LongCat-2.5 vs Qwen 3.7 Max
Meituan · China | Alibaba · China · Updated June 2026
Quick verdict
Pick LongCat-2.5 for native multimodal upgrade to longcat-2.0 - 1.6t total parameters, about 48b active per token or limited-time api price of $0.30/$1.20 per million tokens (cached input $0.006). Pick Qwen 3.7 Max for long-horizon agentic coding (swe-bench pro 60.6, terminal-bench 2.0 69.7) or 1m-token long-document and full-codebase analysis. On a tight budget at scale, LongCat-2.5 is the value pick.
LongCat-2.5 (Meituan) and Qwen 3.7 Max (Alibaba) are two of the models people most often weigh against each other in 2026. LongCat-2.5 is meituan's November 2, 2026 natively multimodal successor to LongCat-2.0 - 1.6T parameters and 1M context at $0.30/$1.20, with open weights planned but undated. Qwen 3.7 Max is alibaba's agent-first frontier model — a 1M-token context and long-horizon coding at about half the cost of US flagships. Their biggest split is price, and the breakdown below shows exactly how that plays out for your workload.
Key differences at a glance
- ▸Price: LongCat-2.5 is about 8.3× cheaper on input ($0.3/$1.2 per 1M tokens vs $2.5/$7.5 per 1M tokens) — a large enough gap that at scale it can be the single biggest line item in the decision.
- ▸Context window: both advertise 1M tokens (~1,500 pages). Tie on paper — test on your own long inputs, since usable recall varies by model.
- ▸Recency: LongCat-2.5 is the newer model by about 6 months (released November 2, 2026), usually meaning fresher training data and capabilities.
Side-by-side specs
| Spec | LongCat-2.5 | Qwen 3.7 Max |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | Meituan (China) | Alibaba (China) |
| Released | November 2, 2026 | May 20, 2026 |
| Context window | 1M tokens (~1,500 pages) | 1M (~1,500 pages) |
| Price (in/out) | $0.3/$1.2 per 1M tokens | $2.5/$7.5 per 1M tokens |
| Open weight? | No — API only | No — API only |
| Modalities | text, image, code | text, code |
| SWE-Bench Verified | Not published | Not published |
| MRCR v2 @ 1M | Not published | Not published |
Who wins what
Native multimodal upgrade to LongCat-2.0 - 1.6T total parameters, about 48B active per token
LongCat-2.5
Meituan's November 2, 2026 natively multimodal successor to LongCat-2.0 - 1.6T parameters and 1M context at $0.30/$1.20, with open weights planned but undated — and it runs cheaper at $0.3/$1.2 per 1M tokens.
Limited-time API price of $0.30/$1.20 per million tokens (cached input $0.006)
LongCat-2.5
At $0.3/$1.2 per 1M tokens it undercuts Qwen 3.7 Max ($2.5/$7.5 per 1M tokens), and that gap compounds at volume.
Meituan-reported Terminal-Bench v2.1 of 88.4, up from 70.8 for LongCat-2.0
LongCat-2.5
Meituan's November 2, 2026 natively multimodal successor to LongCat-2.0 - 1.6T parameters and 1M context at $0.30/$1.20, with open weights planned but undated — and it is the newer of the two.
Long-horizon agentic coding (SWE-Bench Pro 60.6, Terminal-Bench 2.0 69.7)
Qwen 3.7 Max
LongCat-2.5 is comparatively weak here — benchmarks are Meituan's own, and sources found no independent score at launch
1M-token long-document and full-codebase analysis
Qwen 3.7 Max
Qwen 3.7 Max lists 1M-token long-document and full-codebase analysis among its strengths; LongCat-2.5 does not.
MCP tool orchestration and multi-hour autonomous runs
Qwen 3.7 Max
Qwen 3.7 Max lists mCP tool orchestration and multi-hour autonomous runs among its strengths; LongCat-2.5 does not.
Lowest cost at scale
LongCat-2.5
At $0.3/$1.2 per 1M tokens, it is the cheaper of the two — the gap dominates the bill on high-volume workloads.
Which should you pick?
A cost-sensitive startup shipping high volume
→ LongCat-2.5
At $0.3/$1.2 per 1M tokens it undercuts Qwen 3.7 Max, and on millions of tokens that margin decides the monthly bill.
Anyone whose priority is native multimodal upgrade to longcat-2.0 - 1.6t total parameters, about 48b active per token
→ LongCat-2.5
It is specifically built for that.
Anyone whose priority is long-horizon agentic coding (swe-bench pro 60.6, terminal-bench 2.0 69.7)
→ Qwen 3.7 Max
That is its strongest area.
LongCat-2.5: where it fits
Meituan's November 2, 2026 natively multimodal successor to LongCat-2.0 - 1.6T parameters and 1M context at $0.30/$1.20, with open weights planned but undated. Released November 2, 2026 by Meituan, it is built for native multimodal upgrade to LongCat-2.0 - 1.6T total parameters, about 48B active per token, limited-time API price of $0.30/$1.20 per million tokens (cached input $0.006), meituan-reported Terminal-Bench v2.1 of 88.4, up from 70.8 for LongCat-2.0, and openAI- and Anthropic-compatible API endpoints with a 1M-token context window.
Its trade-offs are real: aPI-only for now - GitHub and Hugging Face releases are planned but undated, and the license is unconfirmed (LongCat-2.0 is MIT), the $0.30/$1.20 rate is labeled limited-time, and Meituan says prices are subject to change, and benchmarks are Meituan's own, and sources found no independent score at launch. At $0.3 in / $1.2 out per million tokens, it sits in the budget price band.
Qwen 3.7 Max: where it fits
Alibaba's agent-first frontier model — a 1M-token context and long-horizon coding at about half the cost of US flagships. Released May 20, 2026 by Alibaba, it is built for long-horizon agentic coding (SWE-Bench Pro 60.6, Terminal-Bench 2.0 69.7), 1M-token long-document and full-codebase analysis, mCP tool orchestration and multi-hour autonomous runs, and frontier intelligence at roughly half the price of US flagships.
Its trade-offs: text-only — no vision input (the Plus variant adds images), closed-weight, API-only — no self-hosting, trails GPT-5.5 and Claude Opus on the hardest one-shot reasoning, and chinese-jurisdiction data-residency considerations. At $2.5 in / $7.5 out per million tokens, it sits in the mid price band.
The bottom line for this matchup
LongCat-2.5 and Qwen 3.7 Max overlap enough that the right pick depends on your specific job. LongCat-2.5 costs less per token; and each leads in its own area — LongCat-2.5 for native multimodal upgrade to longcat-2.0 - 1.6t total parameters, about 48b active per token, Qwen 3.7 Max for long-horizon agentic coding (swe-bench pro 60.6, terminal-bench 2.0 69.7). Rather than crowning one, run the same hard task through both once and let the results decide.
Want both LongCat-2.5 and Qwen 3.7 Max 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 LongCat-2.5 or Qwen 3.7 Max 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, LongCat-2.5 leans toward native multimodal upgrade to longcat-2.0 - 1.6t total parameters, about 48b active per token while Qwen 3.7 Max leans toward long-horizon agentic coding (swe-bench pro 60.6, terminal-bench 2.0 69.7), and that positioning usually predicts which feels better on your codebase.
Which is cheaper, LongCat-2.5 or Qwen 3.7 Max?
LongCat-2.5 is cheaper — $0.3/$1.2 per 1M tokens vs $2.5/$7.5 per 1M tokens, roughly 8.3× apart on input.
Which has the bigger context window?
Both advertise 1M tokens (~1,500 pages). Remember advertised ≠ usable: recall typically degrades before the ceiling.
Can I use both LongCat-2.5 and Qwen 3.7 Max together?
Yes — a multi-model platform like LumiChats gives you LongCat-2.5, Qwen 3.7 Max 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, LongCat-2.5 or Qwen 3.7 Max?
LongCat-2.5 — released November 2, 2026, about 6 months after Qwen 3.7 Max.
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.