ZMIME
Comparison · 2 models · Updated Oct 4, 2026

Qwen3 Coder Next vs GLM-5

Qwen3 Coder Next comes out ahead, 51 to 37 on our weighted score, and it is the cheaper option too.

  1. Our pick

    Alibaba (Qwen)

    Qwen3 Coder Next

    Released Feb 3, 2026

    51/100
    • ECI—
    • Price$0.20 / $1.20
    • Context262K
  2. Z.ai (Zhipu)

    GLM-5

    Released Feb 12, 2026

    37/100
    • ECI145.8
    • Price$1.00 / $3.20
    • Context205K
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01 — Verdict

Qwen3 Coder Next is our pick

Qwen3 Coder Next is the better all-round choice, scoring 51/100 against GLM-5 (37). It leads on price 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 · GLM-5 $1.55 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
  • Longest contextQwen3 Coder NextQwen3 Coder Next 262,144 · GLM-5 204,800 tokens
  • Widest inputsSame inputsQwen3 Coder Next: Text · GLM-5: Text
  • Self-hostingAll open weightsEvery model here can be downloaded and run on your own hardware
How the score is built
MeasureWeightQwen3 Coder NextGLM-5
Price50%6641
Inputs & features30%3535
Context window20%3732
Overall100%51/10037/100

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 Coder Next vs GLM-5 specifications side by side
SpecificationQwen3 Coder NextAlibaba (Qwen)GLM-5Z.ai (Zhipu)
Capability
Capabilities Index (ECI)—145.8
ECI rank—#74 of 148
GPQA DiamondGraduate-level science questions—87.8%
OTIS Mock AIME 2024–2025Competition mathematics—80.0%
SWE-bench VerifiedFixing real GitHub issues—72.1%
Price per million tokens
Input$0.20 (best)$1.00
Output$1.20 (best)$3.20
Cached input—$0.20
Blended (3:1)$0.45 (best)$1.55
Long-context rateSame rateSame rate
Price sourceMedian of 11 providersOfficial Z.AI API
Limits
Context window262,144 tokens (best)204,800 tokens
Max output65,536 tokens131,072 tokens (best)
Inputs and features
TextYesYes
ImagesNoNo
PDFsNoNo
AudioNoNo
VideoNoNo
ReasoningNoYes
Tool callingYesYes
Structured outputYesNo
Availability
WeightsOpenOpen
API model ID—glm-5
API providers1127 (best)
ReleasedFeb 3, 2026Feb 12, 2026
Knowledge cutoffSep 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 Coder Next$4.40
  • GLM-5$16.40
04 — Questions

Which should you choose?

Which is better: Qwen3 Coder Next or GLM-5?

Qwen3 Coder Next is the better all-round choice, scoring 51/100 against GLM-5 (37). It leads on price 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, Qwen3 Coder Next or GLM-5?

Qwen3 Coder Next is cheaper at $0.20 input / $1.20 output per million tokens (median across 11 API providers). GLM-5 costs $1.00 input / $3.20 output per million tokens (official Z.AI 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 $1.55 for GLM-5 (3.4× as much).

Which scores higher on benchmarks?

There is no independent benchmark that covers both models yet. Qwen3 Coder Next has not been scored yet and GLM-5 has an ECI of 145.8.

Which is better for coding?

There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for Qwen3 Coder Next 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 Coder Next has the largest context window at 262,144 tokens, against 204,800 for GLM-5. Maximum output per response: Qwen3 Coder Next up to 65,536, GLM-5 up to 131,072 tokens.

Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?

Qwen3 Coder Next accepts text; GLM-5 accepts text. They handle the same number of input types.

Are any of these open source?

Yes, both publish their weights, so you can self-host them.

Which is newer?

GLM-5 is the newest, released Feb 12, 2026. Qwen3 Coder Next came out Feb 3, 2026. Knowledge cutoff: 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.