Model Comparison

Claude Sonnet 4.6 vs Qwen3-Coder

Comparing Claude Sonnet 4.6 and Qwen3-Coder across benchmarks, pricing, and capabilities.

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Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

No common benchmarks found

Claude Sonnet 4.6 and Qwen3-Coder don't have any common benchmark datasets to compare. They may have been evaluated on different testing suites.

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Pricing Analysis

Price comparison per million tokens

Qwen3-Coder costs less

For input processing, Claude Sonnet 4.6 ($3.00/1M tokens) is 16.7x more expensive than Qwen3-Coder ($0.18/1M tokens).

For output processing, Claude Sonnet 4.6 ($15.00/1M tokens) is 83.3x more expensive than Qwen3-Coder ($0.18/1M tokens).

In conclusion, Claude Sonnet 4.6 is more expensive than Qwen3-Coder.*

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

Lowest available price from all providers

Thu May 14 2026 • llm-stats.com

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Input tokens$3.00

Output tokens$15.00

Best providerAnthropic

Qwen3-Coder

Input tokens$0.18

Output tokens$0.18

Best providerDeepinfra

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue→

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Qwen3-Coder accepts 256,000 input tokens compared to Claude Sonnet 4.6's 200,000 tokens. Qwen3-Coder can generate longer responses up to 256,000 tokens, while Claude Sonnet 4.6 is limited to 64,000 tokens.

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Input200,000 tokens

Output64,000 tokens

Qwen3-Coder

Input256,000 tokens

Output256,000 tokens

Thu May 14 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Claude Sonnet 4.6 supports multimodal inputs, whereas Qwen3-Coder does not.

Claude Sonnet 4.6 can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Text

Images

Audio

Video

Qwen3-Coder

Text

Images

Audio

Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

Claude Sonnet 4.6 is licensed under a proprietary license, while Qwen3-Coder uses Apache 2.0.

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

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Proprietary

Closed source

Qwen3-Coder

Apache 2.0

Open weights

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Claude Sonnet 4.6 was released on 2026-02-17, while Qwen3-Coder was released on 2025-01-01.

Claude Sonnet 4.6 is 14 months newer than Qwen3-Coder.

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Feb 17, 2026

2 months ago

1.1yr newer

Qwen3-Coder

Jan 1, 2025

1.4 years ago

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 Sonnet 4.6 is available from Anthropic. Qwen3-Coder is available from DeepInfra, Fireworks.

Claude Sonnet 4.6

Anthropic

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

Qwen3-Coder

Deepinfra

Input Price:Input: $0.18/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.18/1M

Fireworks

Input Price:Input: $0.25/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.25/1M

* Prices shown are per million tokens

Outputs Comparison

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Key Takeaways

Claude Sonnet 4.6

View details

Anthropic

Supports multimodal inputs

Qwen3-Coder

View details

Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team

Larger context window (256,000 tokens)

Less expensive input tokens

Less expensive output tokens

Has open weights

Detailed Comparison

AI Model Comparison Table
Feature	Claude Sonnet 4.6	Qwen3-Coder

FAQ

Common questions about Claude Sonnet 4.6 vs Qwen3-Coder.

Which is better, Claude Sonnet 4.6 or Qwen3-Coder?

Claude Sonnet 4.6 (Anthropic) and Qwen3-Coder (Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team) each have strengths in different areas. Compare their benchmark scores, pricing, context windows, and capabilities above to determine which fits your needs.

How does Claude Sonnet 4.6 compare to Qwen3-Coder in benchmarks?

Claude Sonnet 4.6 scores Tau2 Telecom: 97.9%, Tau2 Retail: 91.7%, GPQA: 89.9%, MMMLU: 89.3%, SWE-Bench Verified: 79.6%.

Is Claude Sonnet 4.6 cheaper than Qwen3-Coder?

Qwen3-Coder is 16.7x cheaper for input tokens. Claude Sonnet 4.6 costs $3.00/M input and $15.00/M output via anthropic. Qwen3-Coder costs $0.18/M input and $0.18/M output via deepinfra.

What are the context window sizes for Claude Sonnet 4.6 and Qwen3-Coder?

Claude Sonnet 4.6 supports 200K tokens and Qwen3-Coder supports 256K tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.

What are the main differences between Claude Sonnet 4.6 and Qwen3-Coder?

Key differences include context window (200K vs 256K), input pricing ($3.00 vs $0.18/M), multimodal support (yes vs no), licensing (Proprietary vs Apache 2.0). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes Claude Sonnet 4.6 and Qwen3-Coder?

Claude Sonnet 4.6 is developed by Anthropic and Qwen3-Coder is developed by Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team.