Model comparison - Similar price, same tier
Gemini 4 Argon vs Qwen3.8-Max
Gemini 4 Argon is from Google and Qwen3.8-Max is from Alibaba Cloud (Qwen). On list price, both charge $2 per 1M input tokens, and Gemini 4 Argon charges 1.7x Qwen3.8-Max's output price ($10 vs $6 per 1M tokens). Gemini 4 Argon has a 1,048,576-token context window and Qwen3.8-Max 1,000,000 tokens; max output is 65,536 and 131,072 tokens per response. Gemini 4 Argon was released on October 13, 2026 and Qwen3.8-Max on August 2, 2026. Both are closed-weights models, available only through an API.
Last verified from each provider's pricing page. All sources
Side-by-side specs
| Spec | Gemini 4 Argon | Qwen3.8-Max |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | Alibaba Cloud (Qwen) | |
| Input / 1M tokens | $2 | $2 |
| Output / 1M tokens | $10 | $6 |
| Cache read / 1M | $0.10 | $0.17 |
| Cache write / 1M | - | $2.50 |
| Batch input / 1M | $1 | - |
| Batch output / 1M | $5 | - |
| Context window | 1,048,576 | 1,000,000 |
| Max output | 65,536 | 131,072 |
| Release date | ||
| Weights | Closed | Closed |
| API model id | gemini-4-argon | qwen3.8-max |
| AI Gateway id | google/gemini-4-argon | alibaba/qwen3.8-max |
| Last verified |
Prices in USD per 1M tokens at each provider's standard first-party rate. A dash means the provider does not bill that item separately or no primary page states it.
What each costs in practice
The same three workloads every model page uses, worked from each model's standard list rates. Swap in your own token counts with the math on each model's page.
| Workload | Gemini 4 Argon | Qwen3.8-Max |
|---|---|---|
| One agent session1M input tokens and 100K output tokens, no caching. | $3.00 | $2.60 |
| A chat app10,000 requests a day at 2K input and 500 output tokens each. | $90.00$2,700.00 per 30-day month | $70.00$2,100.00 per 30-day month |
| The same session at a 90% cache hit90% of the input is read from the prompt cache. The one-time cache write premium is not included. | $1.29 | $0.953 |
Show the math
Gemini 4 Argon
- One agent sessionInput: 1M x $2 = $2.00Output: 0.1M x $10 = $1.00
- A chat appInput: 20M x $2 = $40.00Output: 5M x $10 = $50.00
- The same session at a 90% cache hitCached input: 0.9M x $0.10 = $0.09Uncached input: 0.1M x $2 = $0.20Output: 0.1M x $10 = $1.00
Qwen3.8-Max
- One agent sessionInput: 1M x $2 = $2.00Output: 0.1M x $6 = $0.60
- A chat appInput: 20M x $2 = $40.00Output: 5M x $6 = $30.00
- The same session at a 90% cache hitCached input: 0.9M x $0.17 = $0.153Uncached input: 0.1M x $2 = $0.20Output: 0.1M x $6 = $0.60
Benchmarks under the same setting
Only boards that list both models under the same run setting appear here, one row per board and setting, with each score exactly as the board shows it. Scores on different boards use different scales and are never combined.
| Board and setting | Gemini 4 Argon | Qwen3.8-Max |
|---|---|---|
| LMArena Text (Text Arena Overall)Text Arena Overall, default leaderboard view (8,834,211 votes, 416 models)Official leaderboard - arena.ai | 1524±9 (Preliminary) | 1482±5 |
Set them up in your tools
Step-by-step guides whose official docs list Gemini 4 Argon or Qwen3.8-Max by model id.
- Use Gemini in ClineLists Gemini 4 Argon
- Use Gemini in ContinueLists Gemini 4 Argon
- Use Gemini in CursorLists Gemini 4 Argon
- Use Gemini in GooseLists Gemini 4 Argon
- Use Gemini in Kilo CodeLists Gemini 4 Argon
- Use Gemini in OpenCodeLists Gemini 4 Argon
- Use Gemini in ZedLists Gemini 4 Argon
- Use Qwen in Claude CodeLists Qwen3.8-Max
- Use Qwen in Codex CLILists Qwen3.8-Max
- Use Qwen in CursorLists Qwen3.8-Max
- Use Qwen in Kilo CodeLists Qwen3.8-Max
- Use Qwen in OpenCodeLists Qwen3.8-Max
Model pages
FAQ
How do Gemini 4 Argon and Qwen3.8-Max compare on price?
On list price, both charge $2 per 1M input tokens, and Gemini 4 Argon charges 1.7x Qwen3.8-Max's output price ($10 vs $6 per 1M tokens). For one agent session of 1M input and 100K output tokens with no caching, that is $3.00 on Gemini 4 Argon and $2.60 on Qwen3.8-Max. Prices are each provider's first-party list rates, verified October 17, 2026 and October 17, 2026.
What are the context windows of Gemini 4 Argon and Qwen3.8-Max?
Gemini 4 Argon has a 1,048,576-token context window and Qwen3.8-Max 1,000,000 tokens; max output is 65,536 and 131,072 tokens per response.
Are Gemini 4 Argon and Qwen3.8-Max open weights?
Gemini 4 Argon is closed-weights and is called through Google's API as gemini-4-argon. Qwen3.8-Max is closed-weights and is called through Alibaba Cloud (Qwen)'s API as qwen3.8-max.
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- Gemini 4 Argon vs Grok 4.7Similar price, same tier
- Claude Opus 5.5 vs Qwen3.8-MaxSimilar price, same tier
- Gemini 4 Argon vs GLM-5.3Open weights vs closed
Sources
Gemini 4 Argon verified from ai.google.dev; Qwen3.8-Max verified from alibabacloud.com. This page is as current as the older of the two: .
- https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/pricing
- https://www.alibabacloud.com/help/en/model-studio/model-pricing
- https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/models/gemini-4-argon
- https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/latest-model
- https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/changelog
- https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/models
- https://modelstudio.console.alibabacloud.com/ap-southeast-1/model/market/detail/qwen3.8-max
- https://www.qwencloud.com/models/qwen3.8-max
- https://www.alibabacloud.com/help/en/model-studio/text-generation-model
- https://www.alibabacloud.com/help/en/model-studio/context-cache
- https://www.alibabacloud.com/help/en/model-studio/newly-released-models
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