GPT-5.4 mini vs Qwen3.8 Max Preview
Too close to call on our weighted score (GPT-5.4 mini 49, Qwen3.8 Max Preview 47). The right pick depends on what you value most.
OpenAIGPT-5.4 mini
49/100- ECI148.8
- Price$0.75 / $4.50
- Context400K
Alibaba (Qwen)Qwen3.8 Max Preview
47/100- ECI—
- Price$2.00 / $6.00
- Context1M
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Make it a three-way comparison.
Too close to call
It is close. Our weighted score puts them within 3 points (GPT-5.4 mini 49/100, Qwen3.8 Max Preview 47/100), so choose by what matters most for your work: GPT-5.4 mini on price and Qwen3.8 Max Preview 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 priceGPT-5.4 miniGPT-5.4 mini $1.69 · Qwen3.8 Max Preview $3.00 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
- Longest contextQwen3.8 Max PreviewQwen3.8 Max Preview 1,000,000 · GPT-5.4 mini 400,000 tokens
- Widest inputsQwen3.8 Max PreviewGPT-5.4 mini: Text, Images · Qwen3.8 Max Preview: Text, Images, Video
- Self-hostingNo open weightsBoth are available only through APIs
| Measure | Weight | GPT-5.4 mini | Qwen3.8 Max Preview |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | 50% | 39 | 27 |
| Inputs & features | 30% | 70 | 70 |
| Context window | 20% | 44 | 60 |
| Overall | 100% | 49/100 | 47/100 |
Left out because at least one model lacks the data: capability. The remaining weights were rescaled.
Every spec in one table
Highlighted cells lead their row. Dashes mean the data is not published.
| Specification | GPT-5.4 miniOpenAI | Qwen3.8 Max PreviewAlibaba (Qwen) |
|---|---|---|
| Capability | ||
| Capabilities Index (ECI) | 148.8 | — |
| ECI rank | #56 of 148 | — |
| GPQA DiamondGraduate-level science questions | 86.9% | — |
| FrontierMath Tiers 1–3Research-level mathematics | 51.2% | — |
| OTIS Mock AIME 2024–2025Competition mathematics | 88.9% | — |
| SimpleQA VerifiedShort factual questions | 29.4% | — |
| Price per million tokens | ||
| Input | $0.75 (best) | $2.00 |
| Output | $4.50 (best) | $6.00 |
| Cached input | $0.075 | — |
| Blended (3:1) | $1.69 (best) | $3.00 |
| Long-context rate | Same rate | Same rate |
| Price source | Official OpenAI API | Median of 6 providers |
| Limits | ||
| Context window | 400,000 tokens | 1,000,000 tokens (best) |
| Max output | 128,000 tokens | 131,072 tokens (best) |
| Inputs and features | ||
| Text | Yes | Yes |
| Images | Yes | Yes |
| PDFs | No | No |
| Audio | No | No |
| Video | No | Yes |
| Reasoning | Yeslow · medium · high · xhigh | Yes |
| Tool calling | Yes | Yes |
| Structured output | Yes | No |
| Availability | ||
| Weights | Proprietary | Proprietary |
| API model ID | gpt-5.4-mini | — |
| API providers | 29 (best) | 6 |
| Released | Mar 17, 2026 | Jul 19, 2026 |
| Knowledge cutoff | Aug 31, 2025 | — |
What would a month cost?
Enter your expected volume in millions of tokens. List prices only; caching and batch discounts would lower these.
- GPT-5.4 mini$16.50
- Qwen3.8 Max Preview$32.00
Which should you choose?
Which is better: GPT-5.4 mini or Qwen3.8 Max Preview?
It is close. Our weighted score puts them within 3 points (GPT-5.4 mini 49/100, Qwen3.8 Max Preview 47/100), so choose by what matters most for your work: GPT-5.4 mini on price and Qwen3.8 Max Preview 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, GPT-5.4 mini or Qwen3.8 Max Preview?
GPT-5.4 mini is cheaper at $0.75 input / $4.50 output per million tokens (official OpenAI API price). Qwen3.8 Max Preview costs $2.00 input / $6.00 output per million tokens (median across 6 API providers). At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $1.69 per million tokens for GPT-5.4 mini versus $3.00 for Qwen3.8 Max Preview (1.8× as much).
Which scores higher on benchmarks?
There is no independent benchmark that covers both models yet. GPT-5.4 mini has an ECI of 148.8 and Qwen3.8 Max Preview has not been scored yet.
Which is better for coding?
There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for GPT-5.4 mini and Qwen3.8 Max Preview 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?
Qwen3.8 Max Preview has the largest context window at 1,000,000 tokens, against 400,000 for GPT-5.4 mini. Maximum output per response: GPT-5.4 mini up to 128,000, Qwen3.8 Max Preview up to 131,072 tokens.
Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?
GPT-5.4 mini accepts text and images; Qwen3.8 Max Preview accepts text, images and video. Qwen3.8 Max Preview handles the widest range of inputs.
Are any of these open source?
No. GPT-5.4 mini and Qwen3.8 Max Preview are proprietary and only available through APIs and apps.
Which is newer?
Qwen3.8 Max Preview is the newest, released Jul 19, 2026. GPT-5.4 mini came out Mar 17, 2026. Knowledge cutoff: GPT-5.4 mini Aug 31, 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.
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