Pairwise benchmark snapshot · Aug 16, 2026
In this head-to-head showdown, Qwen3 235B delivers higher overall intelligence and human-preferred responses (Elo 1,440 vs 1,398), while Qwen3 235B leads in SWE-bench software engineering benchmarks (59.4%), while Qwen3.8 27B is more budget-friendly at $0.4/1M per 1M output tokens. Review the complete breakdown below to determine which model best fits your performance and budget requirements.
8 direct benchmark disciplines evaluated across capability, speed, and cost
Open-weight Qwen3 mixture-of-experts.
Alibaba open-weight 27B drop dated Aug 14 2026. Dense enough to self-host; not a frontier MoE.
Currently comparing Qwen3 235B vs Qwen3.8 27B. Alternative family tiers available.
Δ 42 Arena Elo pts
152 tok/s
$0.4 / 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 | Qwen3 235B | Qwen3.8 27B | Advantage Delta |
|---|---|---|---|
| Preference Elo | +42 | ||
| Coding Elo | — | — | |
| LiveBench | +2.9% | ||
| SWE-bench | +0.6% | ||
| GPQA Diamond | +3.4% | ||
| Time to first token | +180 ms | ||
| Output speed | 74 tok/s | 152 tok/s | +78 tok/s |
| Input price | $0.22/1M | +$0.12/1M | |
| Output price | $0.88/1M | +$0.48/1M | |
| Context window | — |
Simulate monthly production API costs in USD (US Dollar).
Qwen3.8 27B is estimated to save $11.40/month ($137/year).
Higher SWE-bench (59.4%).
Lower output list price ($0.4/1M).
Lower TTFT (140 ms).
Larger window (131k).
Qwen3 235B is the side marked multimodal in the catalog.
| Target Workload | Recommended Pick | Evaluation Rationale |
|---|---|---|
| Repo / coding agents | Qwen3 235B | Higher SWE-bench (59.4%). |
| High-volume chat | Qwen3.8 27B | Lower output list price ($0.4/1M). |
| Voice / low-latency UI | Qwen3.8 27B | Lower TTFT (140 ms). |
| Long-document RAG | Qwen3 235B | Larger window (131k). |
| Screenshots / vision | Qwen3 235B | Qwen3 235B is the side marked multimodal in the catalog. |
Alibaba open-weight 27B drop. Local/open-weight lists should see it. It will not win frontier-agents.
Sep 2025 open-weight mixture-of-experts. Self-host path. Don’t confuse it with Qwen 3 Max.
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