Model Comparison
Gemini 3 Flash vs Qwen3.5-397B-A17BWhich is better in 2026?
Gemini 3 Flash significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Gemini 3 Flash is 1.2x cheaper per token.
Verdict: Gemini 3 Flash vs Qwen3.5-397B-A17B — which is better?
Gemini 3 Flash (by Google) and Qwen3.5-397B-A17B (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.
Gemini 3 Flash outperforms in 7 benchmarks (Global PIQA, GPQA, Humanity's Last Exam, MMMLU, SWE-Bench Verified, t2-bench, Toolathlon), while Qwen3.5-397B-A17B is better at 1 benchmark (Terminal-Bench 2.0). Gemini 3 Flash significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
On price, Gemini 3 Flash is roughly 1.2x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
Gemini 3 Flash also accepts a larger context window (1,000,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.
Choose Gemini 3 Flash if…
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 7 of 8 shared benchmarks
- cost matters — it's about 1.2x cheaper per token
- you process long inputs — it offers a 1,000,000 token context window
Choose Qwen3.5-397B-A17B if…
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Feb 2026
- you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
Gemini 3 Flash outperforms in 7 benchmarks (Global PIQA, GPQA, Humanity's Last Exam, MMMLU, SWE-Bench Verified, t2-bench, Toolathlon), while Qwen3.5-397B-A17B is better at 1 benchmark (Terminal-Bench 2.0).
Gemini 3 Flash significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Human preference votes
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, Gemini 3 Flash ($0.50/1M tokens) is 1.2x cheaper than Qwen3.5-397B-A17B ($0.60/1M tokens).
For output processing, Gemini 3 Flash ($3.00/1M tokens) is 1.2x cheaper than Qwen3.5-397B-A17B ($3.60/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Qwen3.5-397B-A17B is more expensive than Gemini 3 Flash.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Gemini 3 Flash accepts 1,000,000 input tokens compared to Qwen3.5-397B-A17B's 262,144 tokens. Gemini 3 Flash can generate longer responses up to 65,536 tokens, while Qwen3.5-397B-A17B is limited to 64,000 tokens.
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
Both Gemini 3 Flash and Qwen3.5-397B-A17B support multimodal inputs.
They are both capable of processing various types of data, offering versatility in application.
Gemini 3 Flash
Qwen3.5-397B-A17B
License
Usage and distribution terms
Gemini 3 Flash is licensed under a proprietary license, while Qwen3.5-397B-A17B uses Apache 2.0.
License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.
Proprietary
Closed source
Apache 2.0
Open weights
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
Gemini 3 Flash was released on 2025-12-17, while Qwen3.5-397B-A17B was released on 2026-02-16.
Qwen3.5-397B-A17B is 2 months newer than Gemini 3 Flash.
Dec 17, 2025
5 months ago
Feb 16, 2026
3 months ago
2mo newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
Gemini 3 Flash has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2025-01-31, while Qwen3.5-397B-A17B's cutoff date is not specified.
We can confirm Gemini 3 Flash's training data extends to 2025-01-31, but cannot make a direct comparison without Qwen3.5-397B-A17B's cutoff date.
Jan 2025
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Provider Availability
Gemini 3 Flash is available from Google. Qwen3.5-397B-A17B is available from Novita.
Gemini 3 Flash
Qwen3.5-397B-A17B
Outputs Comparison
Key Takeaways
Qwen3.5-397B-A17B
View detailsAlibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Detailed Comparison
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FAQ
Common questions about Gemini 3 Flash vs Qwen3.5-397B-A17B.