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Model comparison

GLM-5 vs GPT-4.1

Data verified

Head-to-head evidence from 18 shared benchmark results across 7 categories. Overall scores shown here use the public BenchAlign v5 ranking lane.

Z.AI
65.29/100
Margin
14.9pts
← winning
OpenAI
50.44/100
4 category wins0 category wins

Public leaderboard positions: GLM-5 #30 (Supported); GPT-4.1 #111 (Supported). Intervals and evidence labels describe ranking uncertainty, not a guarantee for a specific workload.

Evidence parity. GLM-5 and GPT-4.1 share 18 comparable benchmark results. 4 of 8 categories are comparable. 31 results are unique to GLM-5; 2 to GPT-4.1.

Updated July 24, 2026
Shared results
18
GLM-5 only
31
GPT-4.1 only
2
Comparable categories
4 / 8

Pick GLM-5 if you want the stronger benchmark profile. GPT-4.1 only becomes the better choice if you need the larger 1M context window.

Confidence note. This is a partial-evidence comparison with 18 shared benchmark results across 7 evidence categories; 4 of 8 categories currently have scoreable aggregates for both models. Treat the verdict as directional until coverage is more balanced.

Why this result

GLM-5 is clearly ahead on the BenchAlign aggregate, 65.29 to 50.44. The gap is large enough that you do not need to squint at the spreadsheet to see the difference.

GLM-5's sharpest advantage is in mathematics, where it averages 56.3 against 4.1. The single biggest benchmark swing on the page is SWE-bench Verified, 77.8% to 54.6%.

GPT-4.1 is also the more expensive model on tokens at $2.00 input / $8.00 output per 1M tokens, versus $1.00 input / $3.20 output per 1M tokens for GLM-5. That is roughly 2.5x on output cost alone. GPT-4.1 gives you the larger context window at 1M, compared with 200K for GLM-5.

Category breakdown

Exact category averages are shown below. Not measured means BenchLM does not have enough sourced public coverage for that model and category.

Category scores and score margins for GLM-5 and GPT-4.1
CategoryGLM-5ΔGPT-4.1
MathGLM-556.3Margin 52.2GPT-4.14.1
CodingGLM-566.3Margin 11.7GPT-4.154.6
Inst. FollowingGLM-592.6Margin 5.2GPT-4.187.4
KnowledgeGLM-566.4Margin 0.1GPT-4.166.3
AgenticGLM-556.2MarginNo overlapGPT-4.1Not measured
ReasoningGLM-560.8MarginNo overlapGPT-4.1Not measured
MultilingualGLM-583.1MarginNo overlapGPT-4.1Not measured

Decisive benchmark drivers

The largest measured benchmark gaps in this matchup, with exact reported values.

More
A · GLM-5B · GPT-4.1
  1. SWE-bench Verified

    Coding
    Source ↗
    A 77.8%B 54.6%
    Winner: GLM-5Δ 23.2
    SWE-bench Verified: GLM-5 scored 77.8%; GPT-4.1 scored 54.6%. GLM-5 wins this benchmark.
  2. GPQA

    Knowledge
    Source ↗
    A 86%B 66.3%
    Winner: GLM-5Δ 19.7
    GPQA: GLM-5 scored 86%; GPT-4.1 scored 66.3%. GLM-5 wins this benchmark.
  3. FrontierMath v2 (Tiers 1-3)

    Math
    Source ↗
    A 16.434%B 5.517%
    Winner: GLM-5Δ 10.9
    FrontierMath v2 (Tiers 1-3): GLM-5 scored 16.434%; GPT-4.1 scored 5.517%. GLM-5 wins this benchmark.
  4. IFEval

    Inst. Following
    Source ↗
    A 92.6%B 87.4%
    Winner: GLM-5Δ 5.2
    IFEval: GLM-5 scored 92.6%; GPT-4.1 scored 87.4%. GLM-5 wins this benchmark.
  5. FrontierMath v2 (Tier 4)

    Math
    Source ↗
    A 2.100%B 0.000%
    Winner: GLM-5Δ 2.1
    FrontierMath v2 (Tier 4): GLM-5 scored 2.100%; GPT-4.1 scored 0.000%. GLM-5 wins this benchmark.

Operational comparison

Runtime and commercial metrics are compared only when both models have a complete sourced value.

MetricGLM-5GPT-4.1Comparison
Input / output priceUSD per 1M tokensGLM-5$1 input / $3.2 outputGPT-4.1$2 input / $8 outputGLM-5 has the lower combined listed price.
Generation speedtokens per secondGLM-574 tok/sGPT-4.1108 tok/sGPT-4.1 has the higher measured throughput.
First-answer latencyseconds to first tokenGLM-51.64 sGPT-4.11.02 sGPT-4.1 reaches the first token sooner.
Context windowmaximum listed tokensGLM-5200KGPT-4.11MGPT-4.1 lists the larger context window.

Benchmark Deep Dive

Agentic
BenchmarkGLM-5GPT-4.1Result
Terminal-Bench 2.0Source 56.2%Not comparable
Claw-EvalSource 57.7%Not comparable
QwenClawBenchSource 54.1%Not comparable
τ³-bench resultsSource 65.6%Not comparable
DeepPlanningSource 14.6%Not comparable
ToolathlonSource 38%Not comparable
MCP AtlasSource 31.1%Not comparable
MCP-TasksSource 60.8%Not comparable
WideResearchSource 69.8%Not comparable
τ²-bench resultsSource 98.2%47.1%GLM-5 leads
CyberGymSource 43.2%Not comparable
APEX-Agents-AASource 14.5%Not comparable
Gert LabsSource 50.99%25.65%GLM-5 leads
CodingGLM-5 wins
BenchmarkGLM-5GPT-4.1Result
SWE-bench VerifiedSource 77.8%54.6%GLM-5 leads
SWE-bench Verified*Source 72.8%Not comparable
SWE-bench ProSource 55.1%Not comparable
SWE MultilingualSource 73.3%Not comparable
SWE-RebenchSource 62.8%Not comparable
React Native EvalsSource 74.8%Not comparable
AA-SciCodeSource 46.2%38.1%GLM-5 leads
Reasoning
BenchmarkGLM-5GPT-4.1Result
LongBench v2Source 60.8%Not comparable
AI-NeedleSource 63.3%Not comparable
AA-LCRSource 63.3%61.0%GLM-5 leads
CritPtSource 2.0%0.0%GLM-5 leads
KnowledgeGLM-5 wins
BenchmarkGLM-5GPT-4.1Result
GPQASource 86%66.3%GLM-5 leads
GPQA-DSource 86.0%Not comparable
SuperGPQASource 66.8%Not comparable
MMLU-ProSource 85.7%Not comparable
MMLU-Pro (Arcee)Source 85.8%Not comparable
HLESource 50.4%Not comparable
Artificial Analysis Intelligence IndexSource 39.5%19.4%GLM-5 leads
AA-GPQA DiamondSource 82.0%66.6%GLM-5 leads
AA-HLESource 27.2%4.6%GLM-5 leads
AA-Omniscience IndexSource 2.0%-36.2%GLM-5 leads
AA-Omniscience AccuracySource 26.9%24.2%GLM-5 leads
AA-Omniscience Hallucination RateSource 34.0%79.6%GLM-5 leads
MMLUSource 90.2%Not comparable
MathGLM-5 wins
BenchmarkGLM-5GPT-4.1Result
AIME26Source 95.8%Not comparable
AIME25 (Arcee)Source 93.3%Not comparable
HMMT Feb 2025Source 97.5%Not comparable
HMMT Nov 2025Source 96.9%Not comparable
HMMT Feb 2026Source 86.4%Not comparable
MMAnswerBenchSource 82.5%Not comparable
FrontierMath v2 (Tiers 1-3)Source 16.434%5.517%GLM-5 leads
FrontierMath v2 (Tier 4)Source 2.100%0.000%GLM-5 leads
Multilingual
BenchmarkGLM-5GPT-4.1Result
MMLU-ProXSource 83.1%Not comparable
NOVA-63Source 55.1%Not comparable
Multimodal
BenchmarkGLM-5GPT-4.1Result
Design Arena WebsiteSource 12781068GLM-5 leads
AA-MMMU-ProSource 61.2%Not comparable
Inst. FollowingGLM-5 wins
BenchmarkGLM-5GPT-4.1Result
IFEvalSource 92.6%87.4%GLM-5 leads
AA-IFBenchSource 72.3%43.0%GLM-5 leads
Frequently Asked Questions (5)

Which is better, GLM-5 or GPT-4.1?

GLM-5 is ahead on BenchLM's BenchAlign leaderboard, 65.29 to 50.44. The biggest single separator in this matchup is SWE-bench Verified, where the scores are 77.8% and 54.6%.

Which is better for knowledge tasks, GLM-5 or GPT-4.1?

GLM-5 has the edge for knowledge tasks in this comparison, averaging 66.4 versus 66.3. Inside this category, AA-Omniscience Hallucination Rate is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.

Which is better for coding, GLM-5 or GPT-4.1?

GLM-5 has the edge for coding in this comparison, averaging 66.3 versus 54.6. Inside this category, SWE-bench Verified is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.

Which is better for math, GLM-5 or GPT-4.1?

GLM-5 has the edge for math in this comparison, averaging 56.3 versus 4.1. Inside this category, FrontierMath v2 (Tiers 1-3) is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.

Which is better for instruction following, GLM-5 or GPT-4.1?

GLM-5 has the edge for instruction following in this comparison, averaging 92.6 versus 87.4. Inside this category, AA-IFBench is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.

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Last updated: July 24, 2026