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Comparison · 2 models · Updated Nov 2, 2026

Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base vs DeepSeek OCR 2

Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base comes out ahead, 45 to 38 on our weighted score, though DeepSeek OCR 2 is 28% cheaper per token.

  1. Our pick

    Alibaba (Qwen)

    Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base

    Released Feb 24, 2026

    45/100
    • ECI—
    • Price$0.54 / $1.33
    • Context262K
    Full specs Remove Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base

  2. DeepSeek

    DeepSeek OCR 2

    Released Jan 27, 2026

    38/100
    • ECI—
    • Price$0.46 / $0.749
    • Context8K
    Full specs Remove DeepSeek OCR 2

  3. Add a model

    Make it a three-way comparison.

01 — Verdict

Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base is our pick

Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base is the better all-round choice, scoring 45/100 against DeepSeek OCR 2 (38). It leads on inputs & features and context window. DeepSeek OCR 2 wins on price. 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 priceDeepSeek OCR 2DeepSeek OCR 2 $0.532 · Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base $0.739 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
  • Longest contextQwen3.5 35B-A3B BaseQwen3.5 35B-A3B Base 262,144 · DeepSeek OCR 2 8,192 tokens
  • Widest inputsQwen3.5 35B-A3B BaseQwen3.5 35B-A3B Base: Text, Images, Video · DeepSeek OCR 2: Text, Images
  • Self-hostingAll open weightsEvery model here can be downloaded and run on your own hardware
How the score is built
MeasureWeightQwen3.5 35B-A3B BaseDeepSeek OCR 2
Price50%5460
Inputs & features30%3525
Context window20%370
Overall100%45/10038/100

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.

Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base vs DeepSeek OCR 2 specifications side by side
SpecificationQwen3.5 35B-A3B BaseAlibaba (Qwen)DeepSeek OCR 2DeepSeek
Capability
Capabilities Index (ECI)——
ECI rank——
Price per million tokens
Input$0.54$0.46 (best)
Output$1.33$0.749 (best)
Cached input——
Blended (3:1)$0.739$0.532 (best)
Long-context rateSame rateSame rate
Price sourceMedian of 1 providersMedian of 2 providers
Limits
Context window262,144 tokens (best)8,192 tokens
Max output65,536 tokens (best)8,192 tokens
Inputs and features
TextYesYes
ImagesYesYes
PDFsNoNo
AudioNoNo
VideoYesNo
ReasoningNoNo
Tool callingNoNo
Structured outputNoNo
Availability
WeightsOpenApache-2.0Open
API model ID——
API providers13 (best)
ReleasedFeb 24, 2026Jan 27, 2026
Knowledge cutoff——
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.

  • Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base$8.07
  • DeepSeek OCR 2$6.10
04 — Questions

Which should you choose?

Which is better: Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base or DeepSeek OCR 2?

Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base is the better all-round choice, scoring 45/100 against DeepSeek OCR 2 (38). It leads on inputs & features and context window. DeepSeek OCR 2 wins on price. 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, Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base or DeepSeek OCR 2?

DeepSeek OCR 2 is cheaper at $0.46 input / $0.749 output per million tokens (median across 2 API providers). Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base costs $0.54 input / $1.33 output per million tokens (median across 1 API provider). At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $0.532 per million tokens for DeepSeek OCR 2 versus $0.739 for Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base (1.4× as much).

Which scores higher on benchmarks?

There is no independent benchmark that covers both models yet. Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base has not been scored yet and DeepSeek OCR 2 has not been scored yet.

Which is better for coding?

There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base and DeepSeek OCR 2 yet, so there is no like-for-like coding score. Test both on a sample of your own tasks. Note that Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base and DeepSeek OCR 2 does not support tool calling, which most coding agents need.

Which has the bigger context window?

Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base has the largest context window at 262,144 tokens, against 8,192 for DeepSeek OCR 2. Maximum output per response: Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base up to 65,536, DeepSeek OCR 2 up to 8,192 tokens.

Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?

Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base accepts text, images and video; DeepSeek OCR 2 accepts text and images. Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base handles the widest range of inputs.

Are any of these open source?

Yes, both publish their weights (Apache-2.0), so you can self-host them.

Which is newer?

Qwen3.5 35B-A3B Base is the newest, released Feb 24, 2026. DeepSeek OCR 2 came out Jan 27, 2026.

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 Nov 2, 2026.

05 — Keep comparing

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