AI model comparison
Qwen3.6 27B vs GPT-5 Mini
Pricing, context window, benchmarks, and features compared side by side. Or skip the guesswork and send one prompt to both.
Qwen
Qwen3.6 27B
Qwen3.6 27B is a dense 27-billion-parameter language model from the Qwen Team at Alibaba, released in April 2026.
- Input / 1M
- $0.32
- Output / 1M
- $3.20
- Context
- 262K
OpenAI
GPT-5 Mini
GPT-5 Mini is a compact version of GPT-5, designed to handle lighter-weight reasoning tasks.
- Input / 1M
- $0.25
- Output / 1M
- $2
- Context
- 400K
At a glance
Quick verdict
How the two models stack up on the things people ask about most.
Lower price
GPT-5 Mini
1.5x cheaper for a typical chat
Higher intelligence score
Qwen3.6 27B
21.4 vs 20.6 on Artificial Analysis
Larger context window
GPT-5 Mini
400K vs 262K tokens
Newer release
Qwen3.6 27B
Released April 27, 2026
Benchmarks
Benchmark scores
Independent scores from Artificial Analysis. Higher is better.
Intelligence index
Qwen3.6 27B21.4GPT-5 Mini20.6Coding index
Qwen3.6 27B53.7GPT-5 MiniNot availableAgentic index
Qwen3.6 27B18.5GPT-5 MiniNot availablePricing
Qwen3.6 27B vs GPT-5 Mini API pricing
Per-token API rates. Cheaper option highlighted.
| Metric | Qwen3.6 27B | GPT-5 Mini |
|---|---|---|
| Input tokensPer 1M tokens | $0.32 | $0.25 |
| Output tokensPer 1M tokens | $3.20 | $2 |
| Cached input (read)Per 1M tokens | Not available | $0.03 |
| Cache writePer 1M tokens | Not available | Not available |
| Web searchPer request | Not available | $0.01 |
What it costs in practice
Estimated cost per 1,000 requests at standard rates. Coding and long-document figures also show the cost when the input is already cached.
Chat message
2K in, 500 out
Qwen3.6 27B$2.24GPT-5 Mini$1.50Coding task
30K in, 4K out
Qwen3.6 27B$22.40GPT-5 Mini$15.50$8.75 cachedLong document summary
150K in, 2K out
Qwen3.6 27B$54.40GPT-5 Mini$41.50$7.75 cachedSpecs
Context window and capabilities
How much each model can read, how much it can write, and what it accepts as input.
| Metric | Qwen3.6 27B | GPT-5 Mini |
|---|---|---|
| Context window | 262K tokens | 400K tokens |
| Max output | 82K tokens | 128K tokens |
| Input types | Image, Text, Video | File, Image, Text |
| Output types | Text | Text |
| Reasoning effort levels | Not available | High, Medium, Low, Minimal |
| Default reasoning effort | Not available | Medium |
| Release date | April 27, 2026 | August 7, 2025 |
Features
Supported features
API features available for each model.
| Metric | Qwen3.6 27B | GPT-5 Mini |
|---|---|---|
| Tool calling | Supported | Supported |
| Structured outputs | Supported | Supported |
| JSON mode | Supported | Supported |
| Reasoning | Supported | Supported |
| Temperature | Supported | Not supported |
| Stop sequences | Supported | Not supported |
| Deterministic seed | Supported | Supported |
| Verbosity control | Not supported | Supported |
Keep exploring
More on these models
Other head-to-heads, the full model page, and the alternatives list for each model.
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Our take
GPT-5 Mini is 1.5x cheaper for a typical chat. Qwen3.6 27B scores higher on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index (21.4 vs 20.6). GPT-5 Mini has the larger context window (400K vs 262K tokens). The right pick depends on your workload, so the quickest way to settle it is to send the same prompt to both and compare.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Is Qwen3.6 27B or GPT-5 Mini cheaper?
GPT-5 Mini is cheaper for a typical chat (2K input tokens and 500 output tokens). GPT-5 Mini costs $0.25 per 1M input tokens and $2 per 1M output tokens, while Qwen3.6 27B costs $0.32 per 1M input tokens and $3.20 per 1M output tokens.
Which has a bigger context window, Qwen3.6 27B or GPT-5 Mini?
GPT-5 Mini supports up to 400K tokens of context, compared with 262K for Qwen3.6 27B.
Is Qwen3.6 27B smarter than GPT-5 Mini?
On the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index, Qwen3.6 27B scores 21.4 and GPT-5 Mini scores 20.6, putting Qwen3.6 27B ahead. Benchmarks don't capture everything, so the best test is running your own prompts through both.
Can I use Qwen3.6 27B and GPT-5 Mini at the same time?
Yes. Shortcut Chat sends one prompt to multiple models at once, so you can see Qwen3.6 27B and GPT-5 Mini answer side by side and keep the better response.
Why choose? Ask both.
Send one prompt to Qwen3.6 27B and GPT-5 Mini at the same time. Compare the answers side by side and keep the best one.