DeepSeek V3 vs Qwen3.5-9B
Updated October 21, 2026. 4 benchmarks have a result for both. Coding is ranked on the Vibe Coding Index; every other board is shown as published.
Decision reading
Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding.
DeepSeek V3 has the edge where what matters is GPQA Diamond (Epoch AI run) or OTIS Mock AIME, where it leads.
- Shared results
- 4
- DeepSeek V3 only
- 9
- Qwen3.5-9B only
- 11
- Like-for-like categories
- 3 of 9
Shared results can support a head-to-head reading. Results only one model has describe coverage, not superiority.
Which one for your work
Each card is decided by one number both models carry. Where only one has it, the card says so and makes no call.
Coding
Vibe Coding Index, six public coding benchmarks
No call
Neither has a coding score yet.
One side not measured
Intelligence
AA Intelligence Index
No call
Only Qwen3.5-9B has a AA Intelligence Index result, 13.3.
Directional only
Web design
Design Arena: websites
No call
Only DeepSeek V3 has a Design Arena: websites result, 1120.
Directional only
Long documents
Listed context window
Qwen3.5-9B
Qwen3.5-9B takes 262K tokens against 164K.
Listed by OpenRouter
Everyday cost
1K input + 500 output tokens
Qwen3.5-9B
DeepSeek V3 $0.0008, Qwen3.5-9B $0.0002 per turn.
List prices
At a glance
- Coding index
- DeepSeek V3 not benchmarked, Qwen3.5-9B not benchmarked.
- Widest category
- Math, 12.8 points apart on average over 1 shared benchmark.
- Widest single gap
- OTIS Mock AIME: DeepSeek V3 48.9% against Qwen3.5-9B 61.7%, 12.8 points apart on a 0 to 100 scale.
- Output price
- DeepSeek V3 $0.9594 against Qwen3.5-9B $0.15 per million output tokens, 6.4x apart.
- Context window
- DeepSeek V3 takes 164K tokens, Qwen3.5-9B 262K.
Benchmark by benchmark
First the score: boards each model leads, per category, where both have a result. Then every board, a category to a fold; bars are each result on a 0 to 100 scale, so compare the two in a row, not one row with another.
| Category | DeepSeek V3 | Bars | Qwen3.5-9B | Ties |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reasoning | 0 | 1 | ||
| Math | 0 | 1 | ||
| General | 0 | 2 | ||
| All shared boards | 0 | 4 |
CodingDirectional onlySix of these boards feed the Vibe Coding Index6 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | DeepSeek V3 | Qwen3.5-9B | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aider polyglot | 70.2% | Not measured | Only DeepSeek V3 measured |
| SWE-bench Lite | 30.7% | Not measured | Only DeepSeek V3 measured |
| AA Coding Index | Not measured | 23.5 | Only Qwen3.5-9B measured |
| SciCode | Not measured | 29.5% | Only Qwen3.5-9B measured |
| Terminal-Bench Hard (Artificial Analysis run) | Not measured | 24.2% | Only Qwen3.5-9B measured |
| Terminal-Bench | Not measured | 9.2% | Only Qwen3.5-9B measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 32 boards here | |||
IntelligenceDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index2 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | DeepSeek V3 | Qwen3.5-9B | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA Intelligence Index | Not measured | 13.3 | Only Qwen3.5-9B measured |
| Epoch Capabilities Index | Not measured | 139.3 | Only Qwen3.5-9B measured |
Agentic workDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index1 board, none shared
| Benchmark | DeepSeek V3 | Qwen3.5-9B | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| τ²-Bench Telecom | Not measured | 86.8% | Only Qwen3.5-9B measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 38 boards here | |||
ReasoningLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index01
| Benchmark | DeepSeek V3 | Qwen3.5-9B | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| GPQA Diamond (Artificial Analysis run) | Not measured | 80.6% | Only Qwen3.5-9B measured |
| Humanity's Last Exam (Artificial Analysis run) | Not measured | 14.9% | Only Qwen3.5-9B measured |
| GPQA Diamond (Epoch AI run) | 71.2% | 79.0% | Qwen3.5-9B |
| Neither model has a result on the other 18 boards here | |||
MathLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index01
| Benchmark | DeepSeek V3 | Qwen3.5-9B | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| OTIS Mock AIME | 48.9% | 61.7% | Qwen3.5-9B |
| Neither model has a result on the other 12 boards here | |||
KnowledgeNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | DeepSeek V3 | Qwen3.5-9B | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 17 boards here | |||
Web designDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index7 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | DeepSeek V3 | Qwen3.5-9B | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Design Arena: websites | 1120 | Not measured | Only DeepSeek V3 measured |
| Design Arena: UI components | 1093 | Not measured | Only DeepSeek V3 measured |
| Design Arena: game dev | 1053 | Not measured | Only DeepSeek V3 measured |
| Design Arena: data viz | 1089 | Not measured | Only DeepSeek V3 measured |
| Design Arena: 3D | 1087 | Not measured | Only DeepSeek V3 measured |
| Design Arena: all code categories | 1108 | Not measured | Only DeepSeek V3 measured |
| Design Arena: SVG | 977 | Not measured | Only DeepSeek V3 measured |
| Neither model has a result on the other 2 boards here | |||
GeneralLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index02
| Benchmark | DeepSeek V3 | Qwen3.5-9B | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| IFBench | Not measured | 66.7% | Only Qwen3.5-9B measured |
| Long context reasoning (AA-LCR) | Not measured | 70.0% | Only Qwen3.5-9B measured |
| DTBench | 62.7% | 71.2% | Qwen3.5-9B |
| LMCA | 15.2% | 24.5% | Qwen3.5-9B |
| Neither model has a result on the other 42 boards here | |||
Image generationNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
| Benchmark | DeepSeek V3 | Qwen3.5-9B | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither model has a result on 5 boards here | |||
What each workload costs
Three fixed token mixes at each model's listed price, so per-token rates become a bill.
Chat turn
1K input + 500 output tokens
Qwen3.5-9B costs less
Repository review
50K input + 3K output tokens
Qwen3.5-9B costs less
Agent loop
200K input + 10K output tokens
Qwen3.5-9B costs less
Listed OpenRouter rates, without cache or batch discounts. A workload that does not fit a model's context window would need splitting.
Specification differences
The leading value in a row is marked; a row with a missing value names no leader. Our two rows are marked in red.
| Specification | DeepSeek V3 | Qwen3.5-9B |
|---|---|---|
| Maker | DeepSeek | Qwen |
| Weights | Open weights | Open weights |
| Released | December 26, 2024 | March 10, 2026 |
| Context window | 164K | 262K |
| Input $/Mtok | $0.2887 | $0.10 |
| Output $/Mtok | $0.9594 | $0.15 |
| Coding index | Not benchmarked | Not benchmarked |
| Independent measurements behind it | 0 | 0 |
| Cost per solved task | Not computable | Not computable |
| Source | OpenRouter listing | OpenRouter listing |
Questions
Is DeepSeek V3 better than Qwen3.5-9B for coding?
Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding. DeepSeek V3 has the edge where what matters is GPQA Diamond (Epoch AI run) or OTIS Mock AIME, where it leads.
Which is cheaper, DeepSeek V3 or Qwen3.5-9B?
DeepSeek V3 costs $0.2887 per million input tokens and $0.9594 per million output tokens; Qwen3.5-9B costs $0.10 and $0.15. Cost per solved task is known for neither of them.
Which has the bigger context window, DeepSeek V3 or Qwen3.5-9B?
Qwen3.5-9B, with 262K tokens against 164K.
How many benchmarks is the DeepSeek V3 vs Qwen3.5-9B comparison based on?
4 benchmarks have a result for both models as of October 21, 2026. DeepSeek V3's coding index rests on 0 independent benchmarks and Qwen3.5-9B's on 0. Where only one model has a result, the page says so instead of naming a winner.