Model Comparison
Jamba 1.5 Large vs Qwen3 30B A3BWhich is better in 2026?
Qwen3 30B A3B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Qwen3 30B A3B is 23.3x cheaper per token.
Verdict: Jamba 1.5 Large vs Qwen3 30B A3B — which is better?
Jamba 1.5 Large (by AI21 Labs) and Qwen3 30B A3B (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.
Jamba 1.5 Large outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Qwen3 30B A3B is better at 2 benchmarks (Arena Hard, GPQA). Qwen3 30B A3B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
On price, Qwen3 30B A3B is roughly 23.3x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
Jamba 1.5 Large also accepts a larger context window (256,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.
Choose Jamba 1.5 Large if…
- you process long inputs — it offers a 256,000 token context window
Choose Qwen3 30B A3B if…
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 2 of 2 shared benchmarks
- cost matters — it's about 23.3x cheaper per token
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Apr 2025
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
Jamba 1.5 Large outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Qwen3 30B A3B is better at 2 benchmarks (Arena Hard, GPQA).
Qwen3 30B A3B significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Human preference votes
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, Jamba 1.5 Large ($2.00/1M tokens) is 20.0x more expensive than Qwen3 30B A3B ($0.10/1M tokens).
For output processing, Jamba 1.5 Large ($8.00/1M tokens) is 26.7x more expensive than Qwen3 30B A3B ($0.30/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Jamba 1.5 Large is more expensive than Qwen3 30B A3B.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Model Size
Parameter count comparison
Jamba 1.5 Large has 367.5B more parameters than Qwen3 30B A3B, making it 1204.9% larger.
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Jamba 1.5 Large accepts 256,000 input tokens compared to Qwen3 30B A3B's 128,000 tokens. Jamba 1.5 Large can generate longer responses up to 256,000 tokens, while Qwen3 30B A3B is limited to 128,000 tokens.
License
Usage and distribution terms
Jamba 1.5 Large is licensed under Jamba Open Model License, while Qwen3 30B A3B uses Apache 2.0.
License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.
Jamba Open Model License
Open weights
Apache 2.0
Open weights
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
Jamba 1.5 Large was released on 2024-08-22, while Qwen3 30B A3B was released on 2025-04-29.
Qwen3 30B A3B is 8 months newer than Jamba 1.5 Large.
Aug 22, 2024
1.8 years ago
Apr 29, 2025
1.1 years ago
8mo newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
Jamba 1.5 Large has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2024-03-05, while Qwen3 30B A3B's cutoff date is not specified.
We can confirm Jamba 1.5 Large's training data extends to 2024-03-05, but cannot make a direct comparison without Qwen3 30B A3B's cutoff date.
Mar 2024
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Provider Availability
Jamba 1.5 Large is available from Bedrock, Google. Qwen3 30B A3B is available from DeepInfra, Novita, Fireworks.
Jamba 1.5 Large
Qwen3 30B A3B
Outputs Comparison
Key Takeaways
Jamba 1.5 Large
View detailsAI21 Labs
Qwen3 30B A3B
View detailsAlibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Detailed Comparison
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FAQ
Common questions about Jamba 1.5 Large vs Qwen3 30B A3B.