Model comparison

Claude Sonnet 5.5 vs GLM 5.1

Pricing, context window and real answers (September 2026)

Claude Sonnet 5.5 (Anthropic) and GLM 5.1 (Z.ai), compared as you can actually call them on FastMetal. Both are served from the same OpenAI-compatible endpoint and API key; switching is a change to the model string.

Specs and pricing

anthropic logoClaude Sonnet 5.5z-ai logoGLM 5.1
ProviderAnthropicZ.ai
Input (per 1M tokens)¥357.4¥250.18
Output (per 1M tokens)¥1,787¥786.28
Typical cost (1,000 in + 500 out tokens × 1,000 calls)¥1,251¥643
Context window1,000,000 tokens204,800 tokens
Release date9/28/20264/7/2026
Input modalitiestext, image, filetext
Throughput (p50)——
Arena · overallUnranked#49 · ELO 1,465
Arena · JapaneseUnranked#46 · ELO 1,438
Arena · codingUnranked#48 · ELO 1,513

Prices are FastMetal's yen rates before tax.

Rankings: LMArena leaderboard dataset (lmarena-ai/leaderboard-dataset), CC BY 4.0, snapshot 2026-09-25; category names mapped and ratings rounded by FastMetal.

Which should you pick?

  • On price, GLM 5.1: ¥786.28 per 1M output tokens, 56% less than Claude Sonnet 5.5.
  • For long documents, Claude Sonnet 5.5: a 1,000,000-token context window against 204,800 for GLM 5.1.
  • If in doubt, try both on the same key. Switching is a change to the model string, and each is billed at its own rate.

Real answers to the same prompts

Exactly what the FastMetal gateway returned, side by side. Not benchmark scores: actual output.

Count the number of 'r's in 'strawberry'

Count the number of 'r's in 'strawberry'. Explain your reasoning step by step.

Claude Sonnet 5.5

Let me go through the word letter by letter. **strawberry** | Position | Letter | |---|---| | 1 | s | | 2 | t | | 3 | **r** ← 1st | | 4 | a | | 5 | w | | 6 | b | | 7 | e | | 8 | **r** ← 2nd | | 9 | **r** ← 3rd | | 10 | y | **Step-by-step reasoning:** 1. I split the word into individual letters: s-t-r-a-w-b-e-r-r-y (10 letters total). 2. I checked each letter for 'r'. 3. The first 'r' is in position 3, in "str…". 4. The second and third 'r's are in positions 8 and 9, in the "…rry" ending. **Answer: There are 3 r's in "strawberry".** A common mistake is to see "berry" as having only one 'r' (or to treat the double-r as a single letter), which leads to the incorrect answer of 2.
3.1s332 output tokens

GLM 5.1

There are **3** 'r's in the word "strawberry". Here is the step-by-step reasoning: 1. Let's break down the word "strawberry" letter by letter: s - t - r - a - w - b - e - r - r - y 2. Now, let's check each letter one by one to see if it is an 'r': - **s**: not an 'r' - **t**: not an 'r' - **r**: this is the 1st 'r' - **a**: not an 'r' - **w**: not an 'r' - **b**: not an 'r' - **e**: not an 'r' - **r**: this is the 2nd 'r' - **r**: this is the 3rd 'r' - **y**: not an 'r' 3. Counting them up, there are three 'r's in total (in the 3rd, 8th, and 9th positions).
7.3s565 output tokens

Debug This Error

I'm getting the following error in my Node.js application: TypeError: Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'map') at UserList (/app/components/UserList.js:12:25) at renderWithHooks (/app/node_modules/rea…

Claude Sonnet 5.5

## Cause `users` is `undefined` when the component renders, so `users.map(...)` throws. This happens when: 1. **The parent doesn't pass the prop**, or passes it under a different name (e.g. `<UserList data={x} />` or a typo like `user=`). 2. **The data loads asynchronously.** On the first render, the state or fetch result hasn't arrived yet. 3. **The value is wrong.** For example, the API returns `{ users: [...] }` and you passed the whole object, or you're reading a property that doesn't exist (`response.data.users` vs `response.users`). ## Fixes ### 1. Default value (simplest) ```jsx function UserList({ users = [] }) { return ( <ul> {users.map(user => <li key={user.id}>{use…
6.7s824 output tokens

GLM 5.1

### What is causing the error? The error `TypeError: Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'map')` means you are trying to call the `.map()` method on a variable that is `undefined`. In your code, the variable is `users`. When the `UserList` component renders, the `users` prop is `undefined`, so `undefined.map()` throws an error. ### Why is `users` undefined? This usually happens for one of two reasons: 1. **You forgot to pass the prop:** The parent component rendering `<UserList />` is not passing the `users` attribute (e.g., `<UserList />` instead of `<UserList users={myUsers} />`). 2. **Async Data Fetching:** You are fetching the users from an API. On the initial render, befor…
45.0s1680 output tokens

Code Review

Please review the following Python function and suggest improvements for readability, performance, and best practices: def get_data(url, retries=3): import requests import time for i in range(retries):…

Claude Sonnet 5.5

# Code Review ## Main Issues ### 1. Bare `except:` hides bugs (most important) It catches everything, including `KeyboardInterrupt` and `SystemExit`. It also wraps your parsing logic, so a missing `"active"` key (`KeyError`) or bad JSON is treated as a network failure, retried 3 times with sleeps, and then silently becomes `[]`. Catch only `requests.RequestException`, and keep parsing outside the `try`. ### 2. Silent failure Returning `[]` after all retries fails is indistinguishable from "the server returned no active items." Callers can't tell whether something went wrong. Raise an exception (or at least log) once retries are exhausted. ### 3. Retry logic - It sleeps after the final at…
20.9s3003 output tokens

GLM 5.1

Here is a review of your function, broken down by areas for improvement, followed by a refactored version of the code. ### Key Areas for Improvement 1. **Imports Inside the Function:** Placing `import` statements inside a function is generally discouraged in Python. It slows down the function execution every time it is called, and it violates PEP 8 (the Python style guide). Imports should always be at the top of the module. 2. **Bare `except` Clause:** Using a bare `except:` catches *everything*, including `KeyboardInterrupt` and `SystemExit`, which makes it hard to terminate a hanging program. You should catch specific exceptions (like `requests.exceptions.RequestException`). 3. *…
70.3s2854 output tokens

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Frequently asked questions

Which is cheaper, Claude Sonnet 5.5 or GLM 5.1?
Per 1M output tokens, Claude Sonnet 5.5 is ¥1,787 and GLM 5.1 is ¥786.28 on FastMetal (yen, before tax), so GLM 5.1 is cheaper.
How do the context windows of Claude Sonnet 5.5 and GLM 5.1 compare?
Claude Sonnet 5.5 takes 1,000,000 tokens; GLM 5.1 takes 204,800.
Can I use Claude Sonnet 5.5 and GLM 5.1 with the same API key?
Yes. On FastMetal's OpenAI-compatible endpoint, switch by passing "anthropic-claude-sonnet-5-5" or "glm-5.1" as the model. Each is billed at its own rate from the same prepaid balance.

Try both on one API key

Create an account and add credit to call Claude Sonnet 5.5 and GLM 5.1 from the browser chat and the API. No monthly fee.

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