Gemini 3 Pro vs Qwen3.5-397B-A17B
Gemini 3 Pro (2025) and Qwen3.5-397B-A17B (2026) are frontier reasoning models from Google DeepMind and Alibaba. Gemini 3 Pro ships a 1M-token context window, while Qwen3.5-397B-A17B ships a 262K-token context window. On MMLU PRO, Gemini 3 Pro leads by 2.3 pts. On pricing, Qwen3.5-397B-A17B costs $0.39/1M input tokens versus $1.25/1M for the alternative. This comparison covers specs, pricing, capabilities, benchmarks, provider availability, and production fit.
Qwen3.5-397B-A17B is ~221% cheaper at $0.39/1M; pay for Gemini 3 Pro only for coding workflow support.
Decision scorecard
Local evidence first| Signal | Gemini 3 Pro | Qwen3.5-397B-A17B |
|---|---|---|
| Decision fit | Coding, RAG, and Agents | Coding, RAG, and Agents |
| Context window | 1M | 262K |
| Cheapest output | $5/1M tokens | $2.34/1M tokens |
| Provider routes | 2 tracked | 3 tracked |
| Shared benchmarks | MMLU PRO leader | 3 rows |
Decision tradeoffs
- Gemini 3 Pro leads the largest shared benchmark signal on MMLU PRO by 2.3 points.
- Gemini 3 Pro has the larger context window for long prompts, retrieval packs, or transcript analysis.
- Gemini 3 Pro uniquely exposes Vision and Code execution in local model data.
- Local decision data tags Gemini 3 Pro for Coding, RAG, and Agents.
- Qwen3.5-397B-A17B leads the largest shared benchmark signal on Massive Multi-discipline Multimodal Understanding by 4 points.
- Qwen3.5-397B-A17B has the lower cheapest tracked output price at $2.34/1M tokens.
- Qwen3.5-397B-A17B has broader tracked provider coverage for fallback and procurement flexibility.
- Qwen3.5-397B-A17B uniquely exposes Reasoning and Structured outputs in local model data.
- Local decision data tags Qwen3.5-397B-A17B for Coding, RAG, and Agents.
Monthly cost at traffic
Estimate token spend from the cheapest tracked input and output prices on this page.
Gemini 3 Pro
$2,250
Cheapest tracked route: GCP Vertex AI
Qwen3.5-397B-A17B
$897
Cheapest tracked route: OpenRouter
Estimated monthly gap: $1,353. Batch, cache, and negotiated pricing are excluded from this local estimate.
Switch friction
- No overlapping tracked provider route is sourced for Gemini 3 Pro and Qwen3.5-397B-A17B; plan for SDK, billing, or endpoint changes.
- Qwen3.5-397B-A17B is $2.66/1M tokens lower on cheapest tracked output pricing before cache, batch, or negotiated discounts.
- Check replacement coverage for Vision and Code execution before moving production traffic.
- Qwen3.5-397B-A17B adds Reasoning and Structured outputs in local capability data.
- No overlapping tracked provider route is sourced for Qwen3.5-397B-A17B and Gemini 3 Pro; plan for SDK, billing, or endpoint changes.
- Gemini 3 Pro is $2.66/1M tokens higher on cheapest tracked output pricing, so quality gains need to justify the spend.
- Check replacement coverage for Reasoning and Structured outputs before moving production traffic.
- Gemini 3 Pro adds Vision and Code execution in local capability data.
Specs
| Specification | ||
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2025-12-11 | 2026-02-16 |
| Context window | 1M | 262K |
| Parameters | — | 397B |
| Architecture | decoder only | MoE |
| License | Proprietary | Apache 2.0 |
| Knowledge cutoff | 2025-01 | - |
Pricing and availability
| Pricing attribute | Gemini 3 Pro | Qwen3.5-397B-A17B |
|---|---|---|
| Input price | $1.25/1M tokens | $0.39/1M tokens |
| Output price | $5/1M tokens | $2.34/1M tokens |
| Providers |
Capabilities
| Capability | Gemini 3 Pro | Qwen3.5-397B-A17B |
|---|---|---|
| Vision | Yes | No |
| Multimodal | Yes | Yes |
| Reasoning | No | Yes |
| Function calling | Yes | Yes |
| Tool use | Yes | Yes |
| Structured outputs | No | Yes |
| Code execution | Yes | No |
Benchmarks
| Benchmark | Gemini 3 Pro | Qwen3.5-397B-A17B |
|---|---|---|
| MMLU PRO | 90.1 | 87.8 |
| Massive Multi-discipline Multimodal Understanding | 81.0 | 85.0 |
| BFCL | 72.5 | 72.9 |
Deep dive
On shared benchmark coverage, MMLU PRO has Gemini 3 Pro at 90.1 and Qwen3.5-397B-A17B at 87.8, with Gemini 3 Pro ahead by 2.3 points; Massive Multi-discipline Multimodal Understanding has Gemini 3 Pro at 81 and Qwen3.5-397B-A17B at 85, with Qwen3.5-397B-A17B ahead by 4 points; BFCL has Gemini 3 Pro at 72.5 and Qwen3.5-397B-A17B at 72.9, with Qwen3.5-397B-A17B ahead by 0.4 points. The largest visible gap is 4 points on Massive Multi-discipline Multimodal Understanding, 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: Gemini 3 Pro, reasoning mode: Qwen3.5-397B-A17B, structured outputs: Qwen3.5-397B-A17B, and code execution: Gemini 3 Pro. Both models share multimodal input, function calling, and tool use, 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, Gemini 3 Pro lists $1.25/1M input and $5/1M 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 $1.4 per million blended tokens. Availability is 2 providers versus 3, so concentration risk also matters.
Choose Gemini 3 Pro when coding workflow support and larger context windows are central to the workload. Choose Qwen3.5-397B-A17B when reasoning depth, lower input-token cost, and broader provider choice 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, Gemini 3 Pro or Qwen3.5-397B-A17B?
Gemini 3 Pro supports 1M tokens, while Qwen3.5-397B-A17B supports 262K tokens. That gap matters most for long documents, large codebases, retrieval-heavy agents, and conversations where earlier context must remain visible.
Which is cheaper, Gemini 3 Pro or Qwen3.5-397B-A17B?
Qwen3.5-397B-A17B is cheaper on tracked token pricing. Gemini 3 Pro costs $1.25/1M input and $5/1M 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 Gemini 3 Pro or Qwen3.5-397B-A17B open source?
Gemini 3 Pro is listed under Proprietary. 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 vision, Gemini 3 Pro or Qwen3.5-397B-A17B?
Gemini 3 Pro 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.
Which is better for multimodal input, Gemini 3 Pro or Qwen3.5-397B-A17B?
Both Gemini 3 Pro and Qwen3.5-397B-A17B 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 Gemini 3 Pro and Qwen3.5-397B-A17B?
Gemini 3 Pro is available on Replicate API and GCP Vertex AI. Qwen3.5-397B-A17B is available on OpenRouter, Together AI, and Alibaba Cloud PAI-EAS. Provider coverage can affect latency, region availability, compliance posture, and fallback options.
Continue comparing
Last reviewed: 2026-05-11. Data sourced from public model cards and provider documentation.