Model comparison
Gemini 3.5 Flash vs GLM 5.2
Google against Z.ai, compared on context, price, and verified benchmark results.
Catalog record checked September 3, 2026Individual provider fields may changeEvidence confidence: High — see receipts below
Gemini 3.5 Flash
Balanced
Z.ai
GLM 5.2
Balanced · Open weights
| Specification | Gemini 3.5 Flash | GLM 5.2 |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | Z.ai | |
| Tier | Balanced | Balanced |
| Context window | 1M | 1M |
| Max output | 64K | Winner: 128K |
| Input / 1M tokens | $1.50 | Winner: $1.40 |
| Output / 1M tokens | $9 | Winner: $4.40 |
| Weights | Closed | Open |
| Parameters | Not disclosedUnverified | open MoE |
| Reasoning levels | low, medium, high | low, high, max |
| Modalities | text, image, video, audio, pdf | text |
| API model id | gemini-3.5-flash | glm-5.2 |
| Released | May 19, 2026 | March 15, 2026 |
| Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index (2026-08-14) | Winner: 53 | 50 |
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: Gemini 3.5 Flash: $1.50/$9.00 per MTok (single aggregator source — verify before publishing). Multimodal input. · GLM 5.2: Z.ai's per-token table lists $1.40/$4.40 per MTok (same list as 5.3). Open-weight, text-only; 1M context, 128K max output per Z.ai docs.
Gemini 3.5 Flash
Gemini 3.5 Flash is Google's agent-focused Flash tier launched at Google I/O 2026.
Best for
- Agentic workflows
- Multimodal input
- High-volume work
Watch out
Price is single-source; confirm on Google Cloud before relying on it.
GLM 5.2
GLM 5.2 is Zhipu's previous-generation open-weight model with strong cost-performance.
Best for
- Open-weight deployments
- Reasoning
- Cost-sensitive work
Watch out
Superseded by GLM 5.3 (Coding Plan 5.2/5.1 requests route to 5.3). Parameter count: sources disagree.
When the cheaper one wins
GLM 5.2 is cheaper on output at $4.40 per million tokens against $9 for Gemini 3.5 Flash — about 2.0×. 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: parameter count.
- 1 shared named benchmark with differing scores — Measured on: Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index.
- Verified within the last 90 days — Newest catalog check was 8 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.
- Gemini 3.5 Flash: Google — Gemini 3.5 Flash (accessed 2026-08-29)
- Gemini 3.5 Flash: Google Cloud Gemini pricing (accessed 2026-08-29)
- GLM 5.2: HuggingFace — Z.ai (GLM) (accessed 2026-08-29)
- GLM 5.2: Z.ai (accessed 2026-08-29)
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- Claude Sonnet 5 vs Gemini 3.5 Flash
- Claude Sonnet 5 vs GLM 5.2
- Cohere Command A+ vs Gemini 3.5 Flash
Diving deeper on one model? Gemini 3.5 Flash · GLM 5.2
Common questions
Gemini 3.5 Flash vs GLM 5.2
Answered from the verified figures on this page rather than general guidance.
Is Gemini 3.5 Flash or GLM 5.2 cheaper for input?
GLM 5.2 is cheaper at $1.40 per million input tokens, against $1.50 for Gemini 3.5 Flash — roughly 1.1× the price. Output tokens usually dominate a real bill, so weigh the output rate more heavily than the input rate. These are base rates; Gemini 3.5 Flash has tiered pricing: $1.50/$9.00 per MTok (single aggregator source — verify before publishing). Multimodal input. GLM 5.2 has tiered pricing: Z.ai's per-token table lists $1.40/$4.40 per MTok (same list as 5.3). Open-weight, text-only; 1M context, 128K max output per Z.ai docs.
Is Gemini 3.5 Flash or GLM 5.2 cheaper for output?
GLM 5.2 is cheaper at $4.40 per million output tokens, against $9 for Gemini 3.5 Flash — roughly 2.0× the price. Output tokens usually dominate a real bill, so weigh the output rate more heavily than the input rate. These are base rates; Gemini 3.5 Flash has tiered pricing: $1.50/$9.00 per MTok (single aggregator source — verify before publishing). Multimodal input. GLM 5.2 has tiered pricing: Z.ai's per-token table lists $1.40/$4.40 per MTok (same list as 5.3). Open-weight, text-only; 1M context, 128K max output per Z.ai docs.
Which has the larger context window, Gemini 3.5 Flash or GLM 5.2?
Both accept about 1M tokens of context, so document length will not decide between them.
Do Gemini 3.5 Flash and GLM 5.2 support the same reasoning levels?
Gemini 3.5 Flash exposes low, medium, high, while GLM 5.2 exposes low, high, max.
Should I use Gemini 3.5 Flash or GLM 5.2?
Both sit in the balanced tier, so the choice usually comes down to price and context rather than capability. Gemini 3.5 Flash suits agentic workflows; GLM 5.2 suits open-weight deployments.
Can I self-host Gemini 3.5 Flash or GLM 5.2?
GLM 5.2 publishes open weights, but self-hosting and third-party provider access depend on the licence, hardware, serving support, and availability. Gemini 3.5 Flash is a closed model whose supported access paths are controlled by its provider.
Next step
Choosing between them
The verified figures that separate this pair, computed from the catalog rather than restated boilerplate.
- Input price: GLM 5.2 costs $1.40 per 1M tokens versus $1.50 for Gemini 3.5 Flash — a 1.1x difference at the headline tier.
- Measured capability: Gemini 3.5 Flash leads Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index 53 to 50 (measured 2026-08-14).
- Deployment: GLM 5.2 publishes weights you can self-host; the other is API-only.
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