Model Comparison

Kimi-k1.5 vs Qwen2 72B InstructWhich is better in 2026?

Kimi-k1.5 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Verdict: Kimi-k1.5 vs Qwen2 72B Instruct — which is better?

Kimi-k1.5 (by Moonshot AI) and Qwen2 72B Instruct (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.

Kimi-k1.5 outperforms in 2 benchmarks (C-Eval, MMLU), while Qwen2 72B Instruct is better at 0 benchmarks. Kimi-k1.5 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Choose Kimi-k1.5 if…

  • you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 2 of 2 shared benchmarks
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Jan 2025

Choose Qwen2 72B Instruct if…

  • you need open weights you can self-host or fine-tune

Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

2 benchmarks

Kimi-k1.5 outperforms in 2 benchmarks (C-Eval, MMLU), while Qwen2 72B Instruct is better at 0 benchmarks.

Kimi-k1.5 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Sat Jun 27 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Input Capabilities

Supported data types and modalities

Kimi-k1.5 supports multimodal inputs, whereas Qwen2 72B Instruct does not.

Kimi-k1.5 can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.

Kimi-k1.5

Text
Images
Audio
Video

Qwen2 72B Instruct

Text
Images
Audio
Video

License

Usage and distribution terms

Kimi-k1.5 is licensed under a proprietary license, while Qwen2 72B Instruct uses tongyi-qianwen.

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

Kimi-k1.5

Proprietary

Closed source

Qwen2 72B Instruct

tongyi-qianwen

Open weights

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Kimi-k1.5 was released on 2025-01-20, while Qwen2 72B Instruct was released on 2024-07-23.

Kimi-k1.5 is 6 months newer than Qwen2 72B Instruct.

Kimi-k1.5

Jan 20, 2025

1.4 years ago

6mo newer
Qwen2 72B Instruct

Jul 23, 2024

1.9 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

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue discussion→

Key Takeaways

Moonshot AI
Supports multimodal inputs
Higher C-Eval score (88.3% vs 83.8%)
Higher MMLU score (87.4% vs 82.3%)
Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team

Qwen2 72B Instruct

View details

Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team

Has open weights

Detailed Comparison

Interactive Arena

Judge for yourself.

Run your own prompts against Kimi-k1.5 and Qwen2 72B Instruct side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.

Kimi-k1.5
✓ Preferred
Qwen2 72B Instruct
Open in Playground
AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
Moonshot AI
Kimi-k1.5
Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Qwen2 72B Instruct

FAQ

Common questions about Kimi-k1.5 vs Qwen2 72B Instruct.

Which is better, Kimi-k1.5 or Qwen2 72B Instruct?

Kimi-k1.5 significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Kimi-k1.5 is made by Moonshot AI and Qwen2 72B Instruct is made by Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does Kimi-k1.5 compare to Qwen2 72B Instruct in benchmarks?

Kimi-k1.5 scores MATH-500: 96.2%, CLUEWSC: 91.4%, C-Eval: 88.3%, MMLU: 87.4%, IFEval: 87.2%. Qwen2 72B Instruct scores GSM8k: 91.1%, CMMLU: 90.1%, HellaSwag: 87.6%, HumanEval: 86.0%, Winogrande: 85.1%.

What are the main differences between Kimi-k1.5 and Qwen2 72B Instruct?

Key differences include multimodal support (yes vs no), licensing (Proprietary vs tongyi-qianwen). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes Kimi-k1.5 and Qwen2 72B Instruct?

Kimi-k1.5 is developed by Moonshot AI and Qwen2 72B Instruct is developed by Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team.

Related comparisons