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Head-to-head comparison

GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini vs Qwen3.6 35B A3B

GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini (OpenAI) and Qwen3.6 35B A3B (Qwen) compared on the ModelCap Index, API price, context window, provider availability, weight access and every public benchmark board they share. Figures are the same ones shown on the live rankings; nothing here is a hidden score.

Snapshot as of 3 September 2026

As of 3 September 2026, Qwen3.6 35B A3B holds the stronger ModelCap Index position (#66 vs #69); Qwen3.6 35B A3B is 2.2× cheaper per output token ($0.90/1M vs $2.00/1M); GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini offers the longer context window (400K vs 262K tokens); and Qwen3.6 35B A3B ships open weights.

Which should you choose?

Choose GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini if…

  • you need the longer context window — 400K tokens against 262K.

Choose Qwen3.6 35B A3B if…

  • you want the stronger overall ModelCap Index position — #66 against #69 (41.3 vs 40.2 points).
  • API cost matters — $0.90/1M output tokens against $2.00/1M, about 2.2× cheaper.
  • your workload is prompt-heavy — input tokens cost $0.10/1M against $0.25/1M.
  • you want to self-host: Qwen3.6 35B A3B ships open weights while GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini is api only.
  • you want provider choice — 10 listed API providers against 1.
  • AA Intelligence Index is your yardstick — 32.1 against 31.3.
  • AA τ²-Bench Telecom is your yardstick — 95.3% against 62.9%.
  • AA Humanity's Last Exam is your yardstick — 22.2% against 18.5%.
  • you want the more recently listed model — Qwen3.6 35B A3B was listed 27 April 2026, GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini 13 November 2025.

GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini vs Qwen3.6 35B A3B: specs, pricing and context

Specification comparison of GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini and Qwen3.6 35B A3B
FieldGPT-5.1-Codex-MiniOpenAIQwen3.6 35B A3BQwen
ModelCap Index position#69#66
Index score40.241.3
EvidenceMeasuredMeasured
Input price / 1M tokens$0.25$0.10
Output price / 1M tokens$2.00$0.90
Context window400K tokens262K tokens
Max output tokens128K236K
API providers listed110
Weight accessAPI onlyOpen weights
Input modalitiesImage, TextText, Image, Video
First listed13 November 202527 April 2026
PublisherOpenAIQwen

Evidence: 1 public benchmark observation across 1 board · 1 public benchmark observation across 1 board. Prices are the lowest listed API offer per million tokens observed on the OpenRouter catalogue.

Benchmark scores: GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini vs Qwen3.6 35B A3B

Public benchmark boards where GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini or Qwen3.6 35B A3B has a published result
BoardGPT-5.1-Codex-MiniQwen3.6 35B A3BLeads
AA Intelligence IndexArtificial Analysis31.3intelligence-index32.1intelligence-indexQwen3.6 35B A3B
AA Terminal-Bench 2.1Artificial Analysis—44.9%terminal-bench-2.1Only one result
AA τ²-Bench TelecomArtificial Analysis62.9%tau2-bench-telecom95.3%tau2-bench-telecomQwen3.6 35B A3B
AA Humanity's Last ExamArtificial Analysis18.5%humanitys-last-exam22.2%humanitys-last-examQwen3.6 35B A3B

Scores are the sources' own published figures for each model's best evaluated configuration; ModelCap never re-runs a benchmark.

Want a different pairing? Open the interactive comparison tool to swap either model for any current ranked language model.

GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini vs Qwen3.6 35B A3B: common questions

Is GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini better than Qwen3.6 35B A3B?

Qwen3.6 35B A3B ranks higher on the ModelCap Index as of 3 September 2026: #66 against #69. That is a capability ranking built from public benchmark evidence with published uncertainty; whether it is "better" for you also depends on price, context and where you can run it.

Is GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini cheaper than Qwen3.6 35B A3B?

Qwen3.6 35B A3B is cheaper on output tokens: $0.90/1M against $2.00/1M. Input tokens are $0.25/1M for GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini and $0.10/1M for Qwen3.6 35B A3B. Prices are the lowest listed API offer ModelCap observed, in USD per million tokens.

Which has the bigger context window, GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini or Qwen3.6 35B A3B?

GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini has the larger context window: 400K tokens against 262K.

Which is better for coding, GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini or Qwen3.6 35B A3B?

The two models do not share a coding benchmark board on ModelCap yet, so no head-to-head coding score is published; the ModelCap Index position is the closest overall signal.

Are GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini and Qwen3.6 35B A3B open-weight models?

GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini: API only. Qwen3.6 35B A3B: Open weights. Open weights mean the checkpoint can be downloaded and self-hosted under its licence; API-only models are available solely through hosted endpoints.

Where can I run GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini and Qwen3.6 35B A3B?

ModelCap currently lists 1 API provider for GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini and 10 for Qwen3.6 35B A3B, from the OpenRouter catalogue snapshot the site serves; each model page lists the providers and their prices.

How current is this GPT-5.1-Codex-Mini vs Qwen3.6 35B A3B comparison?

Every figure comes from the sealed ModelCap dataset published 3 September 2026; the page re-renders within a minute of each data refresh, and the ModelCap Index positions are the same ones shown on the live rankings.

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