Qwen

Key facts: Qwen is Alibaba’s family of AI models, offered as a free chatbot at chat.qwen.ai and as open-weight models developers can run themselves. It is known for strong coding, mathematics and multilingual ability — including Chinese and English — and for a fast release cadence that keeps it near the frontier.

Plans: the Qwen chatbot is free to use. Developers can also use Qwen through APIs and self-hosted open-weight releases, with costs depending on the provider.

Best for: developers who want capable open models, multilingual teams, and anyone curious about the strongest non-Western frontier chatbot. Watch out: the ecosystem spans many model versions, so check which Qwen version you are actually using.

Pros

• Strong coding, mathematics and multilingual ability, including Chinese and English.
• The chatbot is free to use.
• Open-weight models let developers run Qwen themselves.
• A fast release cadence keeps it near the frontier.

Watch out for

• The ecosystem spans many model versions, so check which Qwen version you are actually using.
• API and self-hosted costs depend on the provider, so there is no single price to budget against.
• Capabilities can differ between versions, so results may vary if the version changes.

Best for

Developers who want capable open models, multilingual teams, and anyone curious about the strongest non-Western frontier chatbot. Who should skip it: users who want one single fixed product with no version choices to make.

Pricing

The Qwen chatbot is free to use. Developers can also use Qwen through APIs and self-hosted open-weight releases, with costs depending on the provider. Check the official pricing page for current details.

FAQs

What is Qwen? Alibaba's family of AI models, offered as a free chatbot and as open-weight models developers can run themselves.

Is the chatbot free? Yes, the chatbot is free to use.

What is it known for? Strong coding, mathematics and multilingual ability, including Chinese and English.

What should I check before relying on it? Which Qwen version you are actually using, since the ecosystem spans many versions.