High-volume, cost-sensitive work
Choose Qwen3.8 27B
Qwen3.8 27B costs 38% less on a typical mix of three input tokens for every output token ($0.78 against $1.25 per million tokens).
Grok Build 0.1 vs Qwen3.8 27B: price, context and capabilities
Choose Grok Build 0.1 for writing and code generation. Choose Qwen3.8 27B for high-volume, cost-sensitive work, reused prompts and documents (RAG, agents), very long inputs and the latest release.
In short
- Qwen3.8 27B is 38% cheaper than Grok Build 0.1 at the headline price ($0.775 / 1M tokens vs $1.25 / 1M tokens).
- Qwen3.8 27B reads more per request: 1M tokens against 256k.
- Qwen3.8 27B is the newer model (Aug 14, 2026, against May 2026).
- Only Grok Build 0.1 offers batch api.
Which should you choose?
Each answer below comes straight from the published prices, specifications and independent benchmark results.
Writing and code generation
Choose Grok Build 0.1
Grok Build 0.1 charges $2.00 per million output tokens, against $2.50 for Qwen3.8 27B. Output dominates the bill when answers are long.
Reused prompts and documents (RAG, agents)
Choose Qwen3.8 27B
Qwen3.8 27B charges $0.09 per million cached input tokens, against $0.20 for Grok Build 0.1.
Very long inputs
Choose Qwen3.8 27B
Qwen3.8 27B reads up to 1M tokens per request, against 256k for Grok Build 0.1.
Latest release
Choose Qwen3.8 27B
Qwen3.8 27B is the newer release (Aug 14, 2026, against May 2026 for Grok Build 0.1).
Monthly cost at three volumes
| Volume | Grok Build 0.1 | Qwen3.8 27B | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prototype: 1M input, 250K output tokens | $1.50 | $0.83 | Qwen3.8 27B, $0.68 less |
| Production: 20M input, 5M output tokens | $30.00 | $16.50 | Qwen3.8 27B, $13.50 less |
| Scale: 500M input, 100M output tokens | $700.00 | $350.00 | Qwen3.8 27B, $350.00 less |
Standard rates, without caching or batch discounts. Volumes are per month.
Specifications side by side
| Grok Build 0.1 | Qwen3.8 27B | |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | xAI | Alibaba Cloud (Qwen) |
| Category | Language models | Language models |
| Status | Generally available | Generally available |
| Headline price | $1.25 / 1M tokens | $0.775 / 1M tokens |
| Input | $1.00 / 1M tokens | $0.20 / 1M tokens |
| Output | $2.00 / 1M tokens | $2.50 / 1M tokens |
| Cached input | $0.20 / 1M tokens | $0.09 / 1M tokens |
| Context window | 256k | 1M |
| Max output | No data | 236k |
| Released | May 2026 | Aug 14, 2026 |
| Knowledge cutoff | No data | No data |
| Licence | Proprietary | Proprietary |
| Capabilities | Vision, Reasoning, Tool calling, Structured output, Prompt caching, Batch API | Vision, Reasoning, Tool calling, Structured output, Prompt caching |
| API model id | grok-build-0.1 | qwen3.8-27b |
Frequently asked questions
Should I choose Grok Build 0.1 or Qwen3.8 27B?
Choose Grok Build 0.1 for writing and code generation. Choose Qwen3.8 27B for high-volume, cost-sensitive work, reused prompts and documents (RAG, agents), very long inputs and the latest release.
Which is cheaper, Grok Build 0.1 or Qwen3.8 27B?
Qwen3.8 27B is 38% cheaper than Grok Build 0.1 at the headline price ($0.775 / 1M tokens vs $1.25 / 1M tokens).
Which has the larger context window, Grok Build 0.1 or Qwen3.8 27B?
Qwen3.8 27B reads more per request: 1M tokens against 256k.
What is the difference between Grok Build 0.1 and Qwen3.8 27B?
Grok Build 0.1 is made by xAI and Qwen3.8 27B by Alibaba Cloud (Qwen). Qwen3.8 27B is 38% cheaper than Grok Build 0.1 at the headline price ($0.775 / 1M tokens vs $1.25 / 1M tokens). Qwen3.8 27B reads more per request: 1M tokens against 256k. Qwen3.8 27B is the newer model (Aug 14, 2026, against May 2026). Only Grok Build 0.1 offers batch api.
How much do Grok Build 0.1 and Qwen3.8 27B cost per month?
At 20 million input and 5 million output tokens a month, Grok Build 0.1 costs $30.00 and Qwen3.8 27B costs $16.50, at standard rates.
Which is newer, Grok Build 0.1 or Qwen3.8 27B?
Qwen3.8 27B was released on Aug 14, 2026 and Grok Build 0.1 on May 2026.