Inkling vs LongCat-2.5
LongCat-2.5 leads the LLM Stats Score 49.7 to 36.4. LongCat-2.5 is 3.3x cheaper per token.
Thinking Machines Lab · Meituan · Updated for 2026
Which is better?
LongCat-2.5 leads the overall LLM Stats Score 49.7 to 36.4, ranking #22 overall.
In the 4 individual benchmarks reported for both models, LongCat-2.5 wins 4; this is a narrower head-to-head signal than the composite indexes.
On price, LongCat-2.5 is roughly 3.3x 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
- you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune
Choose LongCat-2.5
- overall performance matters — it scores 49.7 and ranks #22 on LLM Stats
- your work emphasizes reasoning and coding — it leads those capability indexes
- you value its reported benchmark strengths — it wins 4 of 4 exact shared results
- cost matters — it's about 3.3x cheaper per token
- you process long inputs — it offers a 1,048,576 token context window
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Nov 2026
At a glance
The differences that matter most.
Capability indexes
Additional strengths measured across groups of related public benchmarks
Individual benchmarks
16 reported for Inkling · 23 for LongCat-2.5
Inkling outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while LongCat-2.5 is better at 4 benchmarks (CharXiv-R, Humanity's Last Exam (with tools, text-only), MCP Atlas, Terminal-Bench 2.1).
LongCat-2.5 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Human preference
Blind head-to-head votes and playground preference scores
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, Inkling ($0.95/1M tokens) is 3.2x more expensive than LongCat-2.5 ($0.30/1M tokens).
For output processing, Inkling ($4.05/1M tokens) is 3.4x more expensive than LongCat-2.5 ($1.20/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Inkling is more expensive than LongCat-2.5.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Model Size
Parameter count comparison
LongCat-2.5 has 625.0B more parameters than Inkling, making it 64.1% larger.
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
LongCat-2.5 accepts 1,048,576 input tokens compared to Inkling's 524,288 tokens. Inkling can generate longer responses up to 524,288 tokens, while LongCat-2.5 is limited to 131,072 tokens.
Input capabilities
Documented input modalities across available providers
Both Inkling and LongCat-2.5 support multimodal inputs.
They are both capable of processing various types of data, offering versatility in application.
Inkling
LongCat-2.5
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
Inkling was released on 2026-07-21, while LongCat-2.5 was released on 2026-11-01.
LongCat-2.5 is 3 months newer than Inkling.
Jul 21, 2026
3 months ago
Nov 1, 2026
1 weeks ago
3mo newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
Neither model specifies a knowledge cutoff date.
Unable to compare the recency of their training data.
Provider Availability
Inkling is available from DeepInfra. LongCat-2.5 is available from Meituan.
Inkling
LongCat-2.5
Outputs Comparison
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against Inkling and LongCat-2.5 side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
FAQ
Common questions about Inkling vs LongCat-2.5.