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Head-to-head comparison

Qwen2.5 72B Instruct vs Qwen3 235B A22B

Qwen2.5 72B Instruct (Qwen) 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 6 November 2026

As of 6 November 2026, Qwen3 235B A22B holds the stronger ModelCap Index position (#110 vs #249); Qwen3 235B A22B offers the longer context window (131K vs 33K tokens); and Qwen3 235B A22B ships open weights.

Which should you choose?

Choose Qwen2.5 72B Instruct if…

  • you want provider choice — 1 listed API providers against 0.

Choose Qwen3 235B A22B if…

  • you want the stronger overall ModelCap Index position — #110 against #249 (53.4 vs 27.6 points).
  • you need the longer context window — 131K tokens against 33K.
  • you want to self-host: Qwen3 235B A22B ships open weights while Qwen2.5 72B Instruct is restricted license.
  • Arena text is your yardstick — 1402 against 1303.
  • Arena coding is your yardstick — 1444 against 1355.
  • you want the more recently listed model — Qwen3 235B A22B was listed 28 April 2025, Qwen2.5 72B Instruct 19 September 2024.

Qwen2.5 72B Instruct vs Qwen3 235B A22B: specs, pricing and context

Specification comparison of Qwen2.5 72B Instruct and Qwen3 235B A22B
FieldQwen2.5 72B InstructQwenQwen3 235B A22BQwen
ModelCap Index position#249#110
Index score27.653.4
EvidenceMeasuredMeasured
Input price / 1M tokens$0.36Unlisted
Output price / 1M tokens$0.40Unlisted
Context window33K tokens131K tokens
Declared route output cap16K8K
API providers listed10
Weight accessRestricted licenseOpen weights
Input modalitiesTextText
First listed19 September 202428 April 2025
PublisherQwenQwen

Evidence: 2 public benchmark observations across 2 boards · 2 public benchmark observations across 2 boards. Prices are the lowest listed API offer per million tokens observed on the OpenRouter catalogue.

Benchmark scores: Qwen2.5 72B Instruct vs Qwen3 235B A22B

Public benchmark boards where Qwen2.5 72B Instruct or Qwen3 235B A22B has a published result
BoardQwen2.5 72B InstructQwen3 235B A22BLeads
Arena textArena (LMArena)13031299–1307Not reported14021398–1407Non-thinkingQwen3 235B A22B
Arena codingArena (LMArena)13551347–136214441437–1452Non-thinkingQwen3 235B A22B

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.

Qwen2.5 72B Instruct vs Qwen3 235B A22B: common questions

Is Qwen2.5 72B Instruct better than Qwen3 235B A22B?

Qwen3 235B A22B ranks higher on the ModelCap Index as of 6 November 2026: #110 against #249. 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. Their published uncertainty intervals do not overlap, but the aggregate Index does not predict performance on every task; compare the relevant benchmark configurations before choosing.

Is Qwen2.5 72B Instruct cheaper than Qwen3 235B A22B?

At least one of the two has no listed API price on ModelCap right now, so no price comparison is made.

Which has the bigger context window, Qwen2.5 72B Instruct or Qwen3 235B A22B?

Qwen3 235B A22B has the larger context window: 131K tokens against 33K. OpenRouter catalogue or provider-endpoint declaration. Limits can vary by provider and prompt length; a model-wide maximum has not been independently verified.

Which is better for coding, Qwen2.5 72B Instruct or Qwen3 235B A22B?

Arena coding: Qwen2.5 72B Instruct 1355, Qwen3 235B A22B 1444 — Qwen3 235B A22B leads.

Are Qwen2.5 72B Instruct and Qwen3 235B A22B open-weight models?

Qwen2.5 72B Instruct: Restricted license. Qwen3 235B A22B: Open weights. Open weights mean the checkpoint can be downloaded and self-hosted under its licence. A missing weight link does not identify every API or chat product that offers a model.

Where can I run Qwen2.5 72B Instruct and Qwen3 235B A22B?

ModelCap currently lists 1 API provider for Qwen2.5 72B Instruct and 0 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 Qwen2.5 72B Instruct vs Qwen3 235B A22B comparison?

Every figure and ModelCap Index position comes from the same published snapshot dated 6 November 2026. Publication and page updates happen separately; use the snapshot date shown on the page.

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