o4 vs Qwen 3 Max
Reasoning model. Thinks before it speaks. Meanwhile, qwen 3 max: alibaba's flagship. top-tier multilingual and coding.
Side-by-side
Specs
| Dimension | o4 | Qwen 3 Max |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | OpenAI | Alibaba |
| Released | 2025-09 | 2025-10 |
| Context window | 200K | ✓256K |
| Output max | ✓100K | 32K |
| Input /M | $15.00 | ✓$1.20 |
| Output /M | $60.00 | ✓$4.00 |
| Modalities | text, image | text, image |
| Open weights | no | no |
Scorecard
Dimension-by-dimension
o4
Qwen 3 Max
reasoning
10.0
8.0
coding
9.0
9.0
writing
7.0
8.0
speed
3.0
7.0
value
5.0
9.0
Verdict
Which wins, by use case
| Use case | Winner | Why |
|---|---|---|
| coding | Qwen 3 Max | a coin flip on our weighted coding score |
| writing | Qwen 3 Max | a clear edge on our weighted writing score |
| chat | Qwen 3 Max | a decisive lead on our weighted chat score |
| agents | o4 | a coin flip on our weighted agents score |
| summarization | Qwen 3 Max | a decisive lead on our weighted summarization score |
| translation | Qwen 3 Max | a decisive lead on our weighted translation score |
| reasoning | o4 | a decisive lead on our weighted reasoning score |
| research | Qwen 3 Max | a coin flip on our weighted research score |
| vision and multimodal | o4 | a coin flip on our weighted vision score |
| Cheapest AI models for bulk workloads | Qwen 3 Max | a decisive lead on our weighted cheap-bulk score |
Bottom line
Our take
Pick o4 if you need: state-of-the-art math & science, complex planning.
Pick Qwen 3 Max if you need: multilingual leader, strong coding.
At a 500M-input / 150M-output monthly volume, o4 costs roughly $16500 vs Qwen 3 Max at $1200. Use our calculator to plug in your own numbers.
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