Grok-4 vs Qwen3 Max
Grok-4 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Qwen3 Max is 3.7x cheaper per token.
xAI · Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team · Updated for 2026
Which is better?
Grok-4 outperforms in 2 benchmarks (AIME 2025, GPQA), while Qwen3 Max is better at 0 benchmarks. Grok-4 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
On price, Qwen3 Max is roughly 3.7x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
Based on current benchmark, pricing, and model metadata for 2026.
Choose Grok-4
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 2 of 2 shared benchmarks
Choose Qwen3 Max
- cost matters — it's about 3.7x cheaper per token
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Dec 2025
At a glance
The differences that matter most.
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
Grok-4 outperforms in 2 benchmarks (AIME 2025, GPQA), while Qwen3 Max is better at 0 benchmarks.
Grok-4 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Playground indexes and blind preference scores
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, Grok-4 ($3.00/1M tokens) is 6.0x more expensive than Qwen3 Max ($0.50/1M tokens).
For output processing, Grok-4 ($15.00/1M tokens) is 3.0x more expensive than Qwen3 Max ($5.00/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Grok-4 is more expensive than Qwen3 Max.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Both models have the same input context window of 256,000 tokens. Qwen3 Max can generate longer responses up to 131,072 tokens, while Grok-4 is limited to 8,000 tokens.
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
Grok-4 supports multimodal inputs, whereas Qwen3 Max does not.
Grok-4 can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.
Grok-4
Qwen3 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
Grok-4 was released on 2025-07-09, while Qwen3 Max was released on 2025-12-15.
Qwen3 Max is 5 months newer than Grok-4.
Jul 9, 2025
1.1 years ago
Dec 15, 2025
8 months ago
5mo newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
Grok-4 has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2024-12-31, while Qwen3 Max's cutoff date is not specified.
We can confirm Grok-4's training data extends to 2024-12-31, but cannot make a direct comparison without Qwen3 Max's cutoff date.
Dec 2024
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Provider Availability
Grok-4 is available from xAI. Qwen3 Max is available from Novita.
Grok-4
Qwen3 Max
Outputs Comparison
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against Grok-4 and Qwen3 Max side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
FAQ
Common questions about Grok-4 vs Qwen3 Max.