Model Comparison
Llama 4 Scout vs Qwen3 VL 30B A3B ThinkingWhich is better in 2026?
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Llama 4 Scout is 2.9x cheaper per token.
Verdict: Llama 4 Scout vs Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking — which is better?
Llama 4 Scout (by Meta) and Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking (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 4 Scout outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking is better at 3 benchmarks (GPQA, MMLU, MMLU-Pro). Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
On price, Llama 4 Scout is roughly 2.9x cheaper per token on a blended 3:1 input/output basis, which adds up quickly at production volume.
Llama 4 Scout also accepts a larger context window (10,000,000 input tokens), making it the stronger choice for long documents and large codebases.
Choose Llama 4 Scout if…
- cost matters — it's about 2.9x cheaper per token
- you process long inputs — it offers a 10,000,000 token context window
Choose Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking if…
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 3 of 3 shared benchmarks
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Sep 2025
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
Llama 4 Scout outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking is better at 3 benchmarks (GPQA, MMLU, MMLU-Pro).
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Human preference votes
Pricing Analysis
Price comparison per million tokens
For input processing, Llama 4 Scout ($0.08/1M tokens) is 2.5x cheaper than Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking ($0.20/1M tokens).
For output processing, Llama 4 Scout ($0.30/1M tokens) is 3.3x cheaper than Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking ($0.99/1M tokens).
In conclusion, Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking is more expensive than Llama 4 Scout.*
* Using a 3:1 ratio of input to output tokens
Model Size
Parameter count comparison
Llama 4 Scout has 78.0B more parameters than Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking, making it 251.6% larger.
Context Window
Maximum input and output token capacity
Llama 4 Scout accepts 10,000,000 input tokens compared to Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking's 131,072 tokens. Llama 4 Scout can generate longer responses up to 10,000,000 tokens, while Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking is limited to 32,768 tokens.
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
Both Llama 4 Scout and Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking support multimodal inputs.
They are both capable of processing various types of data, offering versatility in application.
Llama 4 Scout
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking
License
Usage and distribution terms
Llama 4 Scout is licensed under Llama 4 Community License Agreement, while Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking uses Apache 2.0.
License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.
Llama 4 Community License Agreement
Open weights
Apache 2.0
Open weights
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
Llama 4 Scout was released on 2025-04-05, while Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking was released on 2025-09-22.
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking is 6 months newer than Llama 4 Scout.
Apr 5, 2025
1.3 years ago
Sep 22, 2025
9 months ago
5mo 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 4 Scout is available from DeepInfra, Lambda, Novita, Groq, Fireworks, Together. Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking is available from Novita, DeepInfra.
Llama 4 Scout
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking
Outputs Comparison
Key Takeaways
Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking
View detailsAlibaba Cloud / Qwen Team
Detailed Comparison
Interactive Arena
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against Llama 4 Scout and Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
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FAQ
Common questions about Llama 4 Scout vs Qwen3 VL 30B A3B Thinking.