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Head-to-head comparison

Laguna S 2.1 vs Qwen3 235B A22B

Laguna S 2.1 (Poolside) and Qwen3 235B A22B (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, Laguna S 2.1 holds the stronger ModelCap Index position (#68 vs #70); Laguna S 2.1 is 10.1× cheaper per output token ($0.18/1M vs $1.82/1M); Laguna S 2.1 offers the longer context window (1M vs 131K tokens); and Qwen3 235B A22B ships open weights.

Which should you choose?

Choose Laguna S 2.1 if…

  • you want the stronger overall ModelCap Index position — #68 against #70 (40.3 vs 39.6 points).
  • API cost matters — $0.18/1M output tokens against $1.82/1M, about 10.1× cheaper.
  • your workload is prompt-heavy — input tokens cost $0.09/1M against $0.455/1M.
  • you need the longer context window — 1M tokens against 131K.
  • you want the more recently listed model — Laguna S 2.1 was listed 21 July 2026, Qwen3 235B A22B 28 April 2025.

Choose Qwen3 235B A22B if…

  • you want to self-host: Qwen3 235B A22B ships open weights while Laguna S 2.1 is restricted license.

Laguna S 2.1 vs Qwen3 235B A22B: specs, pricing and context

Specification comparison of Laguna S 2.1 and Qwen3 235B A22B
FieldLaguna S 2.1PoolsideQwen3 235B A22BQwen
ModelCap Index position#68#70
Index score40.339.6
EvidenceEstimatedMeasured
Input price / 1M tokens$0.09$0.455
Output price / 1M tokens$0.18$1.82
Context window1M tokens131K tokens
Max output tokens131K8K
API providers listed11
Weight accessRestricted licenseOpen weights
Input modalitiesTextText
First listed21 July 202628 April 2025
PublisherPoolsideQwen

Evidence: placed against measured peers on publisher-reported benchmarks, discounted for self-report optimism · 2 public benchmark observations across 2 boards. Prices are the lowest listed API offer per million tokens observed on the OpenRouter catalogue.

Benchmark scores: Laguna S 2.1 vs Qwen3 235B A22B

Public benchmark boards where Laguna S 2.1 or Qwen3 235B A22B has a published result
BoardLaguna S 2.1Qwen3 235B A22BLeads
Arena codingArena (LMArena)—14451438–1453No thinkingOnly one result

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.

Laguna S 2.1 vs Qwen3 235B A22B: common questions

Is Laguna S 2.1 better than Qwen3 235B A22B?

Laguna S 2.1 ranks higher on the ModelCap Index as of 3 September 2026: #68 against #70. 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 Laguna S 2.1 cheaper than Qwen3 235B A22B?

Laguna S 2.1 is cheaper on output tokens: $0.18/1M against $1.82/1M. Input tokens are $0.09/1M for Laguna S 2.1 and $0.455/1M for Qwen3 235B A22B. Prices are the lowest listed API offer ModelCap observed, in USD per million tokens.

Which has the bigger context window, Laguna S 2.1 or Qwen3 235B A22B?

Laguna S 2.1 has the larger context window: 1M tokens against 131K.

Which is better for coding, Laguna S 2.1 or Qwen3 235B A22B?

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 Laguna S 2.1 and Qwen3 235B A22B open-weight models?

Laguna S 2.1: Restricted license. Qwen3 235B A22B: 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 Laguna S 2.1 and Qwen3 235B A22B?

ModelCap currently lists 1 API provider for Laguna S 2.1 and 1 for Qwen3 235B A22B, from the OpenRouter catalogue snapshot the site serves; each model page lists the providers and their prices.

How current is this Laguna S 2.1 vs Qwen3 235B A22B 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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