Model Comparison

Grok-3 vs Qwen3 235B A22B

Grok-3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Qwen3 235B A22B is 60.0x cheaper per token.

Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

4 benchmarks

Grok-3 outperforms in 4 benchmarks (AIME 2024, AIME 2025, GPQA, LiveCodeBench), while Qwen3 235B A22B is better at 0 benchmarks.

Grok-3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Thu May 14 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Pricing Analysis

Price comparison per million tokens

Qwen3 235B A22B costs less

For input processing, Grok-3 ($3.00/1M tokens) is 30.0x more expensive than Qwen3 235B A22B ($0.10/1M tokens).

For output processing, Grok-3 ($15.00/1M tokens) is 150.0x more expensive than Qwen3 235B A22B ($0.10/1M tokens).

In conclusion, Grok-3 is more expensive than Qwen3 235B A22B.*

* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens

Lowest available price from all providers
Thu May 14 2026 • llm-stats.com
xAI
Grok-3
Input tokens$3.00
Output tokens$15.00
Best providerxAI
Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Qwen3 235B A22B
Input tokens$0.10
Output tokens$0.10
Best providerFireworks
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Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Both models have the same input context window of 128,000 tokens. Qwen3 235B A22B can generate longer responses up to 128,000 tokens, while Grok-3 is limited to 8,000 tokens.

xAI
Grok-3
Input128,000 tokens
Output8,000 tokens
Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Qwen3 235B A22B
Input128,000 tokens
Output128,000 tokens
Thu May 14 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Grok-3 supports multimodal inputs, whereas Qwen3 235B A22B does not.

Grok-3 can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.

Grok-3

Text
Images
Audio
Video

Qwen3 235B A22B

Text
Images
Audio
Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

Grok-3 is licensed under a proprietary license, while Qwen3 235B A22B uses Apache 2.0.

License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.

Grok-3

Proprietary

Closed source

Qwen3 235B A22B

Apache 2.0

Open weights

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Grok-3 was released on 2025-02-17, while Qwen3 235B A22B was released on 2025-04-29.

Qwen3 235B A22B is 2 months newer than Grok-3.

Grok-3

Feb 17, 2025

1.2 years ago

Qwen3 235B A22B

Apr 29, 2025

1.0 years ago

2mo newer

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

Grok-3 has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2024-11-17, while Qwen3 235B A22B's cutoff date is not specified.

We can confirm Grok-3's training data extends to 2024-11-17, but cannot make a direct comparison without Qwen3 235B A22B's cutoff date.

Grok-3

Nov 2024

Qwen3 235B A22B

Provider Availability

Grok-3 is available from xAI. Qwen3 235B A22B is available from Fireworks, DeepInfra, Novita, Together.

Grok-3

xai logo
xAI
Input Price:Input: $3.00/1MOutput Price:Output: $15.00/1M

Qwen3 235B A22B

fireworks logo
Fireworks
Input Price:Input: $0.10/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.10/1M
deepinfra logo
Deepinfra
Input Price:Input: $0.20/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.60/1M
novita logo
Novita
Input Price:Input: $0.20/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.80/1M
together logo
Together
Input Price:Input: $0.20/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.60/1M
* Prices shown are per million tokens

Outputs Comparison

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Key Takeaways

Supports multimodal inputs
Higher AIME 2024 score (93.3% vs 85.7%)
Higher AIME 2025 score (93.3% vs 81.5%)
Higher GPQA score (84.6% vs 47.5%)
Higher LiveCodeBench score (79.4% vs 70.7%)
Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team

Qwen3 235B A22B

View details

Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team

Less expensive input tokens
Less expensive output tokens
Has open weights
xAIGrok-3
Alibaba Cloud / Qwen TeamQwen3 235B A22B

Detailed Comparison

AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
xAI
Grok-3
Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Qwen3 235B A22B

FAQ

Common questions about Grok-3 vs Qwen3 235B A22B.

Which is better, Grok-3 or Qwen3 235B A22B?

Grok-3 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Grok-3 is made by xAI and Qwen3 235B A22B is made by Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does Grok-3 compare to Qwen3 235B A22B in benchmarks?

Grok-3 scores AIME 2024: 93.3%, AIME 2025: 93.3%, GPQA: 84.6%, LiveCodeBench: 79.4%, MMMU: 78.0%. Qwen3 235B A22B scores Arena Hard: 95.6%, GSM8k: 94.4%, BBH: 88.9%, MMLU: 87.8%, MMLU-Redux: 87.4%.

Is Grok-3 cheaper than Qwen3 235B A22B?

Qwen3 235B A22B is 30.0x cheaper for input tokens. Grok-3 costs $3.00/M input and $15.00/M output via xai. Qwen3 235B A22B costs $0.10/M input and $0.10/M output via fireworks.

What are the context window sizes for Grok-3 and Qwen3 235B A22B?

Grok-3 supports 128K tokens and Qwen3 235B A22B supports 128K tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.

What are the main differences between Grok-3 and Qwen3 235B A22B?

Key differences include input pricing ($3.00 vs $0.10/M), multimodal support (yes vs no), licensing (Proprietary vs Apache 2.0). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes Grok-3 and Qwen3 235B A22B?

Grok-3 is developed by xAI and Qwen3 235B A22B is developed by Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team.