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ModelCap

Head-to-head comparison

Qwen3.5 397B A17B vs Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B

Qwen3.5 397B A17B (Qwen) and Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B (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, Qwen3.5 397B A17B holds the stronger ModelCap Index position (#48 vs #131); and Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B is 3.6× cheaper per output token ($1.00/1M vs $3.60/1M).

Which should you choose?

Choose Qwen3.5 397B A17B if…

  • you want the stronger overall ModelCap Index position — #48 against #131 (68.6 vs 49.8 points).
  • you want provider choice — 10 listed API providers against 2.
  • Arena text is your yardstick — 1441 against 1388.
  • Arena coding is your yardstick — 1491 against 1457.
  • you want the more recently listed model — Qwen3.5 397B A17B was listed 16 February 2026, Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B 23 July 2025.

Choose Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B if…

  • API cost matters — $1.00/1M output tokens against $3.60/1M, about 3.6× cheaper.
  • your workload is prompt-heavy — input tokens cost $0.30/1M against $0.50/1M.

Qwen3.5 397B A17B vs Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B: specs, pricing and context

Specification comparison of Qwen3.5 397B A17B and Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B
FieldQwen3.5 397B A17BQwenQwen3 Coder 480B A35BQwen
ModelCap Index position#48#131
Index score68.649.8
EvidenceMeasuredMeasured
Input price / 1M tokens$0.50$0.30
Output price / 1M tokens$3.60$1.00
Context window262K tokens262K tokens
Declared route output cap236K66K
API providers listed102
Weight accessOpen weightsOpen weights
Input modalitiesText, Image, VideoText
First listed16 February 202623 July 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: Qwen3.5 397B A17B vs Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B

Public benchmark boards where Qwen3.5 397B A17B or Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B has a published result
BoardQwen3.5 397B A17BQwen3 Coder 480B A35BLeads
Arena textArena (LMArena)14411438–1444Not reported13881383–1393Not reportedQwen3.5 397B A17B
Arena codingArena (LMArena)14911486–149614571448–1466Qwen3.5 397B A17B
SWE-benchSWE-bench (Princeton / SWE-agent team)—55.4%Only 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.

Qwen3.5 397B A17B vs Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B: common questions

Is Qwen3.5 397B A17B better than Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B?

Qwen3.5 397B A17B ranks higher on the ModelCap Index as of 6 November 2026: #48 against #131. 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 Qwen3.5 397B A17B cheaper than Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B?

Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B is cheaper on output tokens: $1.00/1M against $3.60/1M. Input tokens are $0.50/1M for Qwen3.5 397B A17B and $0.30/1M for Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B. Prices are the lowest listed API offer ModelCap observed, in USD per million tokens. For 1,000 requests with 2,000 input and 500 output tokens each (2M input + 0.5M output), the listed-rate estimate is $2.80 for Qwen3.5 397B A17B versus $1.10 for Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B. Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B costs 60.7% less in this scenario. This excludes caching, batch discounts, prompt-length tiers, tool charges and retries; verify the selected endpoint before budgeting.

Which has the bigger context window, Qwen3.5 397B A17B or Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B?

Both publish a 262K-token context window. 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, Qwen3.5 397B A17B or Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B?

Arena coding: Qwen3.5 397B A17B 1491, Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B 1457 — Qwen3.5 397B A17B leads.

Are Qwen3.5 397B A17B and Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B open-weight models?

Qwen3.5 397B A17B: Open weights. Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B: 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 Qwen3.5 397B A17B and Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B?

ModelCap currently lists 10 API providers for Qwen3.5 397B A17B and 2 for Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B, from the OpenRouter catalogue snapshot the site serves; each model page lists the providers and their prices.

How current is this Qwen3.5 397B A17B vs Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B 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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