Hermes 3 70B vs Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct is 1.9x cheaper per token.
Nous Research · Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team · Updated for 2026
Which is better?
Hermes 3 70B outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct is better at 3 benchmarks (GPQA, MMLU, MMLU-Pro). Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
On price, Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct is roughly 1.9x 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 Hermes 3 70B
- you want predictable pricing at $0.35/M input and $1.40/M output
Choose Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 3 of 3 shared benchmarks
- cost matters — it's about 1.9x cheaper per token
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Sep 2025
At a glance
The differences that matter most.
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
Hermes 3 70B outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct is better at 3 benchmarks (GPQA, MMLU, MMLU-Pro).
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Playground indexes and blind preference scores
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, Hermes 3 70B ($0.35/1M tokens) is 1.7x more expensive than Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct ($0.20/1M tokens).
For output processing, Hermes 3 70B ($1.40/1M tokens) is 2.0x more expensive than Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct ($0.70/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Hermes 3 70B is more expensive than Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Model Size
Parameter count comparison
Hermes 3 70B has 39.0B more parameters than Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct, making it 125.8% larger.
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Both models have the same input context window of 131,072 tokens. Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct can generate longer responses up to 32,768 tokens, while Hermes 3 70B is limited to 16,384 tokens.
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct supports multimodal inputs, whereas Hermes 3 70B does not.
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.
Hermes 3 70B
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct
License
Usage and distribution terms
Both models are licensed under Apache 2.0.
Both models share the same licensing terms, providing consistent usage rights.
Apache 2.0
Open weights
Apache 2.0
Open weights
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
Hermes 3 70B was released on 2024-08-15, while Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct was released on 2025-09-22.
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct is 13 months newer than Hermes 3 70B.
Aug 15, 2024
2.0 years ago
Sep 22, 2025
11 months 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
Hermes 3 70B is available from DeepInfra. Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct is available from Novita, DeepInfra.
Hermes 3 70B
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct
Outputs Comparison
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against Hermes 3 70B and Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
FAQ
Common questions about Hermes 3 70B vs Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Instruct.