Amazon (5 models) vs Qwen (Alibaba) (52 models) - compared across composite scores, pricing, capabilities, and context windows.
| Amazon | Score | vs | Qwen (Alibaba) | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nova 2 Lite | 61 | Qwen3 8B | 61 | |
| Nova Premier 1.0 | 40 | Qwen3.5 Plus 2026-04-20 | 40 | |
| Nova Lite 1.0 | 40 | Qwen3.6 Flash | 40 | |
| Nova Micro 1.0 | 40 | Qwen3.6 35B A3B | 40 | |
| Nova Pro 1.0 | 40 | Qwen3.6 27B | 40 |
| Capability | Amazon | Qwen (Alibaba) | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|
Vision | 4/5 | 22/52 | Qwen (Alibaba) |
Reasoning | 1/5 | 27/52 | Qwen (Alibaba) |
Function Calling | 5/5 | 49/52 | Qwen (Alibaba) |
JSON Mode | 0/5 | 50/52 | Qwen (Alibaba) |
Web Search | 0/5 | 0/52 | Tie |
Streaming | 5/5 | 52/52 | Qwen (Alibaba) |
Image Output | 0/5 | 0/52 | Tie |
| Metric | Amazon | Qwen (Alibaba) |
|---|---|---|
| Cheapest Input (per 1M tokens) | $0.035 Nova Micro 1.0 | $0.033 Qwen3 235B A22B Instruct 2507 |
| Cheapest Output (per 1M tokens) | $0.140 | $0.100 |
| Most Expensive Input (per 1M tokens) | $2.50 Nova Premier 1.0 | $1.04 Qwen3.6 Max Preview |
| Most Expensive Output (per 1M tokens) | $12.50 | $6.24 |
| Free Models | 0 | 2 |
| Max Context Window | 1.0M | 1.0M |
| Model | Score | Input $/M | Output $/M |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nova 2 Lite | 61 | $0.300 | $2.50 |
| Nova Premier 1.0 | 40 | $2.50 | $12.50 |
| Nova Lite 1.0 | 40 | $0.060 | $0.240 |
| Nova Micro 1.0 | 40 | $0.035 | $0.140 |
| Nova Pro 1.0 | 40 | $0.800 | $3.20 |
| Model | Score | Input $/M | Output $/M |
|---|---|---|---|
| Qwen3.5 397B A17B | 80 | $0.390 | $2.34 |
| Qwen3.5-122B-A10B | 78 | $0.260 | $2.08 |
| Qwen3.5-27B | 77 | $0.195 | $1.56 |
| Qwen3.5-35B-A3B | 76 | $0.140 | $1.00 |
| Qwen3.6 Plus | 75 | $0.325 | $1.95 |
| Qwen3.6 Max Preview | 75 | $1.04 | $6.24 |
| Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Instruct | 69 | $0.200 | $0.880 |
| Qwen3.5-Flash | 69 | $0.065 | $0.260 |
| Qwen3 Max Thinking | 68 | $0.780 | $3.90 |
| Qwen3 VL 235B A22B Thinking | 68 | $0.260 | $2.60 |
| Qwen3 Max | 67 | $0.780 | $3.90 |
| Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct (free) | 67 | Free | Free |
| Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Instruct | 67 | $0.090 | $1.10 |
| Qwen3.5-9B | 67 | $0.040 | $0.150 |
| Qwen3 235B A22B Thinking 2507 | 65 | $0.150 | $1.50 |
| Qwen3 235B A22B Instruct 2507 | 65 | $0.071 | $0.100 |
| Qwen3 30B A3B Thinking 2507 | 64 | $0.080 | $0.400 |
| Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Thinking | 64 | $0.098 | $0.780 |
| Qwen3 30B A3B | 64 | $0.090 | $0.450 |
| Qwen3 8B | 61 | $0.050 | $0.400 |
Compare any two AI providers side-by-side.
Amazon's concentrated portfolio (5 models averaging 43/100) reflects a closed-ecosystem approach optimized for AWS integration, while Qwen's 50-model spread includes 36 open-source options averaging 45/100. For production deployments, Amazon's narrow focus means simpler vendor lock-in decisions but limited flexibility, whereas Qwen's approach lets you self-host 72% of their models while still offering managed options like their top-performing Qwen3.5-Flash (60/100).
Amazon offers vision on 4 of 5 models (80% coverage) including Nova 2 Lite at 54/100, while Qwen provides vision on only 19 of 50 models (38% coverage) but includes their best performer Qwen3.5-Flash. Despite lower coverage, Qwen's open-source vision models let you avoid Amazon's $0.140-$12.50/M token pricing for multimodal tasks, though you'll sacrifice Amazon's superior function calling capabilities (5/5 vs 45/50).
Qwen's 36% lower entry price reflects their open-source strategy and 2 free-tier models, while Amazon's premium pricing starts at $0.140/M with no free options. For a typical workload processing 100M tokens monthly, choosing Qwen's cheapest option saves $5,000/month, or you could use their free models for development and testing before deploying their $4.16/M premium options that still undercut Amazon's top tier by 67%.
Despite identical 1M context limits, the reasoning gap is stark: Amazon scores just 1/5 on reasoning across all models while Qwen achieves reasoning capabilities on 24 of 50 models (48% coverage). This makes Qwen the clear choice for analytical workloads, especially with models like Qwen3.5-Flash combining 60/100 performance with reasoning support, versus Amazon's Nova 2 Lite (54/100) which lacks reasoning entirely.
Amazon's value proposition isn't performance (43/100 average vs Qwen's 45/100) but AWS integration and perfect 5/5 function calling across all models versus Qwen's 45/50 coverage. If you're already AWS-committed and need reliable function calling for production APIs, Amazon's premium pricing and 6-point performance deficit might be acceptable trade-offs compared to managing Qwen's sprawling 50-model portfolio.
Qwen's 50-model portfolio with 2 free options and prices from $0.090-$4.16/M enables cost-effective experimentation and gradual scale-up, while Amazon's 5-model lineup at $0.140-$12.50/M forces immediate production-pricing decisions. For startups, Qwen's free tier and 36 self-hostable models provide runway, but enterprises needing consistent function calling (Amazon 5/5 vs Qwen 45/50) and simplified procurement might accept Amazon's 89x smaller model selection.