GLM-5.2 (Max) vs GPT-5.6 Luna (Low)
Which is better for the money: GLM-5.2 (Max) by Z AI or GPT-5.6 Luna (Low) by OpenAI? Intelligence, total benchmark cost, and end-to-end time from Artificial Analysis & other sources, snapshot 2026-10-26.
Trade-off
Verdict
Depends on your budget
GLM-5.2 (Max) scores 12.7 points higher (33.7 vs 21.0) but costs 78× as much to run the benchmark ($2097 vs $27.0; flagship vs budget cost classes). They are not alternatives at one budget: pick GLM-5.2 (Max) when you need intelligence above 21.0, and GPT-5.6 Luna (Low) when 21.0 is enough.
| Metric | GLM-5.2 (Max) | GPT-5.6 Luna (Low) | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Intelligence (higher is better) | 33.7 | 21.0 | −37.7% GPT-5.6 Luna (Low) is 37.7% less intelligent |
| Total AA cost (lower is better) | $2,097.29 | $27.02 | −98.7% GPT-5.6 Luna (Low) is 98.7% cheaper |
| End-to-end time (lower is better) | 28.50s | 5.90s | −79.3% GPT-5.6 Luna (Low) is 79.3% faster |
| Price per 1M tokens (in / out) | $1.40 / $4.40 | $0.20 / $1.20 | |
| Input modalities | Text | Text, Image |
GPT-5.6 Luna (Low) vs GLM-5.2 (Max): 37.7% less intelligence, 98.7% less cost to run the AA benchmark, and 79.3% faster end-to-end.
Today's Pareto frontier
Against the frontier
- GLM-5.2 (Max) is off the frontier: at the same or lower cost, GPT-6.1 Sol (Max) scores 51.80 for $1082.
- GPT-5.6 Luna (Low) is off the frontier: at the same or lower cost, GPT-6 Luna (Low) scores 21.50 for $10.6.
GLM-5.2 (Max)GPT-5.6 Luna (Low)Today's Pareto frontierOpen-weights frontierEvery other model
Matchup
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Accept: text/markdown or ?format=md returns this page as Markdown. JSON: /api/v1/compare/glm-5-2/gpt-5-6-luna-low · Markdown: /api/v1/compare/glm-5-2/gpt-5-6-luna-low?format=md · llms.txt · agent skill