Model Comparison
GPT-3.5 Turbo vs Qwen3 Max
Qwen3 Max significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. GPT-3.5 Turbo is 2.2x cheaper per token.
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
GPT-3.5 Turbo outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Qwen3 Max is better at 1 benchmark (GPQA).
Qwen3 Max significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Human preference votes
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, GPT-3.5 Turbo ($0.50/1M tokens) costs the same as Qwen3 Max ($0.50/1M tokens).
For output processing, GPT-3.5 Turbo ($1.50/1M tokens) is 3.3x cheaper than Qwen3 Max ($5.00/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Qwen3 Max is more expensive than GPT-3.5 Turbo.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Qwen3 Max accepts 256,000 input tokens compared to GPT-3.5 Turbo's 16,385 tokens. Qwen3 Max can generate longer responses up to 131,072 tokens, while GPT-3.5 Turbo is limited to 4,096 tokens.
License
Usage and distribution terms
Both models are licensed under proprietary licenses.
Both models have usage restrictions defined by their respective organizations.
Proprietary
Closed source
Proprietary
Closed source
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
GPT-3.5 Turbo was released on 2023-03-21, while Qwen3 Max was released on 2025-12-15.
Qwen3 Max is 33 months newer than GPT-3.5 Turbo.
Mar 21, 2023
3.1 years ago
Dec 15, 2025
4 months ago
2.7yr newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
GPT-3.5 Turbo has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2021-09-30, while Qwen3 Max's cutoff date is not specified.
We can confirm GPT-3.5 Turbo's training data extends to 2021-09-30, but cannot make a direct comparison without Qwen3 Max's cutoff date.
Sep 2021
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Provider Availability
GPT-3.5 Turbo is available from Azure, OpenAI. Qwen3 Max is available from Novita.
GPT-3.5 Turbo
Qwen3 Max
Outputs Comparison
Key Takeaways
Qwen3 Max
View detailsAlibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Detailed Comparison
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FAQ
Common questions about GPT-3.5 Turbo vs Qwen3 Max.