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Granite 4.2 8B vs Qwen3.5-9B

Qwen3.5-9B leads Granite 4.2 8B on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index, 13.3 to 11.1, and Qwen3.5-9B costs 1.3x less per output token ($0.15 vs $0.20 per million). Updated October 22, 2026; 6 benchmarks have a result for both.

Replace Granite 4.2 8B Replace Qwen3.5-9B
Granite 4.2 8BIBM Granite
Coding
No data
Overall
No data
Output $/M
$0.20
1
Qwen3.5-9BQwen
Coding
No data
Overall
No data
Output $/M
$0.15
5
vs boards won of 6 shared

Granite 4.2 8B or Qwen3.5-9B: which to pick

Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding.

Pick Granite 4.2 8B for work measured by AA Coding Index or AA Intelligence Index, where it leads.

Model AGranite 4.2 8BIBM GraniteNot benchmarkedNo coding benchmarkNo cost per solved taskModel BQwen3.5-9BQwenNot benchmarkedNo coding benchmarkNo cost per solved task
Shared results
6
Granite 4.2 8B only
21
Qwen3.5-9B only
10
Like-for-like categories
4 of 9

Only benchmarks that tested both models count toward a pick; a result only one model has is shown but not compared.

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.

At a glance

Coding index
Granite 4.2 8B not benchmarked, Qwen3.5-9B not benchmarked.
Widest category
General, 25.0 points apart on average over 1 shared benchmark.
Widest single gap
Long context reasoning (AA-LCR): Granite 4.2 8B 45.0% against Qwen3.5-9B 70.0%, 25.0 points apart on a 0 to 100 scale.
Output price
Granite 4.2 8B $0.20 against Qwen3.5-9B $0.15 per million output tokens, 1.3x apart.
Context window
Granite 4.2 8B takes 131K 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.

Boards won, where both have a result
CategoryGranite 4.2 8BBarsQwen3.5-9BTies
Coding11
Intelligence01
Reasoning02
General01
All shared boards15
CodingLike-for-likeSix of these boards feed the Vibe Coding Index11
Coding benchmarks for Granite 4.2 8B and Qwen3.5-9B
BenchmarkGranite 4.2 8BQwen3.5-9BLeader
AA Coding Index22.423.5Qwen3.5-9B
SciCode31.5%29.5%Granite 4.2 8B
Terminal-Bench Hard (Artificial Analysis run)Not measured24.2%Only Qwen3.5-9B measured
Terminal-BenchNot measured9.2%Only Qwen3.5-9B measured
LMArena Text: coding1378Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
LMArena Text: software and IT1367Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
Neither model has a result on the other 37 boards here
IntelligenceLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index01
Intelligence benchmarks for Granite 4.2 8B and Qwen3.5-9B
BenchmarkGranite 4.2 8BQwen3.5-9BLeader
AA Intelligence Index11.113.3Qwen3.5-9B
Epoch Capabilities IndexNot measured139.3Only Qwen3.5-9B measured
Agentic workDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index2 boards, none shared
Agentic work benchmarks for Granite 4.2 8B and Qwen3.5-9B
BenchmarkGranite 4.2 8BQwen3.5-9BLeader
AA Agentic Index1.3Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
τ²-Bench TelecomNot measured86.8%Only Qwen3.5-9B measured
Neither model has a result on the other 40 boards here
ReasoningLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index02
Reasoning benchmarks for Granite 4.2 8B and Qwen3.5-9B
BenchmarkGranite 4.2 8BQwen3.5-9BLeader
GPQA Diamond (Artificial Analysis run)63.1%80.6%Qwen3.5-9B
Humanity's Last Exam (Artificial Analysis run)9.7%14.9%Qwen3.5-9B
GPQA Diamond (Epoch AI run)Not measured79.0%Only Qwen3.5-9B measured
LMArena Text: hard prompts1327Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
LMArena Text: expert1386Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
LMArena Text: hard prompts in English1345Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
Neither model has a result on the other 17 boards here
MathDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index2 boards, none shared
Math benchmarks for Granite 4.2 8B and Qwen3.5-9B
BenchmarkGranite 4.2 8BQwen3.5-9BLeader
OTIS Mock AIMENot measured61.7%Only Qwen3.5-9B measured
MathArenaNot measured13.0%Only Qwen3.5-9B measured
Neither model has a result on the other 12 boards here
KnowledgeDirectional onlyPublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index4 boards, none shared
Knowledge benchmarks for Granite 4.2 8B and Qwen3.5-9B
BenchmarkGranite 4.2 8BQwen3.5-9BLeader
LMArena Text: science1336Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
LMArena Text: medicine and healthcare1336Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
LMArena Text: legal and government1327Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
LMArena Text: business and finance1322Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
Neither model has a result on the other 16 boards here
Web designNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
Web design benchmarks for Granite 4.2 8B and Qwen3.5-9B
BenchmarkGranite 4.2 8BQwen3.5-9BLeader
Neither model has a result on 9 boards here
GeneralLike-for-likePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index01
General benchmarks for Granite 4.2 8B and Qwen3.5-9B
BenchmarkGranite 4.2 8BQwen3.5-9BLeader
IFBenchNot measured66.7%Only Qwen3.5-9B measured
Long context reasoning (AA-LCR)45.0%70.0%Qwen3.5-9B
DTBenchNot measured71.2%Only Qwen3.5-9B measured
LMCANot measured24.5%Only Qwen3.5-9B measured
LMArena Text1319Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
LMArena Text: instruction following1300Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
LMArena Text: creative writing1236Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
LMArena Text: English1337Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
LMArena Text: non-English1301Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
LMArena Text: Chinese1367Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
LMArena Text: Russian1282Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
LMArena Text: multi-turn1301Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
LMArena Text: longer queries1325Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
LMArena Text: writing and language1269Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
LMArena Text: entertainment and media1271Not measuredOnly Granite 4.2 8B measured
Neither model has a result on the other 33 boards here
Image generationNot comparablePublic boards, shown as published, kept out of the index0 boards, none shared
Image generation benchmarks for Granite 4.2 8B and Qwen3.5-9B
BenchmarkGranite 4.2 8BQwen3.5-9BLeader
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

Granite 4.2 8B$0.0002Fits in one request
Qwen3.5-9B$0.0002Fits in one request

Qwen3.5-9B costs less

Repository review

50K input + 3K output tokens

Granite 4.2 8B$0.0046Fits in one request
Qwen3.5-9B$0.0054Fits in one request

Granite 4.2 8B costs less

Agent loop

200K input + 10K output tokens

Granite 4.2 8B$0.018Exceeds the context window
Qwen3.5-9B$0.021Fits in one request

Granite 4.2 8B 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.

Specifications of Granite 4.2 8B and Qwen3.5-9B
SpecificationIBM Granite 4.2 8BQwen3.5-9B
MakerIBM GraniteQwen
WeightsOpen weightsOpen weights
ReleasedAugust 31, 2026March 10, 2026
Context window131K262K
Input $/Mtok$0.08$0.10
Output $/Mtok$0.20$0.15
Coding indexNot benchmarkedNot benchmarked
Independent measurements behind it00
Cost per solved taskNot computableNot computable
SourceOpenRouter listingOpenRouter listing

Questions

Is Granite 4.2 8B better than Qwen3.5-9B for coding?

Neither model has a coding score yet, so the two cannot be ranked on coding. Pick Granite 4.2 8B for work measured by AA Coding Index or AA Intelligence Index, where it leads.

Which is cheaper, Granite 4.2 8B or Qwen3.5-9B?

Granite 4.2 8B costs $0.08 per million input tokens and $0.20 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, Granite 4.2 8B or Qwen3.5-9B?

Qwen3.5-9B, with 262K tokens against 131K.

How many benchmarks is the Granite 4.2 8B vs Qwen3.5-9B comparison based on?

6 benchmarks have a result for both models as of October 22, 2026. Granite 4.2 8B'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.

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