Model comparison
Kimi K2.6 vs Qwen3.5
- Input
- $0.95 / 1M tokens
- Output
- $4.00 / 1M tokens
- Context
- 256K
- Released
- 2026-04-20
- Input
- $0.54 / 1M tokens
- Output
- $3.40 / 1M tokens
- Context
- 256K
- Released
- 2026-02-16
Kimi K2.6 scores higher on 5 of the 5 benchmarks both models report; Qwen3.5 is cheaper on input tokens ($0.5 vs $1 per 1M, 1.8×).
Specs and pricing side by side
| Spec | Kimi K2.6 | Qwen3.5 |
|---|---|---|
| Maker | Moonshot AI (Kimi) | Alibaba (Qwen) |
| Released | 2026-04-20 | 2026-02-16 |
| Context window | 256K | 256Ksame |
| Max output | 256K | not published |
| Input price | $0.95 / 1M tokens | $0.54 / 1M tokens |
| Output price | $4.00 / 1M tokens | $3.40 / 1M tokens |
| Parameters | 1T total (MoE), 32B active per token | 397B total / 17B active (MoE, 512 experts) |
| License | Modified MIT (open weights; "Kimi K2" UI attribution required above 100M MAU or $20M monthly revenue) | Apache-2.0 |
| Weights | Open weights | Open weightssame |
| Modalities | Text, Vision, Video | Text, Vision, Video, PDF |
Not published by either maker: knowledge cutoff.
Benchmarks both models report
| Benchmark | Kimi K2.6 | Qwen3.5 |
|---|---|---|
| SWE-Bench Verified | 80.2% | 76.4% |
| LiveCodeBench v6 | 89.6% | 83.6% |
| AIME 2026 | 96.4% | 91.3% |
| GPQA-Diamond | 90.5% | 88.4% |
| BrowseComp | 86.3% | 78.6% |
Scores are as published by each maker or its cited source; harness, reasoning effort and date can differ between rows, so treat small gaps as ties. Sources are listed on each model page.
Which one should you pick?
Pick Kimi K2.6 if…
- You care about SWE-Bench Verified, LiveCodeBench v6, AIME 2026 (it scores higher on 5 shared benchmarks).
- Your use case is: autonomous, multi-step software engineering and bug-fixing over large repositories.
Pick Qwen3.5 if…
- Cost matters: input tokens cost 1.8× less ($0.5 vs $1 per 1M).
- You need PDF input, which Kimi K2.6 lacks.
- Your use case is: self-hosted agentic systems that need open weights for tool use, browsing, and terminal/coding workflows.
FAQ
Which is better, Kimi K2.6 or Qwen3.5?
Kimi K2.6 scores higher on 5 of the 5 benchmarks both models report; Qwen3.5 is cheaper on input tokens ($0.5 vs $1 per 1M, 1.8×). The better pick depends on whether you value benchmark scores, price per token, context length or openness for your workload.
How much cheaper is Qwen3.5?
Kimi K2.6: $0.95 / 1M tokens input, $4.00 / 1M tokens output. Qwen3.5: $0.54 / 1M tokens input, $3.40 / 1M tokens output (list API prices as published by each maker).
What are the context windows of Kimi K2.6 and Qwen3.5?
Kimi K2.6 offers 256K with up to 256K output; Qwen3.5 offers 256K.
Is Kimi K2.6 newer than Qwen3.5?
Kimi K2.6 was released 2026-04-20; Qwen3.5 was released 2026-02-16.