Grok 4 vs Qwen3-Max
Grok 4 (2026) and Qwen3-Max (2026) are frontier reasoning models from xAI and Alibaba. Grok 4 ships a 256k-token context window, while Qwen3-Max ships a 128K-token context window. On SWE-bench Verified, Qwen3-Max leads by 2.1 pts. On pricing, Qwen3-Max costs $0.78/1M input tokens versus $3/1M for the alternative. This comparison covers specs, pricing, capabilities, benchmarks, provider availability, and production fit.
Qwen3-Max is ~285% cheaper at $0.78/1M; pay for Grok 4 only for coding workflow support.
Specs
Pricing and availability
| Grok 4 | Qwen3-Max | |
|---|---|---|
| Input price | $3/1M tokens | $0.78/1M tokens |
| Output price | $15/1M tokens | $3.9/1M tokens |
| Providers |
Capabilities
| Grok 4 | Qwen3-Max | |
|---|---|---|
| Vision | ||
| Multimodal | ||
| Reasoning | ||
| Function calling | ||
| Tool use | ||
| Structured outputs | ||
| Code execution |
Benchmarks
| Benchmark | Grok 4 | Qwen3-Max |
|---|---|---|
| SWE-bench Verified | 76.7 | 78.8 |
| τ-bench | 78.9 | 76.8 |
Deep dive
On shared benchmark coverage, SWE-bench Verified has Grok 4 at 76.7 and Qwen3-Max at 78.8, with Qwen3-Max ahead by 2.1 points; τ-bench has Grok 4 at 78.9 and Qwen3-Max at 76.8, with Grok 4 ahead by 2.1 points. The largest visible gap is 2.1 points on τ-bench, 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 vision: Qwen3-Max, reasoning mode: Grok 4, function calling: Qwen3-Max, tool use: Qwen3-Max, and code execution: Grok 4. Both models share multimodal input 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, Grok 4 lists $3/1M input and $15/1M output tokens, while Qwen3-Max lists $0.78/1M input and $3.9/1M output tokens on the cheapest tracked provider. A 70/30 input-output blend puts Qwen3-Max lower by about $4.88 per million blended tokens. Availability is 3 providers versus 1, so concentration risk also matters.
Choose Grok 4 when coding workflow support, larger context windows, and broader provider choice are central to the workload. Choose Qwen3-Max when vision-heavy evaluation 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.
FAQ
Which has a larger context window, Grok 4 or Qwen3-Max?
Grok 4 supports 256k tokens, while Qwen3-Max 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, Grok 4 or Qwen3-Max?
Qwen3-Max is cheaper on tracked token pricing. Grok 4 costs $3/1M input and $15/1M output tokens. Qwen3-Max costs $0.78/1M input and $3.9/1M output tokens. Provider discounts or batch pricing can still change the final bill.
Is Grok 4 or Qwen3-Max open source?
Grok 4 is listed under Proprietary. Qwen3-Max is listed under Proprietary. 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 vision, Grok 4 or Qwen3-Max?
Qwen3-Max has the clearer documented vision signal in this comparison. If vision is mission-critical, validate it against the provider endpoint because model-level support and API-level exposure can differ. Use this as a quick comparison signal, then confirm the provider-specific limits before committing to production.
Which is better for multimodal input, Grok 4 or Qwen3-Max?
Both Grok 4 and Qwen3-Max expose multimodal input. 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.
Where can I run Grok 4 and Qwen3-Max?
Grok 4 is available on Microsoft Foundry, OpenRouter, and Replicate API. Qwen3-Max is available on OpenRouter. Provider coverage can affect latency, region availability, compliance posture, and fallback options. Use this as a quick comparison signal, then confirm the provider-specific limits before committing to production.
Continue comparing
Last reviewed: 2026-04-24. Data sourced from public model cards and provider documentation.