Step 5 Preview vs Qwen3.8 Flash
Qwen3.8 Flash comes out ahead, 76 to 57 on our weighted score, and it is the cheaper option too.
StepFunStep 5 Preview
57/100- ECI—
- Price$1.00 / $2.70
- Context1M
- Our pick
Alibaba (Qwen)Qwen3.8 Flash
76/100- ECI—
- Price$0.15 / $0.47
- Context1M
Add a model
Make it a three-way comparison.
Qwen3.8 Flash is our pick
Qwen3.8 Flash is the better all-round choice, scoring 76/100 against Step 5 Preview (57). It leads 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 priceQwen3.8 FlashQwen3.8 Flash $0.23 · Step 5 Preview $1.43 per 1M tokens (3:1 blend)
- Longest contextAbout the sameStep 5 Preview 1,000,000 · Qwen3.8 Flash 1,000,000 tokens
- Widest inputsSame inputsStep 5 Preview: Text, Images, Video · Qwen3.8 Flash: Text, Images, Video
- Self-hostingNo open weightsBoth are available only through APIs
| Measure | Weight | Step 5 Preview | Qwen3.8 Flash |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | 50% | 43 | 80 |
| Inputs & features | 30% | 80 | 80 |
| Context window | 20% | 60 | 60 |
| Overall | 100% | 57/100 | 76/100 |
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 | Step 5 PreviewStepFun | Qwen3.8 FlashAlibaba (Qwen) |
|---|---|---|
| Capability | ||
| Capabilities Index (ECI) | — | — |
| ECI rank | — | — |
| Price per million tokens | ||
| Input | $1.00 | $0.15 (best) |
| Output | $2.70 | $0.47 (best) |
| Cached input | $0.05 | $0.016 (best) |
| Blended (3:1) | $1.43 | $0.23 (best) |
| Long-context rate | Same rate | Same rate |
| Price source | Official StepFun (Global) API | Official Alibaba API |
| Limits | ||
| Context window | 1,000,000 tokens | 1,000,000 tokens |
| Max output | 1,000,000 tokens (best) | 131,072 tokens |
| Inputs and features | ||
| Text | Yes | Yes |
| Images | Yes | Yes |
| PDFs | No | No |
| Audio | No | No |
| Video | Yes | Yes |
| Reasoning | Yeslow · medium · high | Yeslow · medium · xhigh |
| Tool calling | Yes | Yes |
| Structured output | Yes | Yes |
| Availability | ||
| Weights | Proprietary | Proprietary |
| API model ID | step-5-preview | qwen3.8-flash |
| API providers | 7 | 23 (best) |
| Released | Sep 16, 2026 | Aug 26, 2026 |
| Knowledge cutoff | — | — |
What would a month cost?
Enter your expected volume in millions of tokens. List prices only; caching and batch discounts would lower these.
- Step 5 Preview$15.40
- Qwen3.8 Flash$2.44
Which should you choose?
Which is better: Step 5 Preview or Qwen3.8 Flash?
Qwen3.8 Flash is the better all-round choice, scoring 76/100 against Step 5 Preview (57). It leads 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, Step 5 Preview or Qwen3.8 Flash?
Qwen3.8 Flash is cheaper at $0.15 input / $0.47 output per million tokens (official Alibaba API price). Step 5 Preview costs $1.00 input / $2.70 output per million tokens (official StepFun (Global) API price). At a typical mix of three input tokens to one output token, that is $0.23 per million tokens for Qwen3.8 Flash versus $1.43 for Step 5 Preview (6.2× as much).
Which scores higher on benchmarks?
There is no independent benchmark that covers both models yet. Step 5 Preview has not been scored yet and Qwen3.8 Flash has not been scored yet.
Which is better for coding?
There are no published SWE-bench Verified results for Step 5 Preview and Qwen3.8 Flash 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?
Step 5 Preview and Qwen3.8 Flash share the same 1,000,000-token context window. Maximum output per response: Step 5 Preview up to 1,000,000, Qwen3.8 Flash up to 131,072 tokens.
Which can read images, PDFs, audio or video?
Step 5 Preview accepts text, images and video; Qwen3.8 Flash accepts text, images and video. They handle the same number of input types.
Are any of these open source?
No. Step 5 Preview and Qwen3.8 Flash are proprietary and only available through APIs and apps.
Which is newer?
Step 5 Preview is the newest, released Sep 16, 2026. Qwen3.8 Flash came out Aug 26, 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 Oct 4, 2026.
