DeepSeek R1 vs Qwen3.5-35B-A3B
DeepSeek R1 (2025) and Qwen3.5-35B-A3B (2026) are frontier-tier reasoning models from DeepSeek and Alibaba. DeepSeek R1 ships a 128K-token context window, while Qwen3.5-35B-A3B ships a 262K-token context window. On Google-Proof Q&A, Qwen3.5-35B-A3B leads by 13 pts. On pricing, DeepSeek R1 costs $0.1/1M input tokens versus $0.16/1M for the alternative. This comparison covers specs, pricing, capabilities, benchmarks, provider availability, and production fit.
DeepSeek R1 is ~63% cheaper at $0.1/1M; pay for Qwen3.5-35B-A3B only for long-context analysis.
Specs
| Released | 2025-01-20 | 2026-02-24 |
| Context window | 128K | 262K |
| Parameters | 671B, 37B Active | 35B |
| Architecture | decoder only | mixture of experts |
| License | Open Source | Apache 2.0 |
| Knowledge cutoff | - | - |
Pricing and availability
| DeepSeek R1 | Qwen3.5-35B-A3B | |
|---|---|---|
| Input price | $0.1/1M tokens | $0.16/1M tokens |
| Output price | $0.3/1M tokens | $1.3/1M tokens |
| Providers |
Capabilities
| DeepSeek R1 | Qwen3.5-35B-A3B | |
|---|---|---|
| Vision | ||
| Multimodal | ||
| Reasoning | ||
| Function calling | ||
| Tool use | ||
| Structured outputs | ||
| Code execution |
Benchmarks
| Benchmark | DeepSeek R1 | Qwen3.5-35B-A3B |
|---|---|---|
| Google-Proof Q&A | 71.5 | 84.5 |
Deep dive
On shared benchmark coverage, Google-Proof Q&A has DeepSeek R1 at 71.5 and Qwen3.5-35B-A3B at 84.5, with Qwen3.5-35B-A3B ahead by 13 points. The largest visible gap is 13 points on Google-Proof Q&A, which matters most when that benchmark mirrors your workload. Treat isolated benchmark wins as directional, because provider routing, prompt style, and tool access can move real application results.
The capability footprint differs most on function calling: Qwen3.5-35B-A3B, tool use: Qwen3.5-35B-A3B, and code execution: DeepSeek R1. Both models share reasoning mode and structured outputs, so the practical split is not just feature count. Use those differences to decide whether the page is about raw model quality, agentic coding support, multimodal ingestion, or predictable structured API behavior.
For cost, DeepSeek R1 lists $0.1/1M input and $0.3/1M output tokens, while Qwen3.5-35B-A3B lists $0.16/1M input and $1.3/1M output tokens on the cheapest tracked provider. A 70/30 input-output blend puts DeepSeek R1 lower by about $0.34 per million blended tokens. Availability is 13 providers versus 1, so concentration risk also matters.
Choose DeepSeek R1 when coding workflow support, lower input-token cost, and broader provider choice are central to the workload. Choose Qwen3.5-35B-A3B when long-context analysis and larger context windows are more important. For production, rerun your own prompts through the exact provider, region, and tool stack you plan to ship.
FAQ
Which has a larger context window, DeepSeek R1 or Qwen3.5-35B-A3B?
Qwen3.5-35B-A3B supports 262K tokens, while DeepSeek R1 supports 128K tokens. That gap matters most for long documents, large codebases, retrieval-heavy agents, and conversations where earlier context must remain visible. Use this as a quick comparison signal, then confirm the provider-specific limits before committing to production.
Which is cheaper, DeepSeek R1 or Qwen3.5-35B-A3B?
DeepSeek R1 is cheaper on tracked token pricing. DeepSeek R1 costs $0.1/1M input and $0.3/1M output tokens. Qwen3.5-35B-A3B costs $0.16/1M input and $1.3/1M output tokens. Provider discounts or batch pricing can still change the final bill.
Is DeepSeek R1 or Qwen3.5-35B-A3B open source?
DeepSeek R1 is listed under Open Source. Qwen3.5-35B-A3B is listed under Apache 2.0. License labels affect whether you can self-host, redistribute weights, or rely only on hosted APIs, so confirm the upstream license before deployment.
Which is better for reasoning mode, DeepSeek R1 or Qwen3.5-35B-A3B?
Both DeepSeek R1 and Qwen3.5-35B-A3B expose reasoning mode. The better choice depends on benchmark fit, context budget, pricing, and whether your provider route exposes the same capability surface. Use this as a quick comparison signal, then confirm the provider-specific limits before committing to production.
Which is better for function calling, DeepSeek R1 or Qwen3.5-35B-A3B?
Qwen3.5-35B-A3B has the clearer documented function calling signal in this comparison. If function calling is mission-critical, validate it against the provider endpoint because model-level support and API-level exposure can differ.
Where can I run DeepSeek R1 and Qwen3.5-35B-A3B?
DeepSeek R1 is available on DeepSeek Platform, OpenRouter, Together AI, Fireworks AI, and NVIDIA NIM. Qwen3.5-35B-A3B is available on OpenRouter. Provider coverage can affect latency, region availability, compliance posture, and fallback options.
Continue comparing
Last reviewed: 2026-04-24. Data sourced from public model cards and provider documentation.