DeepSeek V4-Pro vs LongCat-2.0
DeepSeek · China | Meituan · China · Updated June 2026
Quick verdict
Pick DeepSeek V4-Pro for open-weight 1.6t moe (~49b active) — deepseek's largest, self-hostable or 1m-token context with up to 384k output tokens. Pick LongCat-2.0 for near-frontier agentic coding — topped openrouter anonymously as 'owl alpha' for two months or massive native 1m context at near-linear cost via sparse attention. On a tight budget at scale, LongCat-2.0 is the value pick.
DeepSeek V4-Pro (DeepSeek) and LongCat-2.0 (Meituan) are two of the models people most often weigh against each other in 2026. DeepSeek V4-Pro is deepSeek's 1.6-trillion-parameter open-weight model at $0.435/$0.87 — strong open-weight coding and a 1M context at a fraction of flagship prices. LongCat-2.0 is a trillion-parameter, MIT-licensed open MoE delivering near-frontier agentic coding at 1M context — trained entirely on Chinese chips. Their biggest split is price, and the breakdown below shows exactly how that plays out for your workload.
Key differences at a glance
- ▸Context window: both advertise 1M (~1,500 pages). Tie on paper — test on your own long inputs, since usable recall varies by model.
- ▸Recency: LongCat-2.0 is the newer model by about 2 months (released July 5, 2026), usually meaning fresher training data and capabilities.
Side-by-side specs
| Spec | DeepSeek V4-Pro | LongCat-2.0 |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | DeepSeek (China) | Meituan (China) |
| Released | April 24, 2026 | July 5, 2026 |
| Context window | 1M (~1,500 pages) | 1M (~1,500 pages) |
| Price (in/out) | $0.66/$1.98 per 1M tokens | Open weight (self-host / free) |
| Open weight? | Yes — self-hostable | Yes — self-hostable |
| Modalities | text, code | text, code |
| SWE-Bench Verified | Not published | Not published |
| MRCR v2 @ 1M | Not published | Not published |
Who wins what
Open-weight 1.6T MoE (~49B active) — DeepSeek's largest, self-hostable
DeepSeek V4-Pro
DeepSeek V4-Pro lists open-weight 1.6T MoE (~49B active) — DeepSeek's largest, self-hostable among its strengths; LongCat-2.0 does not.
1M-token context with up to 384K output tokens
DeepSeek V4-Pro
DeepSeek V4-Pro lists 1M-token context with up to 384K output tokens among its strengths; LongCat-2.0 does not.
Permanent low pricing at $0.435/$0.87 per million, set May 2026
DeepSeek V4-Pro
DeepSeek V4-Pro lists permanent low pricing at $0.435/$0.87 per million, set May 2026 among its strengths; LongCat-2.0 does not.
Near-frontier agentic coding — topped OpenRouter anonymously as 'Owl Alpha' for two months
LongCat-2.0
A trillion-parameter, MIT-licensed open MoE delivering near-frontier agentic coding at 1M context — trained entirely on Chinese chips — and it is the newer of the two.
Massive native 1M context at near-linear cost via sparse attention
LongCat-2.0
LongCat-2.0 lists massive native 1M context at near-linear cost via sparse attention among its strengths; DeepSeek V4-Pro does not.
Fully MIT-licensed 1.6T-parameter mixture-of-experts (about 48B active)
LongCat-2.0
LongCat-2.0 lists fully MIT-licensed 1.6T-parameter mixture-of-experts (about 48B active) among its strengths; DeepSeek V4-Pro does not.
Lowest cost at scale
LongCat-2.0
Its weights are open, so at volume you pay for your own hardware instead of DeepSeek V4-Pro's $0.66/$1.98 per 1M tokens.
Which should you pick?
A cost-sensitive startup shipping high volume
→ LongCat-2.0
At Open weight (self-host / free) it undercuts DeepSeek V4-Pro, and on millions of tokens that margin decides the monthly bill.
Anyone whose priority is open-weight 1.6t moe (~49b active) — deepseek's largest, self-hostable
→ DeepSeek V4-Pro
It is specifically built for that.
Anyone whose priority is near-frontier agentic coding — topped openrouter anonymously as 'owl alpha' for two months
→ LongCat-2.0
That is its strongest area.
DeepSeek V4-Pro: where it fits
DeepSeek's 1.6-trillion-parameter open-weight model at $0.435/$0.87 — strong open-weight coding and a 1M context at a fraction of flagship prices. Released April 24, 2026 by DeepSeek, it is built for open-weight 1.6T MoE (~49B active) — DeepSeek's largest, self-hostable, 1M-token context with up to 384K output tokens, permanent low pricing at $0.435/$0.87 per million, set May 2026, and sources place it near the top of open-weight coding, around 80 on SWE-Bench Verified.
Its trade-offs are real: independent SWE-Bench Verified placement is inconsistent across sources, pro and Pro-Max variants are quoted with different scores, text and code only — no image, audio or video, and overlaps DeepSeek V4 and V3.2 already in this comparison. At $0.66 in / $1.98 out per million tokens, it sits in the budget price band.
LongCat-2.0: where it fits
A trillion-parameter, MIT-licensed open MoE delivering near-frontier agentic coding at 1M context — trained entirely on Chinese chips. Released July 5, 2026 by Meituan, it is built for near-frontier agentic coding — topped OpenRouter anonymously as 'Owl Alpha' for two months, massive native 1M context at near-linear cost via sparse attention, fully MIT-licensed 1.6T-parameter mixture-of-experts (about 48B active), and trained end to end on domestic Chinese chips, independent of Nvidia hardware.
Its trade-offs: a 1.6T model is extremely expensive to self-host, so most use leans on the China-hosted API, and headline scores are vendor-reported on SWE-Bench Pro, not the Verified set. As an open-weight model, its running cost is your own hardware rather than a per-token fee.
The bottom line for this matchup
DeepSeek V4-Pro and LongCat-2.0 overlap enough that the right pick depends on your specific job. LongCat-2.0 costs less per token; and each leads in its own area — DeepSeek V4-Pro for open-weight 1.6t moe (~49b active) — deepseek's largest, self-hostable, LongCat-2.0 for near-frontier agentic coding — topped openrouter anonymously as 'owl alpha' for two months. Rather than crowning one, run the same hard task through both once and let the results decide.
Want both DeepSeek V4-Pro and LongCat-2.0 without two subscriptions? LumiChats gives you these plus 40+ models under one ₹69/day pass (about $1/day) — draft with one, cross-check with the other.
See pricingFrequently asked questions
Is DeepSeek V4-Pro or LongCat-2.0 better for coding?
Public SWE-Bench figures are not available for either model, so the honest test is your own repository — run an identical real bug through both. By design, DeepSeek V4-Pro leans toward open-weight 1.6t moe (~49b active) — deepseek's largest, self-hostable while LongCat-2.0 leans toward near-frontier agentic coding — topped openrouter anonymously as 'owl alpha' for two months, and that positioning usually predicts which feels better on your codebase.
Which is cheaper, DeepSeek V4-Pro or LongCat-2.0?
LongCat-2.0 is cheaper — $0.66/$1.98 per 1M tokens vs Open weight (self-host / free).
Which has the bigger context window?
Both advertise 1M (~1,500 pages). Remember advertised ≠ usable: recall typically degrades before the ceiling.
Can I use both DeepSeek V4-Pro and LongCat-2.0 together?
Yes — a multi-model platform like LumiChats gives you DeepSeek V4-Pro, LongCat-2.0 and 40+ others under one ₹69/day pass (about $1/day), so you can draft with one and cross-check with the other instead of buying two subscriptions.
Which is newer, DeepSeek V4-Pro or LongCat-2.0?
LongCat-2.0 — released July 5, 2026, about 2 months after DeepSeek V4-Pro.
Related comparisons
Specifications and benchmarks reflect publicly reported figures as of June 2026 and may change as providers release updates. Always verify on your own workload.