GLM 5.2 Open vs 
GPT-4.1 Paid
GLM 5.2 vs GPT-4.1 compared — price per token, context window, multimodality, openness and which to choose. Can the open-source model replace the paid one? Full 2026 breakdown.
Prices & specs refreshed from live data · OpenSourceAI.tech
Open-model prices = cheapest provider via OpenRouter; official maker rates may be higher.
GLM 5.2 vs GPT-4.1 specs
| Spec | GLM 5.2 | GPT-4.1 |
|---|---|---|
| Maker | Z.AI | OpenAI |
| Type | Open-weight | Proprietary |
| Context window | 1M tokens | 1M tokens |
| Input price | $0.78/M · free self-host | $2/M |
| Output price | $2.44/M · free self-host | $8/M |
| Vision / multimodal | No | Yes |
| Tool / function calling | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hostable | Yes | No (API only) |
| License | MIT | Proprietary |
Feature comparison
| Capability | GLM 5.2 | GPT-4.1 |
|---|---|---|
| Open weights (downloadable) | ✓ | ✗ |
| Self-hostable | ✓ | ✗ |
| Runs fully offline | ✓ | ✗ |
| Vision / multimodal | ✗ | ✓ |
| Tool / function calling | ✓ | ✓ |
| 1M+ context window | ✓ | ✓ |
Benchmarks: GLM 5.2 vs GPT-4.1
Independent benchmark scores measured by Artificial Analysis. Higher is better (except latency).
Benchmark data by Artificial Analysis.
How GLM 5.2 and GPT-4.1 score
| Criterion | GLM 5.2 | GPT-4.1 |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-efficiency | 4.5 | 3.5 |
| Context window | 5.0 | 5.0 |
| Openness | 5.0 | 1.5 |
| Self-hosting | 5.0 | 1.0 |
| Multimodality | 3.5 | 5.0 |
Scores come from live data — output price (cost), context length, open vs closed weights (openness & self-hosting) and vision/tool support (multimodality). Raw task quality isn't scored here; it depends on your benchmark — see the verdict.
What each model is
GLM 5.2 Open
GLM 5.2 is a large-scale reasoning model from Z.ai. It supports text input and output with a 1M-token context window, and is suited for long-horizon agent workflows, project-level software engineering,...
GPT-4.1 Paid
GPT-4.1 is a flagship large language model optimized for advanced instruction following, real-world software engineering, and long-context reasoning. It supports a 1 million token context window and outperforms GPT-4o and...
Other models in these families
These variants are tracked but not compared here — one page per family keeps the comparison readable.
Frequently asked questions
Is GLM 5.2 as good as GPT-4.1?
GLM 5.2 is open-weight and competitive on many tasks, but GPT-4.1 may still lead on the hardest reasoning and agentic work. The gap keeps narrowing — benchmark both on your actual use case before deciding.
Can I run GLM 5.2 locally?
Yes. GLM 5.2 has open weights, so you can self-host it on your own GPUs or run it via a low-cost API. GPT-4.1 is API-only and cannot be self-hosted.
How much cheaper is GLM 5.2?
GLM 5.2 costs $2.44/M output vs $8/M for GPT-4.1 — roughly 3x cheaper via API, and free if you self-host.
GLM 5.2 vs GPT-4.1 — which should I pick in 2026?
Choose GLM 5.2 if you want to self-host, keep your data private and skip per-token fees — it's open-weight and runs on your own hardware. Choose GPT-4.1 if you want frontier capability through a managed API with zero infrastructure to run.
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