Inkling 2 Small vs LongCat-2.5
Inkling 2 Small and LongCat-2.5 are closely matched at 47.2 and 49.9 on the LLM Stats Score. Inkling 2 Small is 1.1x cheaper per token.
Thinking Machines Lab · Meituan · Updated for 2026
Which is better?
Inkling 2 Small and LongCat-2.5 are closely matched on the overall LLM Stats Score at 47.2 and 49.9.
In the 3 individual benchmarks reported for both models, LongCat-2.5 wins 2; this is a narrower head-to-head signal than the composite indexes.
On price, Inkling 2 Small is roughly 1.1x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
LongCat-2.5 also accepts a larger context window (1,048,576 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 Inkling 2 Small
- cost matters — it's about 1.1x cheaper per token
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Nov 2026
Choose LongCat-2.5
- you value its reported benchmark strengths — it wins 2 of 3 exact shared results
- you process long inputs — it offers a 1,048,576 token context window
At a glance
The differences that matter most.
Capability indexes
Additional strengths measured across groups of related public benchmarks
Individual benchmarks
11 reported for Inkling 2 Small · 23 for LongCat-2.5
Inkling 2 Small outperforms in 1 benchmarks (MCP Atlas), while LongCat-2.5 is better at 2 benchmarks (BrowseComp, CharXiv-R).
LongCat-2.5 shows notably better performance in the majority of benchmarks.
Human preference
Blind head-to-head votes and playground preference scores
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, Inkling 2 Small ($0.30/1M tokens) costs the same as LongCat-2.5 ($0.30/1M tokens).
For output processing, Inkling 2 Small ($1.00/1M tokens) is 1.2x cheaper than LongCat-2.5 ($1.20/1M tokens).
In conclusion, LongCat-2.5 is more expensive than Inkling 2 Small.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Model Size
Parameter count comparison
LongCat-2.5 has 1006.0B more parameters than Inkling 2 Small, making it 169.4% larger.
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
LongCat-2.5 accepts 1,048,576 input tokens compared to Inkling 2 Small's 256,000 tokens. Only LongCat-2.5 specifies output context (131,072 tokens).
Input capabilities
Documented input modalities across available providers
Both Inkling 2 Small and LongCat-2.5 support multimodal inputs.
They are both capable of processing various types of data, offering versatility in application.
Inkling 2 Small
LongCat-2.5
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
Inkling 2 Small was released on 2026-11-05, while LongCat-2.5 was released on 2026-11-01.
Inkling 2 Small is 0 month newer than LongCat-2.5.
Nov 5, 2026
3 days ago
4d newerNov 1, 2026
1 weeks ago
Knowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
Neither model specifies a knowledge cutoff date.
Unable to compare the recency of their training data.
Provider Availability
Inkling 2 Small is available from Thinking Machines Lab. LongCat-2.5 is available from Meituan.
Inkling 2 Small
LongCat-2.5
Outputs Comparison
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against Inkling 2 Small and LongCat-2.5 side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
FAQ
Common questions about Inkling 2 Small vs LongCat-2.5.