Model comparison
Baidu ERNIE 5.0 vs Baidu ERNIE 5.1
Two Baidu tiers compared on the figures that decide which one a workload actually needs.
Catalog record checked September 2, 2026Individual provider fields may changeEvidence confidence: High — see receipts below
Baidu
Baidu ERNIE 5.0
Balanced
Baidu
Baidu ERNIE 5.1
Balanced
| Specification | Baidu ERNIE 5.0 | Baidu ERNIE 5.1 |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | Baidu | Baidu |
| Tier | Balanced | Balanced |
| Context window | Winner: 128K | 64K |
| Max output | Not verifiedUnverified | Not verifiedUnverified |
| Input / 1M tokens | $1.40 | Winner: $0.59 |
| Output / 1M tokens | $5.60 | Winner: $2.65 |
| Weights | Closed | Closed |
| Parameters | 2.4T multimodal | ~800B |
| Reasoning levels | low, medium, high | low, medium, high |
| Modalities | text, image | text, image |
| API model id | ernie-5.0 | ernie-5.1 |
| Released | January 22, 2026 | May 9, 2026 |
| Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index (2026-08-14) | 45 | Winner: 48 |
Prices are USD per million tokens at standard rates, excluding batch and caching discounts. Bold indicates the better figure where one is objectively better. Values we could not confirm from the provider are shown as “Not verified” rather than estimated.
Benchmark receipts
- 2026-08-14: Artificial AnalysisComposite index blending reasoning, knowledge, and coding evals into one 0–100 score. Comparability: directly comparable — AA occasionally rebaselines the index scale between snapshots — a score captured on one date is only comparable to same-snapshot scores (check measuredAt).
Pricing tiers: Baidu ERNIE 5.0: $1.40/$5.60 per MTok (Baidu international USD list; domestic CNY ¥6/¥24 ≈ $0.89/$3.54). Closed API. · Baidu ERNIE 5.1: $0.59 input / ~$2.65 output per MTok via Qianfan (output single-source; official USD list not retrievable). Context per Qianfan console: 64K.
Baidu ERNIE 5.0
ERNIE 5.0 is Baidu's previous-generation 2.4T multimodal flagship.
Best for
- Chinese-language work
- Enterprise (China)
- Multimodal
Watch out
Closed API; superseded by ERNIE 5.1.
Baidu ERNIE 5.1
ERNIE 5.1 is Baidu's closed flagship with ~800B params and strong Chinese-language performance.
Best for
- Chinese-language work
- Enterprise (China)
- Multimodal
Watch out
Closed API; weights not published.
When the cheaper one wins
Baidu ERNIE 5.1 is cheaper on output at $2.65 per million tokens against $5.60 for Baidu ERNIE 5.0 — about 2.1×. Use the cheaper tier for classification, extraction, summarisation, and any task where the expensive model’s extra score does not change the accepted output. The expensive one only pays if your hardest task actually fails on the cheap tier. These are standard-tier API rates, excluding batch and cache discounts.
Run the model pickerEvidence confidence: High
How strong and complete the evidence behind this comparison is — not a prediction of which model is better.
- Pricing verified on both sides — Input and output rates are verified for both models.
- 4/5 core specs verified on both sides — Not published for at least one side: max output.
- 1 shared named benchmark with differing scores — Measured on: Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index.
- Verified within the last 90 days — Newest catalog check was 9 days ago.
- Both models carry source citations — Each side has at least two catalog sources on record.
Source receipts
Each catalog figure was checked against the provider or an independent second source on the date shown.
- Baidu ERNIE 5.0: Baidu — ERNIE 5.0 (accessed 2026-08-29)
- Baidu ERNIE 5.0: LLMReference — ERNIE 5.0 (accessed 2026-08-29)
- Baidu ERNIE 5.1: Baidu — ERNIE 5.1 (accessed 2026-08-29)
- Baidu ERNIE 5.1: HowAIWorks — ERNIE 5.1 (accessed 2026-08-29)
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- Cohere Command A+ vs Baidu ERNIE 5.0
- Cohere Command A+ vs Baidu ERNIE 5.1
Diving deeper on one model? Baidu ERNIE 5.0 · Baidu ERNIE 5.1
Common questions
Baidu ERNIE 5.0 vs Baidu ERNIE 5.1
Answered from the verified figures on this page rather than general guidance.
Is Baidu ERNIE 5.0 or Baidu ERNIE 5.1 cheaper for input?
Baidu ERNIE 5.1 is cheaper at $0.59 per million input tokens, against $1.40 for Baidu ERNIE 5.0 — roughly 2.4× the price. Output tokens usually dominate a real bill, so weigh the output rate more heavily than the input rate. These are base rates; Baidu ERNIE 5.0 has tiered pricing: $1.40/$5.60 per MTok (Baidu international USD list; domestic CNY ¥6/¥24 ≈ $0.89/$3.54). Closed API. Baidu ERNIE 5.1 has tiered pricing: $0.59 input / ~$2.65 output per MTok via Qianfan (output single-source; official USD list not retrievable). Context per Qianfan console: 64K.
Is Baidu ERNIE 5.0 or Baidu ERNIE 5.1 cheaper for output?
Baidu ERNIE 5.1 is cheaper at $2.65 per million output tokens, against $5.60 for Baidu ERNIE 5.0 — roughly 2.1× the price. Output tokens usually dominate a real bill, so weigh the output rate more heavily than the input rate. These are base rates; Baidu ERNIE 5.0 has tiered pricing: $1.40/$5.60 per MTok (Baidu international USD list; domestic CNY ¥6/¥24 ≈ $0.89/$3.54). Closed API. Baidu ERNIE 5.1 has tiered pricing: $0.59 input / ~$2.65 output per MTok via Qianfan (output single-source; official USD list not retrievable). Context per Qianfan console: 64K.
Which has the larger context window, Baidu ERNIE 5.0 or Baidu ERNIE 5.1?
Baidu ERNIE 5.0 accepts 128K tokens against 64K for Baidu ERNIE 5.1. This only matters if you routinely send very long documents or large codebases.
Do Baidu ERNIE 5.0 and Baidu ERNIE 5.1 support the same reasoning levels?
Yes — both accept the same effort settings: "low", "medium", "high". Higher effort costs more and takes longer, so start low and raise it only where output quality actually improves.
Should I use Baidu ERNIE 5.0 or Baidu ERNIE 5.1?
Both sit in the balanced tier, so the choice usually comes down to price and context rather than capability. Baidu ERNIE 5.0 suits chinese-language work; Baidu ERNIE 5.1 suits chinese-language work.
Next step
Choosing between them
The verified figures that separate this pair, computed from the catalog rather than restated boilerplate.
- Input price: Baidu ERNIE 5.1 costs $0.59 per 1M tokens versus $1.40 for Baidu ERNIE 5.0 — a 2.4x difference at the headline tier.
- Context: Baidu ERNIE 5.0 takes 128K against 64K for Baidu ERNIE 5.1 — only decisive if your prompts approach the smaller window.
- Measured capability: Baidu ERNIE 5.1 leads Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index 48 to 45 (measured 2026-08-14).
Choosing a harness rather than a model — Cursor, Copilot, Claude Code, Windsurf, or Lovable? Compare agentic harnesses · Latest releases.