GLM-5 vs Qwen3.5-397B-A17B
GLM-5 (2026) and Qwen3.5-397B-A17B (2026) are frontier reasoning models from Zhipu AI and Alibaba. GLM-5 ships a 200k-token context window, while Qwen3.5-397B-A17B ships a 262K-token context window. On pricing, Qwen3.5-397B-A17B costs $0.39/1M input tokens versus $0.72/1M for the alternative. This comparison covers specs, pricing, capabilities, benchmarks, provider availability, and production fit. It focuses on practical selection signals rather than broad model-family marketing.
Qwen3.5-397B-A17B is ~85% cheaper at $0.39/1M; pay for GLM-5 only for reasoning depth.
Specs
| Released | 2026-02-11 | 2026-02-16 |
| Context window | 200k | 262K |
| Parameters | 744B total, 40B active | 397B |
| Architecture | mixture of experts | MoE |
| License | MIT | Apache 2.0 |
| Knowledge cutoff | - | - |
Pricing and availability
| GLM-5 | Qwen3.5-397B-A17B | |
|---|---|---|
| Input price | $0.72/1M tokens | $0.39/1M tokens |
| Output price | $2.3/1M tokens | $2.34/1M tokens |
| Providers |
Capabilities
| GLM-5 | Qwen3.5-397B-A17B | |
|---|---|---|
| Vision | ||
| Multimodal | ||
| Reasoning | ||
| Function calling | ||
| Tool use | ||
| Structured outputs | ||
| Code execution |
Benchmarks
No shared benchmark rows are currently sourced for this pair.
Deep dive
The capability footprint differs most on multimodal input: Qwen3.5-397B-A17B, reasoning mode: GLM-5, function calling: GLM-5, and tool use: GLM-5. Both models share 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, GLM-5 lists $0.72/1M input and $2.3/1M output tokens, while Qwen3.5-397B-A17B lists $0.39/1M input and $2.34/1M output tokens on the cheapest tracked provider. A 70/30 input-output blend puts Qwen3.5-397B-A17B lower by about $0.22 per million blended tokens. Availability is 5 providers versus 1, so concentration risk also matters.
Choose GLM-5 when reasoning depth and broader provider choice are central to the workload. Choose Qwen3.5-397B-A17B when long-context analysis, larger context windows, and lower input-token cost are more important. For production, rerun your own prompts through the exact provider, region, and tool stack you plan to ship. This keeps the decision grounded in measurable tradeoffs instead of brand-level assumptions. It also helps separate model capability from provider packaging, which can change cost and latency. For teams standardizing a stack, that distinction is often the difference between a benchmark win and a reliable deployment.
FAQ
Which has a larger context window, GLM-5 or Qwen3.5-397B-A17B?
Qwen3.5-397B-A17B supports 262K tokens, while GLM-5 supports 200k 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, GLM-5 or Qwen3.5-397B-A17B?
Qwen3.5-397B-A17B is cheaper on tracked token pricing. GLM-5 costs $0.72/1M input and $2.3/1M output tokens. Qwen3.5-397B-A17B costs $0.39/1M input and $2.34/1M output tokens. Provider discounts or batch pricing can still change the final bill.
Is GLM-5 or Qwen3.5-397B-A17B open source?
GLM-5 is listed under MIT. Qwen3.5-397B-A17B 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 multimodal input, GLM-5 or Qwen3.5-397B-A17B?
Qwen3.5-397B-A17B has the clearer documented multimodal input signal in this comparison. If multimodal input is mission-critical, validate it against the provider endpoint because model-level support and API-level exposure can differ.
Which is better for reasoning mode, GLM-5 or Qwen3.5-397B-A17B?
GLM-5 has the clearer documented reasoning mode signal in this comparison. If reasoning mode is mission-critical, validate it against the provider endpoint because model-level support and API-level exposure can differ.
Where can I run GLM-5 and Qwen3.5-397B-A17B?
GLM-5 is available on Fireworks AI, OpenRouter, Together AI, GCP Vertex AI, and NVIDIA NIM. Qwen3.5-397B-A17B 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.