GLM-5.3 Max vs GPT-6 Luna Max: which is cheaper?

GLM-5.3 Max leads the intelligence index 31.7 to 27.9. GPT-6 Luna Max costs 91% less on blended price. Price per token, response speed and when to pick each.

Metric	GLM-5.3 (Max)	GPT-6 Luna (Max)
Intelligence Index	31.7	27.9
Input price (per 1M tokens)	$1.40	$0.10
Output price (per 1M tokens)	$4.40	$0.50
Output speed (tokens/s)	74	121
Time to first token	1.7s	2.0 min
Release date	2026-08-18	2026-09-22

Metric

GLM-5.3 (Max)

GPT-6 Luna (Max)

Intelligence Index

31.7

27.9

Input price (per 1M tokens)

$1.40

$0.10

Output price (per 1M tokens)

$4.40

$0.50

Output speed (tokens/s)

121

Time to first token

1.7s

2.0 min

Release date

2026-08-18

2026-09-22

GLM-5.3 (Max) from Z AI and GPT-6 Luna (Max) from OpenAI are both tracked in Franklin AI's benchmark catalogue. Cost is where they split the most, with GPT-6 Luna Max working out at about 9% of GLM-5.3 Max's blended rate. The figures come from tracked catalogue data, not from our own testing, so treat them as a starting point for a trial on your tasks.

Price per token

The list prices are $1.40 in and $4.40 out for GLM-5.3 Max, and $0.10 in and $0.50 out for GPT-6 Luna Max, per million tokens. For output tokens, GLM-5.3 Max is 8.8 times the price of GPT-6 Luna Max.

Take 1 million input tokens and 200,000 output tokens: that comes to $2.28 on GLM-5.3 Max and $0.20 on GPT-6 Luna Max. A bigger example, a month of coding-assistant traffic at 30 million input and 3 million output tokens, costs $55.20 on GLM-5.3 Max and $4.50 on GPT-6 Luna Max: a gap of $50.70.

GPT-6 Luna Max is the faster writer

Measured output speed is 74 tokens per second for GLM-5.3 Max and 121 tokens per second for GPT-6 Luna Max. GPT-6 Luna Max is ahead by 64% on throughput. Before any text appears, GLM-5.3 Max takes 1.7 seconds and GPT-6 Luna Max 2.0 minutes. GPT-6 Luna Max writes faster once it starts, but GLM-5.3 Max's head start is large enough that GLM-5.3 Max still finishes first at any typical reply length; GPT-6 Luna Max only catches up beyond about 23,000 tokens. Waits that long are felt on every chat-style request, though they matter less for batch jobs.

Put together, an 800-token answer would take about 13 seconds from GLM-5.3 Max and 2.1 minutes from GPT-6 Luna Max, counting the first-token wait.

GLM-5.3 Max leads on the intelligence index

The catalogue puts GLM-5.3 Max at 31.7 and GPT-6 Luna Max at 27.9 on its intelligence index. A lead of this size is hard to dismiss as noise. In relative terms, GLM-5.3 Max scores 14% higher.

Across the 109 active models with an intelligence score in the catalogue, GLM-5.3 Max ranks 47th and GPT-6 Luna Max ranks 62nd.

Neither model has a separate coding or math index recorded yet, so those narrower comparisons will have to wait for more data.

Value for money

Dividing the blended price by the intelligence index gives a rough cost per point: $0.068 for GLM-5.3 Max and $0.0072 for GPT-6 Luna Max, per million tokens. GLM-5.3 Max costs 9.5 times as much per point, which is the price of its lead.

Generation gap

GLM-5.3 Max came first, on August 18, 2026; GPT-6 Luna Max followed on September 22, 2026. That is close enough to count them as the same generation.

FAQ

Is GLM-5.3 Max better than GPT-6 Luna Max?

It depends on what you need: GLM-5.3 Max scores higher on the intelligence index, 31.7 to 27.9; GPT-6 Luna Max is 91% cheaper on blended price; GPT-6 Luna Max streams output 1.6 times as fast; and GLM-5.3 Max reaches its first token sooner.

Where do these numbers come from?

The figures are the recorded benchmark, price and speed data in Franklin AI's model catalogue. This page is written from that data automatically; neither model was tested by hand for it.

Which is cheaper, GLM-5.3 Max or GPT-6 Luna Max?

GPT-6 Luna Max is cheaper on a blended basis. GLM-5.3 Max lists $1.40 per million input tokens and $4.40 per million output tokens; GPT-6 Luna Max lists $0.10 and $0.50. For 1 million input and 200,000 output tokens that is $2.28 against $0.20.

Who makes GLM-5.3 Max and GPT-6 Luna Max?

GLM-5.3 Max is made by Z AI and GPT-6 Luna Max by OpenAI. GLM-5.3 Max was released on August 18, 2026 and GPT-6 Luna Max on September 22, 2026.

When were GLM-5.3 Max and GPT-6 Luna Max released?

GPT-6 Luna Max is newer. It was released on September 22, 2026, 35 days after GLM-5.3 Max (August 18, 2026).

Final whistle

Bottom line: GLM-5.3 Max has more going for it here, but GPT-6 Luna Max is not without an argument. Pick GPT-6 Luna Max if cost matters ($0.50 against $4.40 per million output tokens) and you generate very long outputs, beyond about 23,000 tokens. Pick GLM-5.3 Max if users are waiting on the first word and you need the higher overall score (31.7 against 27.9).

Where the numbers come from

The scores, speed and prices in this comparison come from independent third-party model evaluations that Franklin AI syncs each day, and the article was written from a snapshot of them. For the latest results, open the GLM-5.3 (Max) and GPT-6 Luna (Max) pages. The AI Benchmark methodology explains how that data is collected and shown.