Model Comparison

Claude 3 Sonnet vs Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct

Both models are evenly matched across the benchmarks. Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct is 26.7x cheaper per token.

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Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

2 benchmarks

Claude 3 Sonnet outperforms in 1 benchmarks (MMLU), while Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct is better at 1 benchmark (MMLU-Pro).

Both models are evenly matched across the benchmarks.

Sun May 10 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Pricing Analysis

Price comparison per million tokens

Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct costs less

For input processing, Claude 3 Sonnet ($3.00/1M tokens) is 30.0x more expensive than Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct ($0.10/1M tokens).

For output processing, Claude 3 Sonnet ($15.00/1M tokens) is 25.0x more expensive than Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct ($0.60/1M tokens).

In conclusion, Claude 3 Sonnet is more expensive than Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct.*

* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens

Lowest available price from all providers

Sun May 10 2026 • llm-stats.com

Claude 3 Sonnet

Input tokens$3.00

Output tokens$15.00

Best providerAnthropic

Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct

Input tokens$0.10

Output tokens$0.60

Best providerDeepinfra

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue→

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct accepts 262,144 input tokens compared to Claude 3 Sonnet's 200,000 tokens. Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct can generate longer responses up to 262,144 tokens, while Claude 3 Sonnet is limited to 200,000 tokens.

Claude 3 Sonnet

Input200,000 tokens

Output200,000 tokens

Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct

Input262,144 tokens

Output262,144 tokens

Sun May 10 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Both Claude 3 Sonnet and Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct support multimodal inputs.

They are both capable of processing various types of data, offering versatility in application.

Claude 3 Sonnet

Text

Images

Audio

Video

Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct

Text

Images

Audio

Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

Claude 3 Sonnet is licensed under a proprietary license, while Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct uses Apache 2.0.

License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.

Claude 3 Sonnet

Proprietary

Closed source

Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct

Apache 2.0

Open weights

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Claude 3 Sonnet was released on 2024-02-29, while Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct was released on 2025-09-22.

Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct is 19 months newer than Claude 3 Sonnet.

Claude 3 Sonnet

Feb 29, 2024

2.2 years ago

Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct

Sep 22, 2025

7 months ago

1.6yr newer

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

Neither model specifies a knowledge cutoff date.

Unable to compare the recency of their training data.

No cutoff dates available

Provider Availability

Claude 3 Sonnet is available from Anthropic, Bedrock, Google. Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct is available from DeepInfra.

Claude 3 Sonnet

Anthropic

Input Price:Input: $3.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $15.00/1M

AWS Bedrock

Input Price:Input: $3.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $15.00/1M

Google

Input Price:Input: $3.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $15.00/1M

Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct

Deepinfra

Input Price:Input: $0.10/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.60/1M

* Prices shown are per million tokens

Outputs Comparison

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Key Takeaways

Claude 3 Sonnet

View details

Anthropic

Higher MMLU score (79.0% vs 77.2%)

Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct

View details

Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team

Larger context window (262,144 tokens)

Less expensive input tokens

Less expensive output tokens

Has open weights

Higher MMLU-Pro score (67.1% vs 56.8%)

Detailed Comparison

AI Model Comparison Table
Feature	Claude 3 Sonnet	Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct

FAQ

Common questions about Claude 3 Sonnet vs Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct.

Which is better, Claude 3 Sonnet or Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct?

Both models are evenly matched across the benchmarks. Claude 3 Sonnet is made by Anthropic and Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct is made by Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does Claude 3 Sonnet compare to Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct in benchmarks?

Claude 3 Sonnet scores ARC-C: 93.2%, GSM8k: 92.3%, HellaSwag: 89.0%, MGSM: 83.5%, BIG-Bench Hard: 82.9%. Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct scores DocVQAtest: 95.3%, ScreenSpot: 94.0%, OCRBench: 88.1%, MMBench-V1.1: 85.1%, AI2D: 84.1%.

Is Claude 3 Sonnet cheaper than Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct?

Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct is 30.0x cheaper for input tokens. Claude 3 Sonnet costs $3.00/M input and $15.00/M output via anthropic. Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct costs $0.10/M input and $0.60/M output via deepinfra.

What are the context window sizes for Claude 3 Sonnet and Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct?

Claude 3 Sonnet supports 200K tokens and Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct supports 262K tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.

What are the main differences between Claude 3 Sonnet and Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct?

Key differences include context window (200K vs 262K), input pricing ($3.00 vs $0.10/M), licensing (Proprietary vs Apache 2.0). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes Claude 3 Sonnet and Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct?

Claude 3 Sonnet is developed by Anthropic and Qwen3 VL 4B Instruct is developed by Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team.