Model Comparison

Grok-4.1 Thinking vs Qwen3 32BWhich is better in 2026?

Comparing Grok-4.1 Thinking and Qwen3 32B across benchmarks, pricing, and capabilities.

Verdict: Grok-4.1 Thinking vs Qwen3 32B — which is better?

Grok-4.1 Thinking (by xAI) and Qwen3 32B (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.

On price, Qwen3 32B is roughly 40.0x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.

Grok-4.1 Thinking also accepts a larger context window (256,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.

Choose Grok-4.1 Thinking if…

  • you process long inputs — it offers a 256,000 token context window
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Nov 2025

Choose Qwen3 32B if…

  • cost matters — it's about 40.0x cheaper per token
  • you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune
Want to compare interactively?Try the playground

Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

No common benchmarks found

Grok-4.1 Thinking and Qwen3 32Bdon't have any common benchmark datasets to compare. They may have been evaluated on different testing suites.

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Pricing Analysis

Price comparison per million tokens

Qwen3 32B costs less

For input processing, Grok-4.1 Thinking ($3.00/1M tokens) is 30.0x more expensive than Qwen3 32B ($0.10/1M tokens).

For output processing, Grok-4.1 Thinking ($15.00/1M tokens) is 50.0x more expensive than Qwen3 32B ($0.30/1M tokens).

In conclusion, Grok-4.1 Thinking is more expensive than Qwen3 32B.*

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

Lowest available price from all providers
Wed Jun 24 2026 • llm-stats.com
xAI
Grok-4.1 Thinking
Input tokens$3.00
Output tokens$15.00
Best providerxAI
Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Qwen3 32B
Input tokens$0.10
Output tokens$0.30
Best providerDeepinfra
Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue→

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Grok-4.1 Thinking accepts 256,000 input tokens compared to Qwen3 32B's 128,000 tokens. Qwen3 32B can generate longer responses up to 128,000 tokens, while Grok-4.1 Thinking is limited to 8,000 tokens.

xAI
Grok-4.1 Thinking
Input256,000 tokens
Output8,000 tokens
Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Qwen3 32B
Input128,000 tokens
Output128,000 tokens
Wed Jun 24 2026 • llm-stats.com

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Grok-4.1 Thinking supports multimodal inputs, whereas Qwen3 32B does not.

Grok-4.1 Thinking can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.

Grok-4.1 Thinking

Text
Images
Audio
Video

Qwen3 32B

Text
Images
Audio
Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

Grok-4.1 Thinking is licensed under a proprietary license, while Qwen3 32B uses Apache 2.0.

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

Grok-4.1 Thinking

Proprietary

Closed source

Qwen3 32B

Apache 2.0

Open weights

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Grok-4.1 Thinking was released on 2025-11-17, while Qwen3 32B was released on 2025-04-29.

Grok-4.1 Thinking is 7 months newer than Qwen3 32B.

Grok-4.1 Thinking

Nov 17, 2025

7 months ago

6mo newer
Qwen3 32B

Apr 29, 2025

1.2 years ago

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

Neither model specifies a knowledge cutoff date.

Unable to compare the recency of their training data.

No cutoff dates available

Provider Availability

Grok-4.1 Thinking is available from xAI. Qwen3 32B is available from DeepInfra, Novita, Sambanova.

Grok-4.1 Thinking

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

Qwen3 32B

deepinfra logo
Deepinfra
Input Price:Input: $0.10/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.30/1M
novita logo
Novita
Input Price:Input: $0.10/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.44/1M
sambanova logo
Sambanova
Input Price:Input: $0.40/1MOutput Price:Output: $0.80/1M
* Prices shown are per million tokens

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue discussion→

Key Takeaways

xAI
Larger context window (256,000 tokens)
Supports multimodal inputs
Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team

Qwen3 32B

View details

Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team

Less expensive input tokens
Less expensive output tokens
Has open weights

Detailed Comparison

AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
xAI
Grok-4.1 Thinking
Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Qwen3 32B

FAQ

Common questions about Grok-4.1 Thinking vs Qwen3 32B.

Which is better, Grok-4.1 Thinking or Qwen3 32B?

Grok-4.1 Thinking (xAI) and Qwen3 32B (Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team) each have strengths in different areas. Compare their benchmark scores, pricing, context windows, and capabilities above to determine which fits your needs.

How does Grok-4.1 Thinking compare to Qwen3 32B in benchmarks?

Grok-4.1 Thinking scores Creative Writing v3: 86.1%, WMDP: 84.0%, EQ-Bench: 79.3%, ProtocolQA: 79.0%, LMArena Text Leaderboard: 74.2%. Qwen3 32B scores Arena Hard: 93.8%, AIME 2024: 81.4%, LiveBench: 74.9%, MultiLF: 73.0%, AIME 2025: 72.9%.

Is Grok-4.1 Thinking cheaper than Qwen3 32B?

Qwen3 32B is 30.0x cheaper for input tokens. Grok-4.1 Thinking costs $3.00/M input and $15.00/M output via xai. Qwen3 32B costs $0.10/M input and $0.30/M output via deepinfra.

What are the context window sizes for Grok-4.1 Thinking and Qwen3 32B?

Grok-4.1 Thinking supports 256K tokens and Qwen3 32B 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-4.1 Thinking and Qwen3 32B?

Key differences include context window (256K vs 128K), 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-4.1 Thinking and Qwen3 32B?

Grok-4.1 Thinking is developed by xAI and Qwen3 32B is developed by Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team.

Related comparisons