ZMIME
Comparison · 2 models · Updated Oct 4, 2026

GPT-5.4 mini vs Qwen3 Max

GPT-5.4 mini comes out ahead, 63 to 50 on our weighted score, and it is the cheaper option too.

  1. Our pick

    OpenAI

    GPT-5.4 mini

    Released Mar 17, 2026

    63/100
    • ECI148.8
    • Price$0.75 / $4.50
    • Context400K
    Full specs Remove GPT-5.4 mini

  2. Alibaba (Qwen)

    Qwen3 Max

    Released Sep 23, 2025

    50/100
    • ECI142.4
    • Price$1.20 / $6.00
    • Context262K
    Full specs Remove Qwen3 Max

  3. Add a model

    Make it a three-way comparison.

01 — Verdict

GPT-5.4 mini is our pick

GPT-5.4 mini is the better all-round choice, scoring 63/100 against Qwen3 Max (50). It leads on capability, price, inputs & features and context window. The score weighs capability 50%, price 25%, inputs & features 15%, context window 10%.

  • CapabilityGPT-5.4 miniCapabilities Index (ECI): GPT-5.4 mini 148.8 · Qwen3 Max 142.4
  • Lowest priceGPT-5.4 miniGPT-5.4 mini $1.69 · Qwen3 Max $2.40 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
  • Longest contextGPT-5.4 miniGPT-5.4 mini 400,000 · Qwen3 Max 262,144 tokens
  • Widest inputsGPT-5.4 miniGPT-5.4 mini: Text, Images · Qwen3 Max: Text
  • Self-hostingNo open weightsBoth are available only through APIs
How the score is built
MeasureWeightGPT-5.4 miniQwen3 Max
CapabilityCapabilities Index (ECI)50%7768
Price25%3932
Inputs & features15%7025
Context window10%4437
Overall100%63/10050/100
02 — Side by side

Every spec in one table

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

GPT-5.4 mini vs Qwen3 Max specifications side by side
SpecificationGPT-5.4 miniOpenAIQwen3 MaxAlibaba (Qwen)
Capability
Capabilities Index (ECI)148.8 (best)142.4
ECI rank#56 of 148 (best)#91 of 148
GPQA DiamondGraduate-level science questions86.9% (best)72.6%
FrontierMath Tiers 1–3Research-level mathematics51.2% (best)19.0%
OTIS Mock AIME 2024–2025Competition mathematics88.9% (best)73.3%
SimpleQA VerifiedShort factual questions29.4%48.8% (best)
Price per million tokens
Input$0.75 (best)$1.20
Output$4.50 (best)$6.00
Cached input$0.075—
Blended (3:1)$1.69 (best)$2.40
Long-context rateSame rateSame rate
Price sourceOfficial OpenAI APIOfficial Alibaba API
Limits
Context window400,000 tokens (best)262,144 tokens
Max output128,000 tokens (best)65,536 tokens
Inputs and features
TextYesYes
ImagesYesNo
PDFsNoNo
AudioNoNo
VideoNoNo
ReasoningYeslow · medium · high · xhighNo
Tool callingYesYes
Structured outputYesNo
Availability
WeightsProprietaryProprietary
API model IDgpt-5.4-miniqwen3-max
API providers29 (best)16
ReleasedMar 17, 2026Sep 23, 2025
Knowledge cutoffAug 31, 2025Apr 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.

  • GPT-5.4 mini$16.50
  • Qwen3 Max$24.00
04 — Questions

Which should you choose?

Which is better: GPT-5.4 mini or Qwen3 Max?

GPT-5.4 mini is the better all-round choice, scoring 63/100 against Qwen3 Max (50). It leads on capability, price, inputs & features and context window. The score weighs capability 50%, price 25%, inputs & features 15%, context window 10%.

Which is cheaper, GPT-5.4 mini or Qwen3 Max?

GPT-5.4 mini is cheaper at $0.75 input / $4.50 output per million tokens (official OpenAI API price). Qwen3 Max costs $1.20 input / $6.00 output per million tokens (official Alibaba API price). 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 $2.40 for Qwen3 Max (1.4× as much).

Which scores higher on benchmarks?

GPT-5.4 mini scores higher on the Capabilities Index (ECI): GPT-5.4 mini 148.8 (#56 of 148) and Qwen3 Max 142.4 (#91 of 148). Their confidence ranges do not overlap (147.1–150.5 vs 140.0–144.6), so the gap is a real one. On individual benchmarks: GPQA Diamond — GPT-5.4 mini 86.9%, Qwen3 Max 72.6%; FrontierMath Tiers 1–3 — GPT-5.4 mini 51.2%, Qwen3 Max 19.0%; OTIS Mock AIME 2024–2025 — GPT-5.4 mini 88.9%, Qwen3 Max 73.3%; SimpleQA Verified — Qwen3 Max 48.8%, GPT-5.4 mini 29.4%.

Which is better for coding?

There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for GPT-5.4 mini and Qwen3 Max yet, so there is no like-for-like coding score. On overall capability, GPT-5.4 mini 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?

GPT-5.4 mini has the largest context window at 400,000 tokens, against 262,144 for Qwen3 Max. Maximum output per response: GPT-5.4 mini up to 128,000, Qwen3 Max up to 65,536 tokens.

Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?

GPT-5.4 mini accepts text and images; Qwen3 Max accepts text. GPT-5.4 mini handles the widest range of inputs.

Are any of these open source?

No. GPT-5.4 mini and Qwen3 Max are proprietary and only available through APIs and apps.

Which is newer?

GPT-5.4 mini is the newest, released Mar 17, 2026. Qwen3 Max came out Sep 23, 2025. Knowledge cutoff: GPT-5.4 mini Aug 31, 2025, Qwen3 Max 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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