Updated October 2026
Best AI models for coding in 2026
The strongest models for writing, refactoring, and debugging code, ranked by independent coding benchmarks.
Ranking
Top 20, ranked by coding index
Ranked by the Artificial Analysis Coding Index, which aggregates several independent coding evaluations.
- 1
Claude Fable 5.1Anthropic · $10 in / $50 out · 1M context81.6 - 2Claude Opus 5Anthropic · $5 in / $25 out · 1M context78
- 3
GPT-5.6 SolOpenAI · $2 in / $10 out · 1.05M context77.4 - 4GPT-6 AstraOpenAI · $10 in / $50 out · 1.05M context76.9
- 5
Grok 4.6xAI · $2 in / $6 out · 500K context76.8
- 6GPT-5.6 TerraOpenAI · $2 in / $12 out · 1.05M context76.7
- 7Claude Fable 5Anthropic · $10 in / $50 out · 1M context76.5
- 8
Gemini 3.8 FlashGoogle · $0.75 in / $3.75 out · 1.05M context76.3 - 9
Qwen3.8 Max (0902)Qwen · $2 in / $6 out · 1M context76.2 - 10
Kimi K3Moonshot AI · $0.90 in / $14 out · 1.05M context76.2
- 11
Muse Spark 1.3Meta · $1.25 in / $4.25 out · 1.05M context75.8
- 12GPT-5.5OpenAI · $5 in / $30 out · 1.05M context74.9
- 13
GLM 5.3Z.ai · $0.04 in / $7 out · 1.05M context74.8
- 14Claude Opus 4.8Anthropic · $5 in / $25 out · 1M context74.3
- 15Claude Opus 4.7Anthropic · $5 in / $25 out · 1M context73.6
- 16
- 17
- 18Qwen3.8 2.4T A95BQwen · $2 in / $6 out · 1.05M context71.9
- 19
- 20Gemini 3.7 FlashGoogle · $0.75 in / $3.75 out · 1.05M context71.5
Head to head
How the top models compare
Detailed comparisons between the models on this list.
VSGPT-6 Astra vs Claude Fable 5.1
OpenAI vs Anthropic
See comparisonVSClaude Fable 5.1 vs Claude Opus 5
Anthropic vs Anthropic
See comparisonVSClaude Fable 5.1 vs Claude Fable 5
Anthropic vs Anthropic
See comparisonVSGPT-6 Astra vs Claude Opus 5
OpenAI vs Anthropic
See comparisonVSGPT-6 Astra vs Claude Fable 5
OpenAI vs Anthropic
See comparisonVSClaude Fable 5.1 vs GPT-5.6 Sol
Anthropic vs OpenAI
See comparisonMore rankings
Best models for other jobs
The leader changes with the job. See how these same models rank for something else.
Smartest AI models
The models with the highest general intelligence scores, covering reasoning, math, science, and knowledge.
- 1Claude Opus 5.557.6
- 2Claude Sonnet 5.556
- 3Claude Fable 5.153.4
Cheapest AI models
The cheapest AI models for everyday chat, ranked by price per million tokens. See input and output prices side by side, plus the cheapest models that still deliver good quality.
- 1
MiMo-V2.6-Flash$0.18
- 2Claude Haiku 5.5$0.20
- 3GPT-6 Luna$0.20
Best long-context AI models
Models that can read entire codebases, books, or long document sets in a single prompt.
- 1
- 2
- 3GPT-6 Astra1.05M tokens
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
What is the best AI model for coding?
Claude Fable 5.1 from Anthropic ranks first with coding index of 81.6. Claude Opus 5 is second at 78.
How are these models ranked?
Ranked by the Artificial Analysis Coding Index, which aggregates several independent coding evaluations.
Can I use more than one of these models?
Yes. Shortcut Chat sends one prompt to several models at once, so you can run the top models on this list side by side and keep the best answer.
Use the top models together.
Send one prompt to multiple models on this list at once, see the answers side by side, and take the best part from each.