Qwen3 Coder Next vs Phi-4-mini
Phi-4-mini comes out ahead, 58 to 51 on our weighted score, and it is the cheaper option too.
Alibaba (Qwen)Qwen3 Coder Next
51/100- ECI—
- Price$0.20 / $1.20
- Context262K
- Our pick
MicrosoftPhi-4-mini
58/100- ECI—
- Price$0.075 / $0.30
- Context128K
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Make it a three-way comparison.
Phi-4-mini is our pick
Phi-4-mini is the better all-round choice, scoring 58/100 against Qwen3 Coder Next (51). It leads on price. Qwen3 Coder Next wins 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 pricePhi-4-miniPhi-4-mini $0.131 · Qwen3 Coder Next $0.45 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
- Longest contextQwen3 Coder NextQwen3 Coder Next 262,144 · Phi-4-mini 128,000 tokens
- Widest inputsSame inputsQwen3 Coder Next: Text · Phi-4-mini: Text
- Self-hostingAll open weightsEvery model here can be downloaded and run on your own hardware
| Measure | Weight | Qwen3 Coder Next | Phi-4-mini |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | 50% | 66 | 92 |
| Inputs & features | 30% | 35 | 25 |
| Context window | 20% | 37 | 24 |
| Overall | 100% | 51/100 | 58/100 |
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 | Qwen3 Coder NextAlibaba (Qwen) | Phi-4-miniMicrosoft |
|---|---|---|
| Capability | ||
| Capabilities Index (ECI) | — | — |
| ECI rank | — | — |
| Price per million tokens | ||
| Input | $0.20 | $0.075 (best) |
| Output | $1.20 | $0.30 (best) |
| Cached input | — | — |
| Blended (3:1) | $0.45 | $0.131 (best) |
| Long-context rate | Same rate | Same rate |
| Price source | Median of 11 providers | Official Azure API |
| Limits | ||
| Context window | 262,144 tokens (best) | 128,000 tokens |
| Max output | 65,536 tokens (best) | 4,096 tokens |
| Inputs and features | ||
| Text | Yes | Yes |
| Images | No | No |
| PDFs | No | No |
| Audio | No | No |
| Video | No | No |
| Reasoning | No | No |
| Tool calling | Yes | Yes |
| Structured output | Yes | No |
| Availability | ||
| Weights | Open | Open |
| API model ID | — | phi-4-mini |
| API providers | 11 (best) | 1 |
| Released | Feb 3, 2026 | Dec 11, 2024 |
| Knowledge cutoff | Sep 2025 | Oct 2023 |
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
- Phi-4-mini$1.35
Which should you choose?
Which is better: Qwen3 Coder Next or Phi-4-mini?
Phi-4-mini is the better all-round choice, scoring 58/100 against Qwen3 Coder Next (51). It leads on price. Qwen3 Coder Next wins 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, Qwen3 Coder Next or Phi-4-mini?
Phi-4-mini is cheaper at $0.075 input / $0.30 output per million tokens (official Azure API price). Qwen3 Coder Next costs $0.20 input / $1.20 output per million tokens (median across 11 API providers). At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $0.131 per million tokens for Phi-4-mini versus $0.45 for Qwen3 Coder Next (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 Phi-4-mini has not been scored yet.
Which is better for coding?
There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for Qwen3 Coder Next and Phi-4-mini 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 128,000 for Phi-4-mini. Maximum output per response: Qwen3 Coder Next up to 65,536, Phi-4-mini up to 4,096 tokens.
Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?
Qwen3 Coder Next accepts text; Phi-4-mini 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?
Qwen3 Coder Next is the newest, released Feb 3, 2026. Phi-4-mini came out Dec 11, 2024. Knowledge cutoff: Qwen3 Coder Next Sep 2025, Phi-4-mini Oct 2023.
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.
