Model Comparison
Claude Opus 4.5 vs Qwen2.5 72B InstructWhich is better in 2026?
Claude Opus 4.5 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Qwen2.5 72B Instruct is 27.6x cheaper per token.
Verdict: Claude Opus 4.5 vs Qwen2.5 72B Instruct — which is better?
Claude Opus 4.5 (by Anthropic) and Qwen2.5 72B Instruct (by Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team) are two of the AI models people compare most. Here is how they stack up on benchmarks, price and capabilities, and which one to pick in 2026.
Claude Opus 4.5 outperforms in 1 benchmarks (GPQA), while Qwen2.5 72B Instruct is better at 0 benchmarks. Claude Opus 4.5 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
On price, Qwen2.5 72B Instruct is roughly 27.6x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
Claude Opus 4.5 also accepts a larger context window (200,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.
Choose Claude Opus 4.5 if…
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 1 of 1 shared benchmarks
- you process long inputs — it offers a 200,000 token context window
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Nov 2025
Choose Qwen2.5 72B Instruct if…
- cost matters — it's about 27.6x cheaper per token
- you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
Claude Opus 4.5 outperforms in 1 benchmarks (GPQA), while Qwen2.5 72B Instruct is better at 0 benchmarks.
Claude Opus 4.5 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Human preference votes
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, Claude Opus 4.5 ($5.00/1M tokens) is 14.3x more expensive than Qwen2.5 72B Instruct ($0.35/1M tokens).
For output processing, Claude Opus 4.5 ($25.00/1M tokens) is 62.5x more expensive than Qwen2.5 72B Instruct ($0.40/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Claude Opus 4.5 is more expensive than Qwen2.5 72B Instruct.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Claude Opus 4.5 accepts 200,000 input tokens compared to Qwen2.5 72B Instruct's 131,072 tokens. Claude Opus 4.5 can generate longer responses up to 64,000 tokens, while Qwen2.5 72B Instruct is limited to 8,192 tokens.
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
Claude Opus 4.5 supports multimodal inputs, whereas Qwen2.5 72B Instruct does not.
Claude Opus 4.5 can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.
Claude Opus 4.5
Qwen2.5 72B Instruct
License
Usage and distribution terms
Claude Opus 4.5 is licensed under a proprietary license, while Qwen2.5 72B Instruct uses Qwen.
License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.
Proprietary
Closed source
Qwen
Open weights
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
Claude Opus 4.5 was released on 2025-11-24, while Qwen2.5 72B Instruct was released on 2024-09-19.
Claude Opus 4.5 is 14 months newer than Qwen2.5 72B Instruct.
Nov 24, 2025
6 months ago
1.2yr newerSep 19, 2024
1.7 years ago
Knowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
Claude Opus 4.5 has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2025-03-31, while Qwen2.5 72B Instruct's cutoff date is not specified.
We can confirm Claude Opus 4.5's training data extends to 2025-03-31, but cannot make a direct comparison without Qwen2.5 72B Instruct's cutoff date.
Mar 2025
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Provider Availability
Claude Opus 4.5 is available from Anthropic. Qwen2.5 72B Instruct is available from DeepInfra, Hyperbolic, Fireworks, Together.
Claude Opus 4.5
Qwen2.5 72B Instruct
Outputs Comparison
Key Takeaways
Claude Opus 4.5
View detailsAnthropic
Qwen2.5 72B Instruct
View detailsAlibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Detailed Comparison
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FAQ
Common questions about Claude Opus 4.5 vs Qwen2.5 72B Instruct.