Codex (OpenAI)
Free tier available
- API -- gpt-6.1-sol (2026-09-29)$2/$10/per 1M tokens; cached input $0.10 (GPT-6 Sol: $0.20)
- API -- gpt-6.1-terra (2026-10-26)$1/$5/per 1M tokens; cached input $0.05
- Free$0
A
8.3/10Codex (OpenAI)
GPT-6.1 Sol (added 2026-09-29 for Plus and up, rolling out from Pro; Ultrafast variant coming) + GPT-6 Sol + GPT-6 Luna (2026-09-22; Luna for Free/Go in the desktop app) + GPT-6 Astra (Ultrafast tier on Pro 500/Enterprise) alongside GPT-5.6 Sol / Terra / Luna (GA 2026-07-09; Terra default on Free/Go). GPT-5.5 remains selectable as previous-gen; GPT-5.4 retired from Codex 2026-08-31; GPT-5.2-Codex retired 2026-07-23; gpt-5.3-codex leaves the API 2027-04-01
VS
Our pickA
8.8/10Qwen (Alibaba)
Codex (OpenAI) vs Qwen (Alibaba)
Tier-list head-to-head. Qwen (Alibaba) takes the A-tier slot — here's the breakdown.
Last reviewed November 5, 2026· sweep-fresh
Spec sheet
At a glance
| Codex (OpenAI) | Qwen (Alibaba) | |
|---|---|---|
| Tier | A-tier | A-tierwin |
| Overall score | 8.3 / 10 | 8.8 / 10win |
| Powered by | GPT-6.1 Sol (added 2026-09-29 for Plus and up, rolling out from Pro; Ultrafast variant coming) + GPT-6 Sol + GPT-6 Luna (2026-09-22; Luna for Free/Go in the desktop app) + GPT-6 Astra (Ultrafast tier on Pro 500/Enterprise) alongside GPT-5.6 Sol / Terra / Luna (GA 2026-07-09; Terra default on Free/Go). GPT-5.5 remains selectable as previous-gen; GPT-5.4 retired from Codex 2026-08-31; GPT-5.2-Codex retired 2026-07-23; gpt-5.3-codex leaves the API 2027-04-01 | — |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| Starting price | $2/$10 | $0 |
| Best for | Developers already paying for ChatGPT Plus who want a coding agent at no extra cost. | Developers who want frontier-tier open weights with Apache 2. |
| Last reviewed | 2026-11-05 | 2026-10-12 |
Head-to-head
Score showdown
Rated 1-10 on the same rubric across all 130 tools we cover.
Ease of use+1.0 Codex (OpenAI)
Codex (OpenAI)
8.0
Qwen (Alibaba)
7.0
Output quality+1.0 Qwen (Alibaba)
Codex (OpenAI)
8.0
Qwen (Alibaba)
9.0
Value+2.0 Qwen (Alibaba)
Codex (OpenAI)
8.0
Qwen (Alibaba)
10.0
FeaturesTie
Codex (OpenAI)
9.0
Qwen (Alibaba)
9.0
Overall+0.5 Qwen (Alibaba)
Codex (OpenAI)
8.3
Qwen (Alibaba)
8.8
What you'll pay
Pricing snapshot
Look past the headline number -- entry-tier limits drive most cost surprises.
Qwen (Alibaba)
Free tier available
- Self-hosted (Free)$0
- API (OpenRouter / Alibaba Cloud)$0.12/per 1M input tokens
- API (Qwen 3.6-Plus flagship, Mar 30 2026)$0.90/per 1M input tokens
Benchmark Head-to-Head
GPT-5.2-Codex (HISTORICAL -- this model was RETIRED 2026-07-23; scores retained for trend context only). GPT-6 Sol and Luna joined Codex 2026-09-22: OpenAI reports DeepSWE v1.1 68.8% (Sol, max effort) and 66.6% (Luna, max) -- first-party, third-party verification pending; see Known Issues vs Qwen3.5-397B MoE
| Benchmark | Codex (OpenAI) | Qwen (Alibaba) |
|---|---|---|
| HumanEval | 95% | 92.5% |
The decision
Which should you pick?
Use-case anchors and category strengths, side by side.
Pick Codex (OpenAI)if…
A
8.3/10- ✓Easier to learn and use day-to-day -- friendlier onboarding curve
- ✓Developers already paying for ChatGPT Plus who want a coding agent at no extra cost.
- ✓Especially good for parallel task execution -- assign multiple bug fixes or feature branches and let Codex work them simultaneously.
- ✓Stronger on python code generation (+2.5% on HumanEval)
Developers already paying for ChatGPT Plus who want a coding agent at no extra cost. Especially good for parallel task execution -- assign multiple bug fixes or feature branches and let Codex work them simultaneously.
Visit Codex (OpenAI)Pick Qwen (Alibaba)if…
A
8.8/10- ✓Higher output quality (9.0 vs 8.0) where polish matters more than speed
- ✓Better value at the price you'll actually pay (10.0/10 on value)
- ✓Developers who want frontier-tier open weights with Apache 2.
- ✓Qwen3-Coder-Next is arguably the best local coding model.
Developers who want frontier-tier open weights with Apache 2.0 licensing. Qwen3-Coder-Next is arguably the best local coding model; Qwen3.5-397B is a top-3 open generalist.
Visit Qwen (Alibaba)Bottom line
The verdict
Qwen (Alibaba) edges out Codex (OpenAI) by 0.5 points (8.8 vs 8.3) -- a A-tier vs A-tier split that's narrow but real. Not a blowout; both belong on a shortlist. The score gap shows up most clearly in the categories that matter for Qwen (Alibaba)'s strengths, so if those categories are your priority, the lead translates.
Pricing-wise, both tools have a free tier (Codex (OpenAI) starts $2/$10, Qwen (Alibaba) starts $0), so you can test either without committing. Compare what each free tier actually unlocks -- usage caps, model access, and feature gates differ a lot more than the headline price suggests, especially as both vendors have tightened limits in 2026.
By use case: pick Codex (OpenAI) when developers already paying for chatgpt plus who want a coding agent at no extra cost. Pick Qwen (Alibaba) when developers who want frontier-tier open weights with apache 2. The two tools aren't fighting for the same person -- they're aiming at adjacent jobs that occasionally overlap. If you're squarely in Qwen (Alibaba)'s lane, the tier-list ranking and the use-case fit point the same direction; if you're in Codex (OpenAI)'s lane, the score gap matters less than the fit.
Bottom line: Qwen (Alibaba) is the safer default for most readers, but Codex (OpenAI) is competitive enough that the tie-breaker is your specific workload, not the spec sheet.
Keep digging
Compare more & explore
Full Codex (OpenAI) review
Tier A · 8.3/10
Full Qwen (Alibaba) review
Tier A · 8.8/10
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Built from our daily AI-tool sweep, last touched November 5, 2026. Honest tier-list reviews — no affiliate-link pieces disguised as advice. See the rubric or how we review.