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ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview vs Step-3.5-Flash

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview leads the LLM Stats Score 52.3 to 36.4. Step-3.5-Flash is 2.8x cheaper per token.

Baidu · StepFun · Updated for 2026

Which is better?

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview leads the overall LLM Stats Score 52.3 to 36.4, ranking #13 overall.

In the 1 individual benchmarks reported for both models, ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview wins 1; this is a narrower head-to-head signal than the composite indexes.

On price, Step-3.5-Flash is roughly 2.8x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview also accepts a larger context window (1,048,576 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.

Based on current LLM Stats indexes, shared benchmarks, pricing, and model metadata for 2026.

Choose ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview

  • overall performance matters — it scores 52.3 and ranks #13 on LLM Stats
  • your work emphasizes reasoning and coding — it leads those capability indexes
  • you value its reported benchmark strengths — it wins 1 of 1 exact shared results
  • you process long inputs — it offers a 1,048,576 token context window
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Nov 2026

Choose Step-3.5-Flash

  • cost matters — it's about 2.8x cheaper per token
  • you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune

At a glance

The differences that matter most.

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview
Baidu
Step-3.5-Flash
StepFun
Core performance indexes
LLM Stats Score
52.3
#13
36.4
#103
Reasoning
50.7
#12
36.4
#102
Coding
37.9
#20
20.2
#127
Agents
38.5
#11
14.3
#125
Cost, coverage & limits
Benchmark wins
1 of 1
0 of 1
Input price
$0.28 / M
$0.10 / M
Output price
$1.13 / M
$0.40 / M
Context window
1,048,576
65,536

Capability indexes

Additional strengths measured across groups of related public benchmarks

1 shared
Index
ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview
Step-3.5-Flash
Tool use
32.2#8
13.2#130
Conservative TrueSkill rating · higher is betterHow scores work

Individual benchmarks

13 reported for ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview · 7 for Step-3.5-Flash

1 shared

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview outperforms in 1 benchmarks (BrowseComp), while Step-3.5-Flash is better at 0 benchmarks.

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Fri Nov 13 2026 • llm-stats.com

Human preference

Blind head-to-head votes and playground preference scores

Pricing Analysis

Price comparison per million tokens

Step-3.5-Flash costs less

For input processing, ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview ($0.28/1M tokens) is 2.8x more expensive than Step-3.5-Flash ($0.10/1M tokens).

For output processing, ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview ($1.13/1M tokens) is 2.8x more expensive than Step-3.5-Flash ($0.40/1M tokens).

In conclusion, ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview is more expensive than Step-3.5-Flash.*

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

Lowest available price from all providers
Fri Nov 13 2026 • llm-stats.com
Baidu
ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview
Input tokens$0.28
Output tokens$1.13
Best providerBaidu
StepFun
Step-3.5-Flash
Input tokens$0.10
Output tokens$0.40
Best providerStepFun
Notice missing or incorrect data?

Model Size

Parameter count comparison

84.0B diff

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview has 84.0B more parameters than Step-3.5-Flash, making it 42.9% larger.

Baidu
ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview
280.0Bparameters
StepFun
Step-3.5-Flash
196.0Bparameters
280.0B
ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview
196.0B
Step-3.5-Flash

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview accepts 1,048,576 input tokens compared to Step-3.5-Flash's 65,536 tokens. ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview can generate longer responses up to 1,048,576 tokens, while Step-3.5-Flash is limited to 8,192 tokens.

Baidu
ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview
Input1,048,576 tokens
Output1,048,576 tokens
StepFun
Step-3.5-Flash
Input65,536 tokens
Output8,192 tokens
Fri Nov 13 2026 • llm-stats.com

License

Usage and distribution terms

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview is licensed under a proprietary license, while Step-3.5-Flash uses Apache 2.0.

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

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview

Proprietary

Closed source

Step-3.5-Flash

Apache 2.0

Open weights

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview was released on 2026-11-11, while Step-3.5-Flash was released on 2026-02-02.

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview is 9 months newer than Step-3.5-Flash.

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview

Nov 11, 2026

1 days ago

9mo newer
Step-3.5-Flash

Feb 2, 2026

9 months 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

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview is available from Baidu Qianfan. Step-3.5-Flash is available from StepFun.

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview

baidu logo
Baidu
Input Price:Input: $0.28/1MOutput Price:Output: $1.13/1M

Step-3.5-Flash

stepfun logo
StepFun
Input Price:Input: $0.10/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.40/1M
* Prices shown are per million tokens

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?

Judge for yourself.

Run your own prompts against ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview and Step-3.5-Flash side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview
✓ Preferred
Step-3.5-Flash
Open in Playground

FAQ

Common questions about ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview vs Step-3.5-Flash.

Which is better, ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview or Step-3.5-Flash?

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview leads the LLM Stats Score 52.3 to 36.4. ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview is made by Baidu and Step-3.5-Flash is made by StepFun. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their capability indexes, individual benchmarks, pricing, and limits above.

How does ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview compare to Step-3.5-Flash in benchmarks?

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview scores BrowseComp: 87.4%, DRACO: 84.9%, MCP Atlas: 84.6%, DeepSWE 1.1: 71.2%, OfficeQA Pro: 67.9%. Step-3.5-Flash scores AIME 2025: 97.3%, Tau-bench: 88.2%, LiveCodeBench v6: 86.4%, IMO-AnswerBench: 85.4%, SWE-Bench Verified: 74.4%.

Is ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview cheaper than Step-3.5-Flash?

Step-3.5-Flash is 2.8x cheaper for input tokens. ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview costs $0.28/M input and $1.13/M output via baidu. Step-3.5-Flash costs $0.10/M input and $0.40/M output via stepfun.

What are the context window sizes for ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview and Step-3.5-Flash?

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview supports 1.0M tokens and Step-3.5-Flash supports 66K tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.

What are the main differences between ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview and Step-3.5-Flash?

Key differences include LLM Stats Score (52.3 vs 36.4), context window (1.0M vs 66K), input pricing ($0.28 vs $0.10/M), licensing (Proprietary vs Apache 2.0). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview and Step-3.5-Flash?

ERNIE 5.5 Flash Preview is developed by Baidu and Step-3.5-Flash is developed by StepFun.

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