Claude Opus 4.8 vs Qwen3.6 27B
API pricing, context window and capabilities for Claude Opus 4.8 and Qwen3.6 27B, side by side. Prices are the cheapest listed serving route per 1M tokens, from LiteLLM and OpenRouter.
Verdict
computed from the published numbersClaude Opus 4.8 wins on Terminal-Bench, on intelligence and on context window. Qwen3.6 27B wins on price.
Price
Qwen3.6 27B
Terminal-Bench
Claude Opus 4.8
Intelligence
Claude Opus 4.8
Context window
Claude Opus 4.8
Key takeaways
who wins on what, from the published numbersClaude Opus 4.8 wins
- Larger context window (1M vs 262K)
Qwen3.6 27B wins
- Cheaper input ($5.00 vs $0.15 /1M)
- Cheaper output ($25.00 vs $0.50 /1M)
- Higher max output (128K vs 262K)
Cheaper overall
Qwen3.6 27B
$0.15 + $0.50 /1M
Larger context
Claude Opus 4.8
1M
More providers
Tied
Pricing & specs
cheapest listed route · per 1M tokensOn-demand listed rates, OpenRouter routed quotes and Vercel reseller quotes. Enterprise commitments can be materially lower.
| Claude Opus 4.8 | Qwen3.6 27B | |
|---|---|---|
| Input $/1M | $5.00via Anthropic | $0.15via Libertai best |
| Output $/1M | $25.00via Anthropic | $0.50via Libertai best |
| Context window | 1M best | 262K |
| Max output | 128K | 262K best |
| Serving providers | 8 | 8 |
| Date | Released May 28, 2026 | Released Apr 24, 2026 |
Benchmarks
Benchmark scores, side by side| Claude Opus 4.8 | Qwen3.6 27B | |
|---|---|---|
| Intelligence | 41.8 best | 21.4 |
| Terminal-Bench | 85% best | 61% |
| GPQA Diamond | 92% best | 84% |
| Output speed | 62 t/s best | 58 t/s |
| Latency (TTFT) | 56.16s | 3.62s best |
Cost calculator
choose a serving route for each sideInput tokens / month
Output tokens / month
Claude Opus 4.8
via Azure
$50
Qwen3.6 27B
via Libertai
$1.25
Capabilities
feature support, side by side| Feature | Claude Opus 4.8 | Qwen3.6 27B |
|---|---|---|
| Vision | ✓ | ✓ |
| Tool use | ✓ | ✓ |
| Reasoning | ✓ | ✓ |
| Audio | — | — |
| Prompt caching | ✓ | ✓ |
| Structured output | ✓ | ✓ |
| Web search | ✓ | ✓ |
Related comparisons
Frequently asked questions
Which is cheaper, Claude Opus 4.8 or Qwen3.6 27B?
Qwen3.6 27B is cheaper for input ($5.00 vs $0.15 per 1M tokens) from Libertai. Qwen3.6 27B is cheaper for output ($25.00 vs $0.50 per 1M tokens) from Libertai.
What is the context window difference between Claude Opus 4.8 and Qwen3.6 27B?
Claude Opus 4.8 has a 1M-token context window and Qwen3.6 27B has 262K tokens, so Claude Opus 4.8 can take a larger prompt.
How do Claude Opus 4.8 and Qwen3.6 27B compare on benchmarks?
On the tracked benchmarks, Claude Opus 4.8 leads on Terminal-Bench, and Claude Opus 4.8 leads on intelligence.
Listed prices from LiteLLM, OpenRouter and Vercel · last checked Oct 14, 2026
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