Model Comparison
GLM-4.5 vs GPT-5 miniWhich is better in 2026?
GPT-5 mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. GPT-5 mini is 1.0x cheaper per token.
Verdict: GLM-4.5 vs GPT-5 mini — which is better?
GLM-4.5 (by Zhipu AI) and GPT-5 mini (by OpenAI) 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.
GLM-4.5 outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while GPT-5 mini is better at 2 benchmarks (GPQA, Humanity's Last Exam). GPT-5 mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
GPT-5 mini also accepts a larger context window (400,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.
Choose GLM-4.5 if…
- you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune
Choose GPT-5 mini if…
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 2 of 2 shared benchmarks
- you process long inputs — it offers a 400,000 token context window
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Aug 2025
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
GLM-4.5 outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while GPT-5 mini is better at 2 benchmarks (GPQA, Humanity's Last Exam).
GPT-5 mini significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Human preference votes
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, GLM-4.5 ($0.40/1M tokens) is 1.6x more expensive than GPT-5 mini ($0.25/1M tokens).
For output processing, GLM-4.5 ($1.60/1M tokens) is 1.3x cheaper than GPT-5 mini ($2.00/1M tokens).
In conclusion, GLM-4.5 is more expensive than GPT-5 mini.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
GPT-5 mini accepts 400,000 input tokens compared to GLM-4.5's 131,072 tokens. GLM-4.5 can generate longer responses up to 131,072 tokens, while GPT-5 mini is limited to 128,000 tokens.
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
GPT-5 mini supports multimodal inputs, whereas GLM-4.5 does not.
GPT-5 mini can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.
GLM-4.5
GPT-5 mini
License
Usage and distribution terms
GLM-4.5 is licensed under MIT, while GPT-5 mini uses a proprietary license.
License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.
MIT
Open weights
Proprietary
Closed source
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
GLM-4.5 was released on 2025-07-28, while GPT-5 mini was released on 2025-08-07.
GPT-5 mini is 0 month newer than GLM-4.5.
Jul 28, 2025
12 months ago
Aug 7, 2025
11 months ago
1w newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
GPT-5 mini has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2024-05-30, while GLM-4.5's cutoff date is not specified.
We can confirm GPT-5 mini's training data extends to 2024-05-30, but cannot make a direct comparison without GLM-4.5's cutoff date.
—
May 2024
Provider Availability
GLM-4.5 is available from DeepInfra, Fireworks, Novita. GPT-5 mini is available from OpenAI.
GLM-4.5
GPT-5 mini
Outputs Comparison
Key Takeaways
GLM-4.5
View detailsZhipu AI
GPT-5 mini
View detailsOpenAI
Detailed Comparison
Interactive Arena
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against GLM-4.5 and GPT-5 mini side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
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FAQ
Common questions about GLM-4.5 vs GPT-5 mini.