GLM-5.3 (Low) vs Step 5 Preview
Which is better for the money: GLM-5.3 (Low) by Z AI or Step 5 Preview by StepFun? Intelligence, total benchmark cost, and end-to-end time from Artificial Analysis & other sources, snapshot 2026-10-25.
Trade-off
Verdict
Depends on your budget
Step 5 Preview scores 9.4 points higher (43.7 vs 34.3) but costs 1.2× as much to run the benchmark ($1190 vs $1013; both premium class). Pick Step 5 Preview when the extra intelligence is worth the premium, otherwise GLM-5.3 (Low).
| Metric | GLM-5.3 (Low) | Step 5 Preview | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Intelligence (higher is better) | 34.3 | 43.7 | +27.4% Step 5 Preview is 27.4% more intelligent |
| Total AA cost (lower is better) | $1,012.50 | $1,190.26 | +17.6% Step 5 Preview is 17.6% more expensive |
| End-to-end time (lower is better) | 31.17s | 12.01s | −61.5% Step 5 Preview is 61.5% faster |
| Price per 1M tokens (in / out) | $1.40 / $4.40 | $1.00 / $2.70 | |
| Input modalities | Text | Text, Image |
Step 5 Preview vs GLM-5.3 (Low): 27.4% more intelligence, 17.6% more cost to run the AA benchmark, and 61.5% faster end-to-end.
Today's Pareto frontier
Against the frontier
- GLM-5.3 (Low) is off the frontier: at the same or lower cost, GPT-6.1 Sol (Xhigh) scores 51.00 for $662.
- Step 5 Preview is off the frontier: at the same or lower cost, GPT-6.1 Sol (Max) scores 51.80 for $1082.
GLM-5.3 (Low)Step 5 PreviewToday'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-5-3-low/step-5 · Markdown: /api/v1/compare/glm-5-3-low/step-5?format=md · llms.txt · agent skill