Qwen3 235B A22B vs Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Thinking
Side-by-side comparison of VRAM requirements, quantization, context length, and hardware compatibility.
Specifications
| Qwen3 235B A22B | Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Thinking | |
|---|---|---|
| Parameters | 235.1B | 81.3B |
| Context | 41K | 262K |
| Architecture | Qwen3MoeForCausalLM | Qwen3NextForCausalLM |
| License | Apache 2.0 | Apache 2.0 |
| Downloads | 517.3K | 31.0K |
| Released | — | — |
VRAM by Quantization: Qwen3 235B A22B vs Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Thinking
| Quantization | Bits | Qwen3 235B A22B VRAM | Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Thinking VRAM |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q2_K | 3.40 | 100.4 GB | 35.0 GB |
| Q3_K_M | 3.90 | 115.1 GB | 40.0 GB |
| Q3_K_S | 3.50 | 103.3 GB | 36.0 GB |
| Q4_0 | 4.00 | — | 41.1 GB |
| Q4_K_M | 4.80 | 141.6 GB | 49.2 GB |
| Q5_K_M | 5.70 | 168 GB | 58.3 GB |
| Q6_K | 6.60 | 194.4 GB | 67.5 GB |
| Q8_0 | 8.00 | 235.6 GB | 81.7 GB |
Verdict
Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Thinking needs less VRAM at Q4_K_M (49.2 GB vs 141.6 GB), so it fits on smaller GPUs. Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Thinking supports a longer context window (262K tokens). Qwen3 235B A22B is the more widely downloaded of the two.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Which needs less VRAM, Qwen3 235B A22B or Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Thinking?
At Q4_K_M, Qwen3 235B A22B needs 141.6 GB and Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Thinking needs 49.2 GB, so Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Thinking is the lighter option to run locally.
- Which has a longer context window, Qwen3 235B A22B or Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Thinking?
Qwen3 235B A22B supports 40,960 tokens and Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Thinking supports 262,144 tokens.
- What is the difference between Qwen3 235B A22B and Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Thinking?
Qwen3 235B A22B is a 235.1B model from Alibaba (Qwen family), while Qwen3 Next 80B A3B Thinking is a 81.3B model from Alibaba (Qwen family). Compare their VRAM requirements above to see which fits your GPU or Mac.