Model Comparison
DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B vs DeepSeek-V3.1Which is better in 2026?
DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B shows notably better performance in the majority of benchmarks. DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B is 3.4x cheaper per token.
Verdict: DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B vs DeepSeek-V3.1 — which is better?
DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B (by DeepSeek) and DeepSeek-V3.1 (by DeepSeek) 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.
DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B outperforms in 2 benchmarks (AIME 2024, LiveCodeBench), while DeepSeek-V3.1 is better at 1 benchmark (GPQA). DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B shows notably better performance in the majority of benchmarks.
On price, DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B is roughly 3.4x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
DeepSeek-V3.1 also accepts a larger context window (163,840 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.
Choose DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B if…
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 2 of 3 shared benchmarks
- cost matters — it's about 3.4x cheaper per token
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Jan 2025
Choose DeepSeek-V3.1 if…
- you process long inputs — it offers a 163,840 token context window
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B outperforms in 2 benchmarks (AIME 2024, LiveCodeBench), while DeepSeek-V3.1 is better at 1 benchmark (GPQA).
DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B shows notably better performance in the majority of benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Human preference votes
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B ($0.12/1M tokens) is 2.3x cheaper than DeepSeek-V3.1 ($0.27/1M tokens).
For output processing, DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B ($0.18/1M tokens) is 5.6x cheaper than DeepSeek-V3.1 ($1.00/1M tokens).
In conclusion, DeepSeek-V3.1 is more expensive than DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Model Size
Parameter count comparison
DeepSeek-V3.1 has 638.2B more parameters than DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B, making it 1945.7% larger.
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
DeepSeek-V3.1 accepts 163,840 input tokens compared to DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B's 128,000 tokens. DeepSeek-V3.1 can generate longer responses up to 163,840 tokens, while DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B is limited to 128,000 tokens.
License
Usage and distribution terms
Both models are licensed under MIT.
Both models share the same licensing terms, providing consistent usage rights.
MIT
Open weights
MIT
Open weights
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B was released on 2025-01-20, while DeepSeek-V3.1 was released on 2025-01-10.
DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B is 0 month newer than DeepSeek-V3.1.
Jan 20, 2025
1.4 years ago
1w newerJan 10, 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.
Provider Availability
DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B is available from DeepInfra. DeepSeek-V3.1 is available from DeepInfra, Novita.
DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B
DeepSeek-V3.1
Outputs Comparison
Key Takeaways
DeepSeek-V3.1
View detailsDeepSeek
Detailed Comparison
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FAQ
Common questions about DeepSeek R1 Distill Qwen 32B vs DeepSeek-V3.1.