has the lower input price; Laguna XS 2.1 has the lower output price; GLM Latest offers the larger context window. For the 1M input plus 500K output sample, Laguna XS 2.1 is cheaper for the standard workload.

For a 1M input token plus 500K output token workload, the estimated API cost is $3.6 for GLM Latest and $0.12 for Laguna XS 2.1.

Best Fit

Choose GLM Latest when you care most about larger context window.

Choose Laguna XS 2.1 when you care most about lower input-token price, and lower output-token price.

Decision Notes

On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Laguna XS 2.1 is estimated at $0.12 vs $3.6 for GLM Latest, saving $3.48 (96.7% lower).
Laguna XS 2.1 is $3.48 cheaper on the standard workload (96.7% lower).
Laguna XS 2.1 is $1.34 cheaper per 1M input tokens (95.7% lower; 23.3x difference).
Laguna XS 2.1 is $4.28 cheaper per 1M output tokens (97.3% lower; 36.7x difference).
GLM Latest has 786.43K more context (4x larger).

Head-to-Head Specs

Feature	NewGLM Latest (Z.ai)	Laguna XS 2.1 (Poolside)
Input Price prompt tokens per 1M	$1.4	$0.06
Completion Price per 1M tokens	$4.4	$0.12
Sample Workload Cost 1M input + 500K output	$3.6	$0.12
Context Window	1.05M	262.14K
Release Date	2026-08-19	2026-07-02

Use-Case Decision Matrix

Use case	Better pick	Why
Budget-constrained production	Laguna XS 2.1	On the standard 1M input plus 500K output workload, Laguna XS 2.1 is estimated at $0.12 vs $3.6 for GLM Latest, saving $3.48 (96.7% lower).
High-volume input processing	Laguna XS 2.1	Lower prompt-token price matters most when prompts, retrieved passages, or documents dominate the bill.
Long responses and chatbots	Laguna XS 2.1	Lower output-token price matters most when assistants generate many completion tokens.
RAG or long-document work	GLM Latest	A larger context window leaves more room for retrieved passages, conversation history, or source files.

Related Alternatives

Same-provider lower-cost swaps

GLM 5.2 (free) can replace GLM Latest when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
GLM 4.5 Air (free) can replace GLM Latest when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.
GLM 4 32B can replace GLM Latest when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.15.
GLM 4.7 Flash can replace GLM Latest when lower sample workload cost matters most: $0.26.

Larger context near this budget

Grok 4.20 Multi-Agent offers 2M context with $2.5 sample workload cost.
Grok 4.20 offers 2M context with $2.5 sample workload cost.
DeepSeek V4 Flash 0731 offers 1.31M context with $0.17 sample workload cost.
DeepSeek V4 Flash Latest offers 1.31M context with $0.11 sample workload cost.

Popular competitors

DeepSeek V4 Flash 0731 · DeepSeek · #1
MiMo-V2.5 · Xiaomi · #2
Hy3 · Tencent · #3
Ox Alpha · stealth · #4

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Provider catalogs

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Z.ai catalog

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Poolside catalog

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GLM Latest

This model always redirects to the latest GLM model from Z.ai.

Laguna XS 2.1

Laguna XS 2.1 is the latest coding agent model in the 33B-A3B category from [Poolside](https://poolside.ai/) and a step forward from their Laguna XS.2 model (released in April 2026). It combines...