DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 vs GLM-5.3: price, scores, context

Side-by-side comparison

Criterion	DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017	GLM-5.3
Developer	DeepSeek	Zhipu AI (Z.ai)
Released	October 17, 2026	August 14, 2026
Capability index	90.6 / 100	78.8 / 100
Input price	$0.15	$1.2
Output price	$0.60	$4.18
Cost of a typical task	$0.004	$0.032
Context window	1,048,576 tokens	1,000,000 tokens
Maximum output	393,216 tokens	131,072 tokens
Reasoning mode	Yes	Yes
Tool calling	Yes	Yes
Accepted inputs	text, image	text
Open weights	Yes	Yes
Knowledge cutoff	May 2025	Not disclosed

What are we comparing?

DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 and GLM-5.3 are two open-weight models that you can install on your own servers, one from DeepSeek, the other from Zhipu AI (Z.ai). DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 was released on October 17, 2026, GLM-5.3 on August 14, 2026.

All figures below come from public sources checked on October 22, 2026: models.dev and OpenRouter for prices and capabilities, Epoch AI for scores.

Performance

On our capability index, DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 scores 90.6 out of 100 and GLM-5.3 78.8. DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 leads by 11.8 points.

On the 3 benchmarks reported for both, DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 wins 3 times and GLM-5.3 0:

GPQA Diamond (PhD-level science questions): DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 93.2%, GLM-5.3 90.9%
OTIS Mock AIME (competition mathematics problems): DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 99.4%, GLM-5.3 91.1%
FrontierMath (very hard research-level mathematics): DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 71.2%, GLM-5.3 68.8%

Pricing

DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 costs $0.15 per million input tokens and $0.60 per million output tokens; GLM-5.3 costs $1.2 and $4.18.

For a typical agent task (read 20,000 tokens, write 2,000), expect $0.004 with DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 versus $0.032 with GLM-5.3. DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 is 7.7 times cheaper, a gap that adds up quickly over 1,000 tasks: $28.07 difference.

Run the numbers with your own volumes in the agent cost calculator.

Features and limits

DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 reads more in one go: 1,048,576 tokens of context (roughly 1,573 pages), versus 1,000,000 for GLM-5.3.

Reasoning mode: DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 yes, GLM-5.3 yes. Tool calling: DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 yes, GLM-5.3 yes. Image input: DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 yes, GLM-5.3 no.

Both publish their weights: you can host them yourself.

In short

Our reading of the data:

Choose DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 for a higher capability index, a lower cost, a more recent release and image input.

This verdict relies on public figures; it does not replace a trial on your own tasks.

Frequently asked questions

DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 or GLM-5.3: which is better?

On our index (Epoch AI data), DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 scores 90.6 and GLM-5.3 78.8 out of 100. The best choice also depends on price and on your use case.

Which one is cheaper?

DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017. To read 20,000 tokens and write 2,000, expect $0.004 with DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 and $0.032 with GLM-5.3 (prices as of October 22, 2026).

Which one has the larger context window?

DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017, with 1,048,576 tokens versus 1,000,000.

Can I run DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 or GLM-5.3 on my own servers?

Yes, both publish their weights. Check each license before commercial use.

DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 versus GLM-5.3