Can I run Qwen3.5 397B A17B or Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Thinking cheaper on another provider?

Some models are available on inference providers like Together AI, Groq, and Fireworks AI at lower prices. Check each model's pricing page for the full provider comparison.

What is the context window difference between Qwen3.5 397B A17B and Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Thinking?

Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Thinking has a larger context window at 262K tokens vs 262K. This matters for long documents, large codebases, and extended conversation histories.

Compare

Qwen3.5 397B A17B vs Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Thinking

Pricing is only the shared seller matrix below. Best rates and catalog map are separate sections, so no chart is embedded in pricing. Open the calculator for the same workload on each side.

AlibabaQwen

Model

Qwen3.5 397B A17B

Image inputTool calling

Best $0.600 in · $3.60 out

Context window 262K

Pricing

AlibabaQwen

Model

Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Thinking

Image inputTool calling

Best $0.220 in · $0.880 out

Context window 262K

Pricing

Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Thinking is cheaper across the board — 63% cheaper on input and 75% cheaper on output.

Estimate cost

Pricing matrix

Shared sellers only. Each row is a host that lists both models. Dollar amounts are per 1M tokens. Lowest in each pair of columns is emphasized.

Provider	Qwen3.5 397B A17B in	Qwen3.5 397B A17B out	Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Thinking in	Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Thinking out
Alibaba Cloud	N/A	N/A	$0.400	$4.00
Fireworks AI	N/A	N/A	$0.220	$0.880
Novita	N/A	N/A	$0.980	$3.95
Openrouter	$0.600	$3.60	$0.260	$2.60
Together AI	$0.600	$3.60	N/A	N/A

Best listed rates (this pair)

Same "best row in current pricing" logic as model pages: a compact view of the lowest input and output we show for each side. This is not the seller matrix.

Catalog map · Alibaba

Each chart uses real catalog rows that include both list input and list output ($/1M). Larger green dots are the models on this comparison page; accent dots are other active models from that provider.

Alibaba · input vs output

Scatter chart: X = input $/M, Y = output $/M. This page's models are labeled on the green dots; hover others for detail.

ListedoutputUSD/1M

One dot per catalog row that has both list prices. Green dots are labeled with the models on this page; hover any dot for name and prices. Upper-right means higher cost on both axes ($/1M).

Specifications

Each column header is the full model name. Tint marks the favorable value where we compute a winner.

Spec

Qwen3.5 397B A17B

Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Thinking

Context window: 262,144 tokens; 262,144 tokens
Max output tokens: 65,536 tokens; 262,144 tokens
Vision: Yes; Yes
Function calling: Yes; Yes
Streaming: No; No
Release date: Feb 2026; Sep 2025

Cost calculator

Same requests, input tokens, and output tokens for both columns. Pick the provider row that matches how you buy.

Qwen3.5 397B A17B

Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Thinking

Requests / day

Input tokens

Output tokens

Qwen3.5 397B A17B

Monthly

$720

Annual

$8.8K

Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Thinking

Monthly

$720

Annual

$8.8K

When to pick which

Short takeaways: no cards, just the points. Validate with your own workloads.

High-volume text generation
Use Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Thinking. Output tokens are 75% cheaper, which compounds significantly at scale.
Long output (reports, code files)
Use Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Thinking. Its 262K max output limit reduces the need to split requests.

Frequently asked questions

Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Thinking is cheaper on both input and output tokens.

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