Qwen3.8 27B vs MiniMax M3

Qwen3.8 27B vs MiniMax M3 at a glance

Qwen3.8 27B from Alibaba Cloud and MiniMax M3 from MiniMax are both in the Text Generation category, available through the EmpirioLabs API.

Key differences

• Qwen3.8 27B is the newer release (Aug 14, 2026); MiniMax M3 was released on Jun 1, 2026.
• MiniMax M3 has the larger context window: 1M tokens, against 256K for Qwen3.8 27B.
• MiniMax M3 returns up to 524,288 output tokens per response, Qwen3.8 27B up to 32,768.
• Capabilities listed only for Qwen3.8 27B: multimodal, json mode, logprobs.
• Capabilities listed only for MiniMax M3: web search, long context.

Qwen3.8 27B vs MiniMax M3: specs

Qwen3.8 27B vs MiniMax M3: API pricing

Live rates from the EmpirioLabs catalog for both models. Each rate card always matches what the API charges.

Qwen3.8 27B vs MiniMax M3: API parameters

Request parameters each model lists on EmpirioLabs, with the allowed values or range where one applies. A dash marks a parameter the model does not list.

Qwen3.8 27B vs MiniMax M3: limits and notes

Qwen3.8 27B

Supports text, image, and video input, streaming, function tools, structured JSON output, seed control, and thinking mode on by default. Use reasoning_effort (xhigh, medium, low) or enable_thinking=false for direct answers. Automatic cache reads are billed at the cached-input rate when reported by the model service. Explicit cache controls are not supported. Open-weight context is 256K; hosted 1M context and official built-in tools are not included.

MiniMax M3

Text, image, and video input with text output. Thinking defaults to adaptive and can be disabled. Pricing is based on input tokens including cache hits: <=512K uses the discounted standard tier, while >512K uses the high-context tier. Supports up to 1M input tokens. Set tool_web_search to true to let the model search the web; each executed search is billed, and one request can run several searches. Answers that used web search end with a Sources list unless disable_formatting is true. Structured output through response_format is not supported; ask for JSON in the prompt instead.

How to call Qwen3.8 27B and MiniMax M3

Qwen3.8 27B serves the OpenAI-compatible Chat Completions API. Point any OpenAI SDK at https://api.empiriolabs.ai/v1 with your EmpirioLabs API key and use the model id qwen3-8-27b. Both models are called through the same endpoint. Set model to qwen3-8-27b or minimax-m3. Get an API key from the EmpirioLabs dashboard.

curl https://api.empiriolabs.ai/v1/chat/completions \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $EMPIRIOLABS_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "model": "qwen3-8-27b",
    "messages": [
      {"role": "user", "content": "Write a haiku about the ocean."}
    ]
  }'

Qwen3.8 27B vs MiniMax M3: common questions

What is the difference between Qwen3.8 27B and MiniMax M3?

Qwen3.8 27B is the newer release (Aug 14, 2026); MiniMax M3 was released on Jun 1, 2026. MiniMax M3 has the larger context window: 1M tokens, against 256K for Qwen3.8 27B. MiniMax M3 returns up to 524,288 output tokens per response, Qwen3.8 27B up to 32,768. The specs, rate cards, and parameters on this page come from the live EmpirioLabs catalog.

Which is newer, Qwen3.8 27B or MiniMax M3?

Qwen3.8 27B is the newer release (Aug 14, 2026); MiniMax M3 was released on Jun 1, 2026.

Which has the lower rate, Qwen3.8 27B or MiniMax M3?

The two models are priced on different units or tiers, so compare the live rate cards on this page. They always match what the API charges.

Can I switch between Qwen3.8 27B and MiniMax M3 without rebuilding my integration?

Yes. Both models use POST /v1/chat/completions with the same EmpirioLabs API key, so most integrations switch by changing the model value. Check the parameters table on this page first if you rely on a model-specific parameter.

Can I try Qwen3.8 27B and MiniMax M3 in the browser before integrating?

Yes. Open each model in the EmpirioLabs playground and run the same prompt on both, with the parameters the API exposes.