GPT-5.4 nano vs MiniMax-M2.5 vs Qwen3 Coder Next
GPT-5.4 nano comes out ahead, 63 to 51 and 48 on our weighted score.
- Our pick
OpenAIGPT-5.4 nano
63/100- ECI145.8
- Price$0.20 / $1.25
- Context400K
MiniMaxMiniMax-M2.5
48/100- ECI146.7
- Price$0.30 / $1.20
- Context205K
Alibaba (Qwen)Qwen3 Coder Next
51/100- ECI—
- Price$0.20 / $1.20
- Context262K
GPT-5.4 nano is our pick
GPT-5.4 nano is the better all-round choice, scoring 63/100 against Qwen3 Coder Next (51) and MiniMax-M2.5 (48). It leads on inputs & features and context window. 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 priceQwen3 Coder NextQwen3 Coder Next $0.45 · GPT-5.4 nano $0.463 · MiniMax-M2.5 $0.525 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
- Longest contextGPT-5.4 nanoGPT-5.4 nano 400,000 · Qwen3 Coder Next 262,144 · MiniMax-M2.5 204,800 tokens
- Widest inputsGPT-5.4 nanoGPT-5.4 nano: Text, Images · MiniMax-M2.5: Text · Qwen3 Coder Next: Text
- Self-hostingMiniMax-M2.5 and Qwen3 Coder NextPublishes downloadable weights
| Measure | Weight | GPT-5.4 nano | MiniMax-M2.5 | Qwen3 Coder Next |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | 50% | 66 | 63 | 66 |
| Inputs & features | 30% | 70 | 35 | 35 |
| Context window | 20% | 44 | 32 | 37 |
| Overall | 100% | 63/100 | 48/100 | 51/100 |
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 nanoOpenAI | MiniMax-M2.5MiniMax | Qwen3 Coder NextAlibaba (Qwen) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capability | |||
| Capabilities Index (ECI) | 145.8 | 146.7 (best) | — |
| ECI rank | #75 of 148 | #66 of 148 (best) | — |
| GPQA DiamondGraduate-level science questions | 78.5% | — | — |
| FrontierMath Tiers 1–3Research-level mathematics | 44.9% | — | — |
| OTIS Mock AIME 2024–2025Competition mathematics | 87.8% | — | — |
| SimpleQA VerifiedShort factual questions | 11.7% | — | — |
| Price per million tokens | |||
| Input | $0.20 (best) | $0.30 | $0.20 (best) |
| Output | $1.25 | $1.20 (best) | $1.20 (best) |
| Cached input | $0.02 (best) | $0.03 | — |
| Blended (3:1) | $0.463 | $0.525 | $0.45 (best) |
| Long-context rate | Same rate | Same rate | Same rate |
| Price source | Official OpenAI API | Official MiniMax (minimax.io) API | Median of 11 providers |
| Limits | |||
| Context window | 400,000 tokens (best) | 204,800 tokens | 262,144 tokens |
| Max output | 128,000 tokens | 131,072 tokens (best) | 65,536 tokens |
| Inputs and features | |||
| Text | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Images | Yes | No | No |
| PDFs | No | No | No |
| Audio | No | No | No |
| Video | No | No | No |
| Reasoning | Yeslow · medium · high · xhigh | Yes | No |
| Tool calling | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Structured output | Yes | No | Yes |
| Availability | |||
| Weights | Proprietary | Open | Open |
| API model ID | gpt-5.4-nano | MiniMax-M2.5 | — |
| API providers | 26 (best) | 21 | 11 |
| Released | Mar 17, 2026 | Feb 12, 2026 | Feb 3, 2026 |
| Knowledge cutoff | Aug 31, 2025 | — | Sep 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 nano$4.50
- MiniMax-M2.5$5.40
- Qwen3 Coder Next$4.40
Which should you choose?
Which is better: GPT-5.4 nano, MiniMax-M2.5 or Qwen3 Coder Next?
GPT-5.4 nano is the better all-round choice, scoring 63/100 against Qwen3 Coder Next (51) and MiniMax-M2.5 (48). It leads on inputs & features and context window. 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 nano, MiniMax-M2.5 or Qwen3 Coder Next?
Qwen3 Coder Next is cheaper at $0.20 input / $1.20 output per million tokens (median across 11 API providers). GPT-5.4 nano costs $0.20 input / $1.25 output per million tokens (official OpenAI API price); MiniMax-M2.5 costs $0.30 input / $1.20 output per million tokens (official MiniMax (minimax.io) API price). At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $0.45 per million tokens for Qwen3 Coder Next versus $0.463 for GPT-5.4 nano (1× as much) and $0.525 for MiniMax-M2.5 (1.2× as much).
Which scores higher on benchmarks?
There is no independent benchmark that covers all three models yet. GPT-5.4 nano has an ECI of 145.8, MiniMax-M2.5 has an ECI of 146.7 and Qwen3 Coder Next has not been scored yet.
Which is better for coding?
There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for GPT-5.4 nano, MiniMax-M2.5 and Qwen3 Coder Next yet, so there is no like-for-like coding score. Test both on a sample of your own tasks. All three support tool calling for agent workflows.
Which has the bigger context window?
GPT-5.4 nano has the largest context window at 400,000 tokens, against 262,144 for Qwen3 Coder Next and 204,800 for MiniMax-M2.5. Maximum output per response: GPT-5.4 nano up to 128,000, MiniMax-M2.5 up to 131,072, Qwen3 Coder Next up to 65,536 tokens.
Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?
GPT-5.4 nano accepts text and images; MiniMax-M2.5 accepts text; Qwen3 Coder Next accepts text. GPT-5.4 nano handles the widest range of inputs.
Are any of these open source?
MiniMax-M2.5 and Qwen3 Coder Next publishes its weights and can be self-hosted; GPT-5.4 nano is proprietary.
Which is newer?
GPT-5.4 nano is the newest, released Mar 17, 2026. MiniMax-M2.5 came out Feb 12, 2026; Qwen3 Coder Next came out Feb 3, 2026. Knowledge cutoff: GPT-5.4 nano Aug 31, 2025, Qwen3 Coder Next Sep 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.
Related comparisons
- GPT-5.4 nano vs MiniMax-M2.7MiniMax · ECI 145.9
- GPT-5.4 nano vs Qwen3.6 35B-A3BAlibaba (Qwen) · ECI 143.9
- GPT-5.4 nano vs DeepSeek V3.2DeepSeek · ECI 146.3
- GPT-5.4 nano vs Nemotron 3 Ultra 550B A55BNVIDIA · ECI 146.2
- MiniMax-M2.5 vs Qwen3.5 PlusAlibaba (Qwen) · ECI 146.8
- MiniMax-M2.5 vs DeepSeek V3.2DeepSeek · ECI 146.3
