Model Comparison
GPT-3.5 Turbo vs Qwen3.8 MaxWhich is better in 2026?
Qwen3.8 Max significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Verdict: GPT-3.5 Turbo vs Qwen3.8 Max — which is better?
GPT-3.5 Turbo (by OpenAI) and Qwen3.8 Max (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.
GPT-3.5 Turbo outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Qwen3.8 Max is better at 1 benchmark (GPQA). Qwen3.8 Max significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Choose GPT-3.5 Turbo if…
- you want predictable pricing at $0.50/M input and $1.50/M output
Choose Qwen3.8 Max if…
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 1 of 1 shared benchmarks
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Aug 2026
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
GPT-3.5 Turbo outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Qwen3.8 Max is better at 1 benchmark (GPQA).
Qwen3.8 Max significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Human preference votes
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Only GPT-3.5 Turbo specifies input context (16,385 tokens). Only GPT-3.5 Turbo specifies output context (4,096 tokens).
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
Qwen3.8 Max supports multimodal inputs, whereas GPT-3.5 Turbo does not.
Qwen3.8 Max can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.
GPT-3.5 Turbo
Qwen3.8 Max
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 Qwen3.8 Max was released on 2026-08-02.
Qwen3.8 Max is 41 months newer than GPT-3.5 Turbo.
Mar 21, 2023
3.4 years ago
Aug 2, 2026
1 days ago
3.4yr newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
GPT-3.5 Turbo has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2021-09-30, while Qwen3.8 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 Qwen3.8 Max's cutoff date.
Sep 2021
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Outputs Comparison
Key Takeaways
Qwen3.8 Max
View detailsAlibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Detailed Comparison
Interactive Arena
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against GPT-3.5 Turbo and Qwen3.8 Max side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
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FAQ
Common questions about GPT-3.5 Turbo vs Qwen3.8 Max.