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Comparison · 2 models · Updated Oct 4, 2026

Qwen3.6 Max Preview vs GPT-5.3 Codex

GPT-5.3 Codex comes out ahead, 64 to 54 on our weighted score, though Qwen3.6 Max Preview is 39% cheaper per token.

  1. Alibaba (Qwen)

    Qwen3.6 Max Preview

    Released Apr 20, 2026

    54/100
    • ECI149.2
    • Price$1.30 / $7.80
    • Context262K
    Full specs Remove Qwen3.6 Max Preview
  2. Our pick

    OpenAI

    GPT-5.3 Codex

    Released Feb 5, 2026

    64/100
    • ECI156.8
    • Price$1.75 / $14.00
    • Context400K
    Full specs Remove GPT-5.3 Codex

  3. Add a model

    Make it a three-way comparison.

01 — Verdict

GPT-5.3 Codex is our pick

GPT-5.3 Codex is the better all-round choice, scoring 64/100 against Qwen3.6 Max Preview (54). It leads on capability, inputs & features and context window. Qwen3.6 Max Preview wins on price. The score weighs capability 50%, price 25%, inputs & features 15%, context window 10%.

  • CapabilityGPT-5.3 CodexCapabilities Index (ECI): GPT-5.3 Codex 156.8 · Qwen3.6 Max Preview 149.2
  • Lowest priceQwen3.6 Max PreviewQwen3.6 Max Preview $2.92 · GPT-5.3 Codex $4.81 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
  • Longest contextGPT-5.3 CodexGPT-5.3 Codex 400,000 · Qwen3.6 Max Preview 262,144 tokens
  • Widest inputsGPT-5.3 CodexQwen3.6 Max Preview: Text · GPT-5.3 Codex: Text, Images, PDFs
  • Self-hostingNo open weightsBoth are available only through APIs
How the score is built
MeasureWeightQwen3.6 Max PreviewGPT-5.3 Codex
CapabilityCapabilities Index (ECI)50%7787
Price25%2818
Inputs & features15%3580
Context window10%3744
Overall100%54/10064/100
02 — Side by side

Every spec in one table

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

Qwen3.6 Max Preview vs GPT-5.3 Codex specifications side by side
SpecificationQwen3.6 Max PreviewAlibaba (Qwen)GPT-5.3 CodexOpenAI
Capability
Capabilities Index (ECI)149.2156.8 (best)
ECI rank#54 of 148#18 of 148 (best)
GPQA DiamondGraduate-level science questions87.4%—
OTIS Mock AIME 2024–2025Competition mathematics91.1%—
SWE-bench VerifiedFixing real GitHub issues76.7% (best)74.8%
SimpleQA VerifiedShort factual questions52.0%—
Price per million tokens
Input$1.30 (best)$1.75
Output$7.80 (best)$14.00
Cached input$0.13 (best)$0.175
Blended (3:1)$2.92 (best)$4.81
Long-context rateSame rateSame rate
Price sourceOfficial Alibaba APIOfficial OpenAI API
Limits
Context window262,144 tokens400,000 tokens (best)
Max output65,536 tokens128,000 tokens (best)
Inputs and features
TextYesYes
ImagesNoYes
PDFsNoYes
AudioNoNo
VideoNoNo
ReasoningYesYeslow · medium · high · xhigh
Tool callingYesYes
Structured outputNoYes
Availability
WeightsProprietaryProprietary
API model IDqwen3.6-max-previewgpt-5.3-codex
API providers1019 (best)
ReleasedApr 20, 2026Feb 5, 2026
Knowledge cutoffApr 2025Aug 31, 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.

  • Qwen3.6 Max Preview$28.60
  • GPT-5.3 Codex$45.50
04 — Questions

Which should you choose?

Which is better: Qwen3.6 Max Preview or GPT-5.3 Codex?

GPT-5.3 Codex is the better all-round choice, scoring 64/100 against Qwen3.6 Max Preview (54). It leads on capability, inputs & features and context window. Qwen3.6 Max Preview wins on price. The score weighs capability 50%, price 25%, inputs & features 15%, context window 10%.

Which is cheaper, Qwen3.6 Max Preview or GPT-5.3 Codex?

Qwen3.6 Max Preview is cheaper at $1.30 input / $7.80 output per million tokens (official Alibaba API price). GPT-5.3 Codex costs $1.75 input / $14.00 output per million tokens (official OpenAI API price). At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $2.92 per million tokens for Qwen3.6 Max Preview versus $4.81 for GPT-5.3 Codex (1.6× as much).

Which scores higher on benchmarks?

GPT-5.3 Codex scores higher on the Capabilities Index (ECI): GPT-5.3 Codex 156.8 (#18 of 148) and Qwen3.6 Max Preview 149.2 (#54 of 148). Their confidence ranges do not overlap (153.5–160.8 vs 147.6–152.0), so the gap is a real one. On individual benchmarks: SWE-bench Verified — Qwen3.6 Max Preview 76.7%, GPT-5.3 Codex 74.8%.

Which is better for coding?

Qwen3.6 Max Preview resolves more real GitHub issues on SWE-bench Verified: Qwen3.6 Max Preview 76.7% and GPT-5.3 Codex 74.8%. Both support tool calling for agent workflows.

Which has the bigger context window?

GPT-5.3 Codex has the largest context window at 400,000 tokens, against 262,144 for Qwen3.6 Max Preview. Maximum output per response: Qwen3.6 Max Preview up to 65,536, GPT-5.3 Codex up to 128,000 tokens.

Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?

Qwen3.6 Max Preview accepts text; GPT-5.3 Codex accepts text, images and PDFs. GPT-5.3 Codex handles the widest range of inputs.

Are any of these open source?

No. Qwen3.6 Max Preview and GPT-5.3 Codex are proprietary and only available through APIs and apps.

Which is newer?

Qwen3.6 Max Preview is the newest, released Apr 20, 2026. GPT-5.3 Codex came out Feb 5, 2026. Knowledge cutoff: Qwen3.6 Max Preview Apr 2025, GPT-5.3 Codex 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.

05 — Keep comparing

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