Magistral Small 2506 vs Qwen3.8 Max
Qwen3.8 Max significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Mistral AI · Alibaba Cloud / Qwen Team · Updated for 2026
Which is better?
Magistral Small 2506 outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Qwen3.8 Max is better at 1 benchmark (GPQA). Qwen3.8 Max significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Based on current benchmark, pricing, and model metadata for 2026.
Choose Magistral Small 2506
- you are already invested in the Mistral AI ecosystem
Choose Qwen3.8 Max
- you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 1 of 1 shared benchmarks
- you want the most recent training data — it shipped Aug 2026
At a glance
The differences that matter most.
Performance Benchmarks
Comparative analysis across standard metrics
Magistral Small 2506 outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Qwen3.8 Max is better at 1 benchmark (GPQA).
Qwen3.8 Max significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.
Arena Performance
Playground indexes and blind preference scores
Model Size
Parameter count comparison
Qwen3.8 Max has 2376.0B more parameters than Magistral Small 2506, making it 9900.0% larger.
Input Capabilities
Supported data types and modalities
Qwen3.8 Max supports multimodal inputs, whereas Magistral Small 2506 does not.
Qwen3.8 Max can handle both text and other forms of data like images, making it suitable for multimodal applications.
Magistral Small 2506
Qwen3.8 Max
License
Usage and distribution terms
Magistral Small 2506 is licensed under Apache 2.0, while Qwen3.8 Max uses Qwen3.8-Max License.
License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.
Apache 2.0
Open weights
Qwen3.8-Max License
Open weights
Release Timeline
When each model was launched
Magistral Small 2506 was released on 2025-06-10, while Qwen3.8 Max was released on 2026-08-02.
Qwen3.8 Max is 14 months newer than Magistral Small 2506.
Jun 10, 2025
1.2 years ago
Aug 2, 2026
3 weeks ago
1.1yr newerKnowledge Cutoff
When training data ends
Magistral Small 2506 has a documented knowledge cutoff of 2025-06-01, while Qwen3.8 Max's cutoff date is not specified.
We can confirm Magistral Small 2506's training data extends to 2025-06-01, but cannot make a direct comparison without Qwen3.8 Max's cutoff date.
Jun 2025
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Outputs Comparison
Judge for yourself.
Run your own prompts against Magistral Small 2506 and Qwen3.8 Max side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.
FAQ
Common questions about Magistral Small 2506 vs Qwen3.8 Max.