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Head-to-head comparison

Qwen3.6 35B A3B vs Qwen3.8 27B

Qwen3.6 35B A3B (Qwen) and Qwen3.8 27B (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 1 October 2026

As of 1 October 2026, Qwen3.8 27B holds the stronger ModelCap Index position (#39 vs #72); Qwen3.6 35B A3B is 3× cheaper per output token ($1.00/1M vs $3.00/1M); and Qwen3.8 27B offers the longer context window (1M vs 262K tokens).

Which should you choose?

Choose Qwen3.6 35B A3B if…

  • API cost matters — $1.00/1M output tokens against $3.00/1M, about 3× cheaper.
  • your workload is prompt-heavy — input tokens cost $0.15/1M against $0.42/1M.

Choose Qwen3.8 27B if…

  • you want the stronger overall ModelCap Index position — #39 against #72 (68.9 vs 60.7 points).
  • you need the longer context window — 1M tokens against 262K.
  • you want provider choice — 17 listed API providers against 9.
  • AA Intelligence Index is your yardstick — 33.7 against 18.2.
  • AA Terminal-Bench 2.1 is your yardstick — 79.8% against 44.9%.
  • AA Humanity's Last Exam is your yardstick — 33.9% against 22.2%.
  • you want the more recently listed model — Qwen3.8 27B was listed 14 August 2026, Qwen3.6 35B A3B 27 April 2026.

Qwen3.6 35B A3B vs Qwen3.8 27B: specs, pricing and context

Specification comparison of Qwen3.6 35B A3B and Qwen3.8 27B
FieldQwen3.6 35B A3BQwenQwen3.8 27BQwen
ModelCap Index position#72#39
Index score60.768.9
EvidenceMeasuredMeasured
Input price / 1M tokens$0.15$0.42
Output price / 1M tokens$1.00$3.00
Context window262K tokens1M tokens
Max output tokens236K131K
API providers listed917
Weight accessOpen weightsOpen weights
Input modalitiesText, Image, VideoText, Image, Video
First listed27 April 202614 August 2026
PublisherQwenQwen

Evidence: 1 public benchmark observation across 1 board · 5 public benchmark observations across 5 boards. Prices are the lowest listed API offer per million tokens observed on the OpenRouter catalogue.

Benchmark scores: Qwen3.6 35B A3B vs Qwen3.8 27B

Public benchmark boards where Qwen3.6 35B A3B or Qwen3.8 27B has a published result
BoardQwen3.6 35B A3BQwen3.8 27BLeads
Arena textArena (LMArena)—14391433–1444Not reportedOnly one result
Arena codingArena (LMArena)—15051496–1514Only one result
ARC-AGI-2ARC Prize Foundation—42.4%X-HighOnly one result
AA Intelligence IndexArtificial Analysis18.2Reasoning33.7X-HighQwen3.8 27B
AA Terminal-Bench 2.1Artificial Analysis44.9%Reasoning79.8%X-HighQwen3.8 27B
AA τ²-Bench TelecomArtificial Analysis95.3%Reasoning—Only one result
AA Humanity's Last ExamArtificial Analysis22.2%Reasoning33.9%X-HighQwen3.8 27B
WildClawBench OpenClawWildClawBench—48.0Only 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.

Qwen3.6 35B A3B vs Qwen3.8 27B: common questions

Is Qwen3.6 35B A3B better than Qwen3.8 27B?

Qwen3.8 27B ranks higher on the ModelCap Index as of 1 October 2026: #39 against #72. 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 overlap, so the rank difference alone does not establish a reliable capability advantage for your workload.

Is Qwen3.6 35B A3B cheaper than Qwen3.8 27B?

Qwen3.6 35B A3B is cheaper on output tokens: $1.00/1M against $3.00/1M. Input tokens are $0.15/1M for Qwen3.6 35B A3B and $0.42/1M for Qwen3.8 27B. 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 $0.80 for Qwen3.6 35B A3B versus $2.34 for Qwen3.8 27B. Qwen3.6 35B A3B costs 65.8% 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, Qwen3.6 35B A3B or Qwen3.8 27B?

Qwen3.8 27B has the larger context window: 1M tokens against 262K.

Which is better for coding, Qwen3.6 35B A3B or Qwen3.8 27B?

AA Terminal-Bench 2.1: Qwen3.6 35B A3B 44.9%, Qwen3.8 27B 79.8% — Qwen3.8 27B leads.

Are Qwen3.6 35B A3B and Qwen3.8 27B open-weight models?

Qwen3.6 35B A3B: Open weights. Qwen3.8 27B: 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 Qwen3.6 35B A3B and Qwen3.8 27B?

ModelCap currently lists 9 API providers for Qwen3.6 35B A3B and 17 for Qwen3.8 27B, from the OpenRouter catalogue snapshot the site serves; each model page lists the providers and their prices.

How current is this Qwen3.6 35B A3B vs Qwen3.8 27B comparison?

Every figure and ModelCap Index position comes from the same published snapshot dated 1 October 2026. Publication and page updates happen separately; use the snapshot date shown on the page.

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