Grok-2 vs Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking leads the LLM Stats Score 18.2 to 11.4. Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking is 10.1x cheaper per token.
xAI · Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team · Updated for 2026
Which is better?
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking leads the overall LLM Stats Score 18.2 to 11.4, ranking #219 overall.
In the 3 individual benchmarks reported for both models, Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking wins 3; this is a narrower head-to-head signal than the composite indexes.
On price, Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking is roughly 10.1x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking also accepts a larger context window (131,072 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 Grok-2
- you want predictable pricing at $2.00/M input and $10.00/M output
Choose Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking
- overall performance matters — it scores 18.2 and ranks #219 on LLM Stats
- your work emphasizes reasoning — it leads those capability indexes
- you value its reported benchmark strengths — it wins 3 of 3 exact shared results
- cost matters — it's about 10.1x cheaper per token
- you process long inputs — it offers a 131,072 token context window
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Sep 2025
- you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune
At a glance
The differences that matter most.
Capability indexes
Additional strengths measured across groups of related public benchmarks
Individual benchmarks
8 reported for Grok-2 · 50 for Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking
Grok-2 outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking is better at 3 benchmarks (GPQA, MMLU, MMLU-Pro).
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Human preference
Blind head-to-head votes and playground preference scores
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, Grok-2 ($2.00/1M tokens) is 10.0x more expensive than Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking ($0.20/1M tokens).
For output processing, Grok-2 ($10.00/1M tokens) is 10.1x more expensive than Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking ($0.99/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Grok-2 is more expensive than Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking accepts 131,072 input tokens compared to Grok-2's 128,000 tokens. Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking can generate longer responses up to 32,768 tokens, while Grok-2 is limited to 8,000 tokens.
Input capabilities
Documented input modalities across available providers
Both Grok-2 and Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking support multimodal inputs.
They are both capable of processing various types of data, offering versatility in application.
Grok-2
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking
License
Usage and distribution terms
Grok-2 is licensed under a proprietary license, while Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking 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
Grok-2 was released on 2024-08-13, while Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking was released on 2025-09-22.
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking is 14 months newer than Grok-2.
Aug 13, 2024
2.1 years ago
Sep 22, 2025
1.0 years ago
1.1yr newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
Neither model specifies a knowledge cutoff date.
Unable to compare the recency of their training data.
Provider Availability
Grok-2 is available from xAI. Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking is available from Novita, DeepInfra.
Grok-2
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking
Outputs Comparison
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against Grok-2 and Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
FAQ
Common questions about Grok-2 vs Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking.