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Comparison · 2 models · Updated Oct 4, 2026

DeepSeek-V3 vs Qwen3 14B

Qwen3 14B comes out ahead, 54 to 50 on our weighted score, though DeepSeek-V3 is 16% cheaper per token.

  1. DeepSeek

    DeepSeek-V3

    Released Dec 26, 2024

    50/100
    • ECI132.3
    • Price$0.32 / $1.10
    • Context131K
    Full specs Remove DeepSeek-V3
  2. Our pick

    Alibaba (Qwen)

    Qwen3 14B

    Released Apr 29, 2025

    54/100
    • ECI138.2
    • Price$0.35 / $1.40
    • Context131K
    Full specs Remove Qwen3 14B

  3. Add a model

    Make it a three-way comparison.

01 — Verdict

Qwen3 14B is our pick

Qwen3 14B is the better all-round choice, scoring 54/100 against DeepSeek-V3 (50). It leads on capability and inputs & features. DeepSeek-V3 wins on price. The score weighs capability 50%, price 25%, inputs & features 15%, context window 10%.

  • CapabilityQwen3 14BCapabilities Index (ECI): Qwen3 14B 138.2 · DeepSeek-V3 132.3
  • Lowest priceDeepSeek-V3DeepSeek-V3 $0.515 · Qwen3 14B $0.613 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
  • Longest contextAbout the sameDeepSeek-V3 131,072 · Qwen3 14B 131,072 tokens
  • Widest inputsSame inputsDeepSeek-V3: Text · Qwen3 14B: Text
  • Self-hostingAll open weightsEvery model here can be downloaded and run on your own hardware
How the score is built
MeasureWeightDeepSeek-V3Qwen3 14B
CapabilityCapabilities Index (ECI)50%5663
Price25%6460
Inputs & features15%2535
Context window10%2424
Overall100%50/10054/100
02 — Side by side

Every spec in one table

Highlighted cells lead their row. Dashes mean the data is not published.

DeepSeek-V3 vs Qwen3 14B specifications side by side
SpecificationDeepSeek-V3DeepSeekQwen3 14BAlibaba (Qwen)
Capability
Capabilities Index (ECI)132.3138.2 (best)
ECI rank#121 of 148#107 of 148 (best)
GPQA DiamondGraduate-level science questions56.5%63.8% (best)
OTIS Mock AIME 2024–2025Competition mathematics15.8%66.4% (best)
Price per million tokens
Input$0.32 (best)$0.35
Output$1.10 (best)$1.40
Cached input——
Blended (3:1)$0.515 (best)$0.613
Long-context rateSame rateSame rate
Price sourceMedian of 5 providersOfficial Alibaba API
Limits
Context window131,072 tokens131,072 tokens
Max output8,192 tokens8,192 tokens
Inputs and features
TextYesYes
ImagesNoNo
PDFsNoNo
AudioNoNo
VideoNoNo
ReasoningNoYes
Tool callingYesYes
Structured outputNoNo
Availability
WeightsOpenDeepSeek Model LicenseOpen
API model ID—qwen3-14b
API providers5 (best)1
ReleasedDec 26, 2024Apr 29, 2025
Knowledge cutoff—Apr 2025
03 — Cost

What would a month cost?

Enter your expected volume in millions of tokens. List prices only; caching and batch discounts would lower these.

  • DeepSeek-V3$5.40
  • Qwen3 14B$6.30
04 — Questions

Which should you choose?

Which is better: DeepSeek-V3 or Qwen3 14B?

Qwen3 14B is the better all-round choice, scoring 54/100 against DeepSeek-V3 (50). It leads on capability and inputs & features. DeepSeek-V3 wins on price. The score weighs capability 50%, price 25%, inputs & features 15%, context window 10%.

Which is cheaper, DeepSeek-V3 or Qwen3 14B?

DeepSeek-V3 is cheaper at $0.32 input / $1.10 output per million tokens (median across 5 API providers). Qwen3 14B costs $0.35 input / $1.40 output per million tokens (official Alibaba API price). At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $0.515 per million tokens for DeepSeek-V3 versus $0.613 for Qwen3 14B (1.2× as much).

Which scores higher on benchmarks?

Qwen3 14B scores higher on the Capabilities Index (ECI): Qwen3 14B 138.2 (#107 of 148) and DeepSeek-V3 132.3 (#121 of 148). The confidence ranges of the top two overlap (133.5–140.1 vs 127.5–135.5), so treat the gap as small. On individual benchmarks: GPQA Diamond — Qwen3 14B 63.8%, DeepSeek-V3 56.5%; OTIS Mock AIME 2024–2025 — Qwen3 14B 66.4%, DeepSeek-V3 15.8%.

Which is better for coding?

There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for DeepSeek-V3 and Qwen3 14B yet, so there is no like-for-like coding score. On overall capability, Qwen3 14B leads, which tends to carry over to coding, but test on your own codebase. Both support tool calling for agent workflows.

Which has the bigger context window?

DeepSeek-V3 and Qwen3 14B share the same 131,072-token context window. Maximum output per response: DeepSeek-V3 up to 8,192, Qwen3 14B up to 8,192 tokens.

Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?

DeepSeek-V3 accepts text; Qwen3 14B accepts text. They handle the same number of input types.

Are any of these open source?

Yes, both publish their weights (DeepSeek Model License), so you can self-host them.

Which is newer?

Qwen3 14B is the newest, released Apr 29, 2025. DeepSeek-V3 came out Dec 26, 2024. Knowledge cutoff: Qwen3 14B Apr 2025.

How do you decide the winner?

Each model gets a 0–100 score on capability (50%, independent benchmark results); price (25%, blended price per million tokens (3 input : 1 output), log scale); inputs & features (15%, image, PDF, audio and video input, tool calling, structured output and reasoning); context window (10%, maximum tokens per request, log scale). Dimensions missing for any model are dropped and the remaining weights rescaled, so every model is judged on the same evidence. Specs and prices come from public model listings and the labs’ own API pages; capability scores come from independent benchmark runs. Data updated Oct 4, 2026.

05 — Keep comparing

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