ZMIME
Comparison · 2 models · Updated Oct 4, 2026

GLM-4.5-Flash vs Qwen Flash

Too close to call on our weighted score (Qwen Flash 68, GLM-4.5-Flash 65). The right pick depends on what you value most.

  1. Z.ai (Zhipu)

    GLM-4.5-Flash

    Released Jul 28, 2025

    65/100
    • ECI—
    • PriceFree / Free
    • Context131K
  2. Alibaba (Qwen)

    Qwen Flash

    Released Jul 28, 2025

    68/100
    • ECI—
    • Price$0.05 / $0.40
    • Context1M
  3. Add a model

    Make it a three-way comparison.

01 — Verdict

Too close to call

It is close. Our weighted score puts them within 2 points (Qwen Flash 68/100, GLM-4.5-Flash 65/100), so choose by what matters most for your work: GLM-4.5-Flash on price and Qwen Flash for long inputs. The score weighs price 50%, inputs & features 30%, context window 20%. None of the shared benchmarks cover every model here yet, so capability is left out of this verdict.

  • CapabilityNot enough dataNo independent benchmark covers every model here yet
  • Lowest priceGLM-4.5-FlashGLM-4.5-Flash Free · Qwen Flash $0.138 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
  • Longest contextQwen FlashQwen Flash 1,000,000 · GLM-4.5-Flash 131,072 tokens
  • Widest inputsSame inputsGLM-4.5-Flash: Text · Qwen Flash: Text
  • Self-hostingNo open weightsBoth are available only through APIs
How the score is built
MeasureWeightGLM-4.5-FlashQwen Flash
Price50%10091
Inputs & features30%3535
Context window20%2460
Overall100%65/10068/100

Left out because at least one model lacks the data: capability. The remaining weights were rescaled.

02 — Side by side

Every spec in one table

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

GLM-4.5-Flash vs Qwen Flash specifications side by side
SpecificationGLM-4.5-FlashZ.ai (Zhipu)Qwen FlashAlibaba (Qwen)
Capability
Capabilities Index (ECI)——
ECI rank——
Price per million tokens
InputFree (best)$0.05
OutputFree (best)$0.40
Cached input——
Blended (3:1)Free (best)$0.138
Long-context rateSame rateSame rate
Price sourceOfficial Z.AI APIOfficial Alibaba API
Limits
Context window131,072 tokens1,000,000 tokens (best)
Max output98,304 tokens (best)32,768 tokens
Inputs and features
TextYesYes
ImagesNoNo
PDFsNoNo
AudioNoNo
VideoNoNo
ReasoningYesYes
Tool callingYesYes
Structured outputNoNo
Availability
WeightsProprietaryProprietary
API model IDglm-4.5-flashqwen-flash
API providers46 (best)
ReleasedJul 28, 2025Jul 28, 2025
Knowledge cutoffApr 2025Apr 2024
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.

  • GLM-4.5-FlashFree
  • Qwen Flash$1.30
04 — Questions

Which should you choose?

Which is better: GLM-4.5-Flash or Qwen Flash?

It is close. Our weighted score puts them within 2 points (Qwen Flash 68/100, GLM-4.5-Flash 65/100), so choose by what matters most for your work: GLM-4.5-Flash on price and Qwen Flash for long inputs. The score weighs price 50%, inputs & features 30%, context window 20%. None of the shared benchmarks cover every model here yet, so capability is left out of this verdict.

Which is cheaper, GLM-4.5-Flash or Qwen Flash?

GLM-4.5-Flash is cheaper at Free input / Free output per million tokens (official Z.AI API price). Qwen Flash costs $0.05 input / $0.40 output per million tokens (official Alibaba API price). GLM-4.5-Flash is listed as free.

Which scores higher on benchmarks?

There is no independent benchmark that covers both models yet. GLM-4.5-Flash has not been scored yet and Qwen Flash has not been scored yet.

Which is better for coding?

There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for GLM-4.5-Flash and Qwen Flash yet, so there is no like-for-like coding score. Test both on a sample of your own tasks. Both support tool calling for agent workflows.

Which has the bigger context window?

Qwen Flash has the largest context window at 1,000,000 tokens, against 131,072 for GLM-4.5-Flash. Maximum output per response: GLM-4.5-Flash up to 98,304, Qwen Flash up to 32,768 tokens.

Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?

GLM-4.5-Flash accepts text; Qwen Flash accepts text. They handle the same number of input types.

Are any of these open source?

No. GLM-4.5-Flash and Qwen Flash are proprietary and only available through APIs and apps.

Which is newer?

GLM-4.5-Flash is the newest, released Jul 28, 2025. Qwen Flash came out Jul 28, 2025. Knowledge cutoff: GLM-4.5-Flash Apr 2025, Qwen Flash Apr 2024.

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.