Pairwise benchmark snapshot · Aug 16, 2026
In this head-to-head showdown, DeepSeek V4 Flash delivers higher overall intelligence and human-preferred responses (Elo 1,490 vs 1,440), while DeepSeek V4 Flash leads in SWE-bench software engineering benchmarks (71.2%), while DeepSeek V4 Flash is more budget-friendly at $0.28/1M per 1M output tokens. Review the complete breakdown below to determine which model best fits your performance and budget requirements.
9 direct benchmark disciplines evaluated across capability, speed, and cost
DeepSeek Jul 31 2026 price-performance SKU. Public listings put it near $0.14/$0.28 per 1M tokens.
Currently comparing DeepSeek V4 Flash vs Qwen3 235B. Alternative family tiers available.
Δ 50 Arena Elo pts
142 tok/s
$0.28 / 1M output
Relative percentile scores computed across all active models in the benchmark catalog.
Comparing top Western standard models with China's leading frontier rival across 6 skill dimensions. Tap any spoke or dot to inspect.
Category wins across reasoning intelligence, generation speed, and token cost.
Preference Elo, Coding proficiency, SWE-bench & LiveBench accuracy
Generation throughput and time to first token responsiveness
Cost per million tokens and max context window length
| Benchmark | DeepSeek V4 Flash | Qwen3 235B | Advantage Delta |
|---|---|---|---|
| Preference Elo | +50 | ||
| Coding Elo | — | — | |
| LiveBench | +4.3% | ||
| SWE-bench | +11.8% | ||
| GPQA Diamond | +4.8% | ||
| Time to first token | +155 ms | ||
| Output speed | 142 tok/s | 74 tok/s | +68 tok/s |
| Input price | $0.14/1M | $0.22/1M | +$0.08/1M |
| Output price | $0.28/1M | $0.88/1M | +$0.6/1M |
| Context window | +29k |
Simulate monthly production API costs in USD (US Dollar).
DeepSeek V4 Flash is estimated to save $11.80/month ($142/year).
Higher SWE-bench (71.2%).
Lower output list price ($0.28/1M).
Lower TTFT (165 ms).
Larger window (160k).
DeepSeek V4 Flash is the side marked multimodal in the catalog.
| Target Workload | Recommended Pick | Evaluation Rationale |
|---|---|---|
| Repo / coding agents | DeepSeek V4 Flash | Higher SWE-bench (71.2%). |
| High-volume chat | DeepSeek V4 Flash | Lower output list price ($0.28/1M). |
| Voice / low-latency UI | DeepSeek V4 Flash | Lower TTFT (165 ms). |
| Long-document RAG | DeepSeek V4 Flash | Larger window (160k). |
| Screenshots / vision | DeepSeek V4 Flash | DeepSeek V4 Flash is the side marked multimodal in the catalog. |
Public listings put Flash near $0.14/$0.28 per 1M. That is a batch SKU, not a chatbot crown.
Sep 2025 open-weight mixture-of-experts. Self-host path. Don’t confuse it with Qwen 3 Max.
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