Model Comparison
Llama 3.2 90B Instruct vs Qwen3 235B A22BWhich is better in 2026?
Qwen3 235B A22B shows notably better performance in the majority of benchmarks. Qwen3 235B A22B is 3.6x cheaper per token.
Verdict: Llama 3.2 90B Instruct vs Qwen3 235B A22B — which is better?
Llama 3.2 90B Instruct (by Meta) and Qwen3 235B A22B (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.
Llama 3.2 90B Instruct outperforms in 1 benchmarks (MGSM), while Qwen3 235B A22B is better at 3 benchmarks (GPQA, MATH, MMLU). Qwen3 235B A22B shows notably better performance in the majority of benchmarks.
On price, Qwen3 235B A22B is roughly 3.6x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
Choose Llama 3.2 90B Instruct if…
- you want predictable pricing at $0.35/M input and $0.40/M output
Choose Qwen3 235B A22B if…
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 3 of 4 shared benchmarks
- cost matters — it's about 3.6x cheaper per token
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Apr 2025
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
Llama 3.2 90B Instruct outperforms in 1 benchmarks (MGSM), while Qwen3 235B A22B is better at 3 benchmarks (GPQA, MATH, MMLU).
Qwen3 235B A22B shows notably better performance in the majority of benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Human preference votes
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, Llama 3.2 90B Instruct ($0.35/1M tokens) is 3.5x more expensive than Qwen3 235B A22B ($0.10/1M tokens).
For output processing, Llama 3.2 90B Instruct ($0.40/1M tokens) is 4.0x more expensive than Qwen3 235B A22B ($0.10/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Llama 3.2 90B Instruct is more expensive than Qwen3 235B A22B.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Model Size
Parameter count comparison
Qwen3 235B A22B has 145.0B more parameters than Llama 3.2 90B Instruct, making it 161.1% larger.
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Both models have the same input context window of 128,000 tokens. Both models can generate responses up to 128,000 tokens.
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
Llama 3.2 90B Instruct supports multimodal inputs, whereas Qwen3 235B A22B does not.
Llama 3.2 90B Instruct can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.
Llama 3.2 90B Instruct
Qwen3 235B A22B
License
Usage and distribution terms
Llama 3.2 90B Instruct is licensed under Llama 3.2, while Qwen3 235B A22B uses Apache 2.0.
License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.
Llama 3.2
Open weights
Apache 2.0
Open weights
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
Llama 3.2 90B Instruct was released on 2024-09-25, while Qwen3 235B A22B was released on 2025-04-29.
Qwen3 235B A22B is 7 months newer than Llama 3.2 90B Instruct.
Sep 25, 2024
1.8 years ago
Apr 29, 2025
1.2 years ago
7mo newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
Neither model specifies a knowledge cutoff date.
Unable to compare the recency of their training data.
Provider Availability
Llama 3.2 90B Instruct is available from DeepInfra, Bedrock, Fireworks, Together, Hyperbolic. Qwen3 235B A22B is available from Fireworks, DeepInfra, Novita, Together.
Llama 3.2 90B Instruct
Qwen3 235B A22B
Outputs Comparison
Key Takeaways
Qwen3 235B A22B
View detailsAlibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Detailed Comparison
Interactive Arena
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against Llama 3.2 90B Instruct and Qwen3 235B A22B side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
| Feature | | |
|---|
FAQ
Common questions about Llama 3.2 90B Instruct vs Qwen3 235B A22B.