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Model Comparison

DeepSeek VL2 Small vs Qwen3 VL 235B A22B InstructWhich is better in 2026?

Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Verdict: DeepSeek VL2 Small vs Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct — which is better?

DeepSeek VL2 Small (by DeepSeek) and Qwen3 VL 235B A22B 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.

DeepSeek VL2 Small outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct is better at 5 benchmarks (AI2D, MMBench-V1.1, MMStar, OCRBench, RealWorldQA). Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Choose DeepSeek VL2 Small if…

  • you are already invested in the DeepSeek ecosystem

Choose Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct if…

  • you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 5 of 5 shared benchmarks
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Sep 2025

Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

5 benchmarks

DeepSeek VL2 Small outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct is better at 5 benchmarks (AI2D, MMBench-V1.1, MMStar, OCRBench, RealWorldQA).

Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Fri Aug 07 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Model Size

Parameter count comparison

220.0B diff

Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct has 220.0B more parameters than DeepSeek VL2 Small, making it 1375.0% larger.

DeepSeek
DeepSeek VL2 Small
16.0Bparameters
Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct
236.0Bparameters
16.0B
DeepSeek VL2 Small
236.0B
Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Only Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct specifies input context (262,144 tokens). Only Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct specifies output context (262,144 tokens).

DeepSeek
DeepSeek VL2 Small
Input- tokens
Output- tokens
Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct
Input262,144 tokens
Output262,144 tokens
Fri Aug 07 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Both DeepSeek VL2 Small and Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct support multimodal inputs.

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

DeepSeek VL2 Small

Text
Images
Audio
Video

Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct

Text
Images
Audio
Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

DeepSeek VL2 Small is licensed under deepseek, while Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct uses Apache 2.0.

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

DeepSeek VL2 Small

deepseek

Open weights

Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct

Apache 2.0

Open weights

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

DeepSeek VL2 Small was released on 2024-12-13, while Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct was released on 2025-09-22.

Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct is 9 months newer than DeepSeek VL2 Small.

DeepSeek VL2 Small

Dec 13, 2024

1.6 years ago

Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct

Sep 22, 2025

10 months ago

9mo 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

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue discussion→

Key Takeaways

DeepSeek

No standout differentiators in the data we have for this pair.

Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Larger context window (262,144 tokens)
Higher AI2D score (89.7% vs 80.0%)
Higher MMBench-V1.1 score (89.9% vs 79.3%)
Higher MMStar score (78.4% vs 57.0%)
Higher OCRBench score (92.0% vs 83.4%)
Higher RealWorldQA score (79.3% vs 65.4%)

Detailed Comparison

Interactive Arena

Judge for yourself.

Run your own prompts against DeepSeek VL2 Small and Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.

DeepSeek VL2 Small
✓ Preferred
Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct
Open in Playground
AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
DeepSeek
DeepSeek VL2 Small
Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct

FAQ

Common questions about DeepSeek VL2 Small vs Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct.

Which is better, DeepSeek VL2 Small or Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct?

Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. DeepSeek VL2 Small is made by DeepSeek and Qwen3 VL 235B A22B 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 DeepSeek VL2 Small compare to Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct in benchmarks?

DeepSeek VL2 Small scores DocVQA: 92.3%, ChartQA: 84.5%, OCRBench: 83.4%, TextVQA: 83.4%, MMBench: 80.3%. Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct scores DocVQAtest: 97.1%, ScreenSpot: 95.4%, MMLU-Redux: 92.2%, OCRBench: 92.0%, MMBench-V1.1: 89.9%.

What are the context window sizes for DeepSeek VL2 Small and Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct?

DeepSeek VL2 Small supports an unknown number of tokens and Qwen3 VL 235B A22B 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 DeepSeek VL2 Small and Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct?

Key differences include licensing (deepseek vs Apache 2.0). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes DeepSeek VL2 Small and Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct?

DeepSeek VL2 Small is developed by DeepSeek and Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct is developed by Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team.

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