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Comparison · 2 models · Updated Oct 4, 2026

GPT-3.5-turbo vs Qwen-VL OCR

Qwen-VL OCR comes out ahead, 36 to 28 on our weighted score, and it is the cheaper option too.

  1. OpenAI

    GPT-3.5-turbo

    Released Mar 1, 2023Deprecated

    28/100
    • ECI—
    • Price$0.50 / $1.50
    • Context16K
    Full specs Remove GPT-3.5-turbo
  2. Our pick

    Alibaba (Qwen)

    Qwen-VL OCR

    Released Oct 28, 2024

    36/100
    • ECI—
    • Price$0.72 / $0.72
    • Context34K
    Full specs Remove Qwen-VL OCR

  3. Add a model

    Make it a three-way comparison.

01 — Verdict

Qwen-VL OCR is our pick

Qwen-VL OCR is the better all-round choice, scoring 36/100 against GPT-3.5-turbo (28). It leads on inputs & features. 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 priceQwen-VL OCRQwen-VL OCR $0.72 · GPT-3.5-turbo $0.75 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
  • Longest contextQwen-VL OCRQwen-VL OCR 34,096 · GPT-3.5-turbo 16,385 tokens
  • Widest inputsQwen-VL OCRGPT-3.5-turbo: Text · Qwen-VL OCR: Text, Images
  • Self-hostingNo open weightsBoth are available only through APIs
How the score is built
MeasureWeightGPT-3.5-turboQwen-VL OCR
Price50%5657
Inputs & features30%025
Context window20%01
Overall100%28/10036/100

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.

GPT-3.5-turbo vs Qwen-VL OCR specifications side by side
SpecificationGPT-3.5-turboOpenAIQwen-VL OCRAlibaba (Qwen)
Capability
Capabilities Index (ECI)——
ECI rank——
Price per million tokens
Input$0.50 (best)$0.72
Output$1.50$0.72 (best)
Cached inputFree—
Blended (3:1)$0.75$0.72 (best)
Long-context rateSame rateSame rate
Price sourceOfficial OpenAI APIOfficial Alibaba API
Limits
Context window16,385 tokens34,096 tokens (best)
Max output4,096 tokens4,096 tokens
Inputs and features
TextYesYes
ImagesNoYes
PDFsNoNo
AudioNoNo
VideoNoNo
ReasoningNoNo
Tool callingNoNo
Structured outputNoNo
Availability
WeightsProprietaryProprietary
API model IDgpt-3.5-turboqwen-vl-ocr
API providers11 (best)1
ReleasedMar 1, 2023Oct 28, 2024
Knowledge cutoffSep 1, 2021Apr 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.

  • GPT-3.5-turbo$8.00
  • Qwen-VL OCR$8.64
04 — Questions

Which should you choose?

Which is better: GPT-3.5-turbo or Qwen-VL OCR?

Qwen-VL OCR is the better all-round choice, scoring 36/100 against GPT-3.5-turbo (28). It leads on inputs & features. 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, GPT-3.5-turbo or Qwen-VL OCR?

Qwen-VL OCR is cheaper at $0.72 input / $0.72 output per million tokens (official Alibaba API price). GPT-3.5-turbo costs $0.50 input / $1.50 output per million tokens (official OpenAI API price). At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $0.72 per million tokens for Qwen-VL OCR versus $0.75 for GPT-3.5-turbo (1× as much).

Which scores higher on benchmarks?

There is no independent benchmark that covers both models yet. GPT-3.5-turbo has not been scored yet and Qwen-VL OCR has not been scored yet.

Which is better for coding?

There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for GPT-3.5-turbo and Qwen-VL OCR yet, so there is no like-for-like coding score. Test both on a sample of your own tasks. Note that GPT-3.5-turbo and Qwen-VL OCR does not support tool calling, which most coding agents need.

Which has the bigger context window?

Qwen-VL OCR has the largest context window at 34,096 tokens, against 16,385 for GPT-3.5-turbo. Maximum output per response: GPT-3.5-turbo up to 4,096, Qwen-VL OCR up to 4,096 tokens.

Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?

GPT-3.5-turbo accepts text; Qwen-VL OCR accepts text and images. Qwen-VL OCR handles the widest range of inputs.

Are any of these open source?

No. GPT-3.5-turbo and Qwen-VL OCR are proprietary and only available through APIs and apps.

Which is newer?

Qwen-VL OCR is the newest, released Oct 28, 2024. GPT-3.5-turbo came out Mar 1, 2023. Knowledge cutoff: GPT-3.5-turbo Sep 1, 2021, Qwen-VL OCR 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.

05 — Keep comparing

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