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Model comparison

GLM-5 vs Inkling

Data verified

Head-to-head evidence from 8 shared benchmark results across 4 categories. Overall scores shown here use the public BenchAlign v5 ranking lane.

Z.AI
65.98/100
Margin
3.0pts
winning →
Thinking Machines Lab
69/100
2 category wins3 category wins

Verified leaderboard positions: GLM-5 #15; Inkling #17

BenchAlign evidence: GLM-5 supported; Inkling not scored. Intervals and evidence labels describe ranking uncertainty, not a guarantee for a specific workload.

Evidence parity. GLM-5 and Inkling share 8 comparable benchmark results. 5 of 8 categories are comparable. 42 results are unique to GLM-5; 8 to Inkling.

Updated July 15, 2026
Shared results
8
GLM-5 only
42
Inkling only
8
Comparable categories
5 / 8

Pick Inkling if you want the stronger benchmark profile. GLM-5 only becomes the better choice if knowledge is the priority or you want the cheaper token bill.

Confidence note. This is a partial-evidence comparison with 8 shared benchmark results across 4 evidence categories; 5 of 8 categories currently have scoreable aggregates for both models. Treat the verdict as directional until coverage is more balanced.

Why this result

Inkling is clearly ahead on the provisional aggregate, 69 to 63. The gap is large enough that you do not need to squint at the spreadsheet to see the difference.

Inkling's sharpest advantage is in mathematics, where it averages 97.1 against 56.3. The single biggest benchmark swing on the page is Terminal-Bench 2.0, 56.2% to 63.8%. GLM-5 does hit back in knowledge, so the answer changes if that is the part of the workload you care about most.

Inkling is also the more expensive model on tokens at $1.87 input / $4.68 output per 1M tokens, versus $1.00 input / $3.20 output per 1M tokens for GLM-5. Inkling is the reasoning model in the pair, while GLM-5 is not. That usually helps on harder chain-of-thought-heavy tests, but it can also mean more latency and more token spend in real use. Inkling 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 Inkling
CategoryGLM-5ΔInkling
MathGLM-556.3Margin 40.8Inkling97.1
KnowledgeGLM-566.6Margin 14.9Inkling51.7
AgenticGLM-556.2Margin 13.2Inkling69.4
Inst. FollowingGLM-592.6Margin 12.8Inkling79.8
CodingGLM-566.3Margin 2.3Inkling68.6
ReasoningGLM-560.8MarginNo overlapInklingNot measured
MultilingualGLM-583.1MarginNo overlapInklingNot measured
MultimodalGLM-5Not measuredMarginNo overlapInkling76.5

Decisive benchmark drivers

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

More
A · GLM-5B · Inkling
  1. Terminal-Bench 2.0

    Agentic
    Source ↗
    A 56.2%B 63.8%
    Winner: InklingΔ 7.6
    Terminal-Bench 2.0: GLM-5 scored 56.2%; Inkling scored 63.8%. Inkling wins this benchmark.
  2. HLE

    Knowledge
    Source ↗
    A 50.4%B 46%
    Winner: GLM-5Δ 4.4
    HLE: GLM-5 scored 50.4%; Inkling scored 46%. GLM-5 wins this benchmark.
  3. GPQA

    Knowledge
    Source ↗
    A 86%B 87.9%
    Winner: InklingΔ 1.9
    GPQA: GLM-5 scored 86%; Inkling scored 87.9%. Inkling wins this benchmark.
  4. AIME26

    Math
    Source ↗
    A 95.8%B 97.1%
    Winner: InklingΔ 1.3
    AIME26: GLM-5 scored 95.8%; Inkling scored 97.1%. Inkling wins this benchmark.
  5. SWE-bench Pro

    Coding
    Source ↗
    A 55.1%B 54.3%
    Winner: GLM-5Δ 0.8
    SWE-bench Pro: GLM-5 scored 55.1%; Inkling scored 54.3%. GLM-5 wins this benchmark.

Operational comparison

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

MetricGLM-5InklingComparison
Input / output priceUSD per 1M tokensGLM-5$1 input / $3.2 outputInkling$1.87 input / $4.68 outputGLM-5 has the lower combined listed price.
Generation speedtokens per secondGLM-574 tok/sInklingNot availableA complete speed comparison is not available.
First-answer latencyseconds to first tokenGLM-51.64 sInklingNot availableA complete latency comparison is not available.
Context windowmaximum listed tokensGLM-5200KInkling1MInkling lists the larger context window.

Benchmark Deep Dive

AgenticInkling wins
BenchmarkGLM-5InklingResult
Terminal-Bench 2.0Source 56.2%63.8%Inkling leads
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%74.1%Inkling leads
MCP-TasksSource 60.8%Not comparable
WideResearchSource 69.8%Not comparable
τ²-bench resultsSource 98.2%Not comparable
CyberGymSource 43.2%Not comparable
APEX-Agents-AASource 14.5%Not comparable
Gert LabsSource 50.99%Not comparable
BrowseCompSource 77.1%Not comparable
Design Arena Agentic Web DevSource 1258Not comparable
CodingInkling wins
BenchmarkGLM-5InklingResult
SWE-bench VerifiedSource 77.8%77.6%GLM-5 leads
SWE-bench Verified*Source 72.8%Not comparable
SWE-bench ProSource 55.1%54.3%GLM-5 leads
SWE MultilingualSource 73.3%Not comparable
SWE-RebenchSource 62.8%Not comparable
React Native EvalsSource 74.8%Not comparable
Terminal-Bench HardSource 43.2%Not comparable
AA-SciCodeSource 46.2%Not comparable
Terminal-Bench 2.0Source 63.8%Not comparable
Reasoning
BenchmarkGLM-5InklingResult
LongBench v2Source 60.8%Not comparable
AI-NeedleSource 63.3%Not comparable
AA-LCRSource 63.3%Not comparable
CritPtSource 2.0%Not comparable
KnowledgeGLM-5 wins
BenchmarkGLM-5InklingResult
GPQASource 86%87.9%Inkling leads
GPQA-DSource 86.0%87.9%Inkling leads
SuperGPQASource 66.8%Not comparable
MMLU-ProSource 85.7%Not comparable
MMLU-Pro (Arcee)Source 85.8%Not comparable
HLESource 50.4%46%GLM-5 leads
Artificial Analysis Intelligence IndexSource 39.5%Not comparable
AA-GPQA DiamondSource 82.0%Not comparable
AA-HLESource 27.2%Not comparable
AA-Omniscience IndexSource 2.0%Not comparable
AA-Omniscience AccuracySource 26.9%Not comparable
AA-Omniscience Hallucination RateSource 34.0%Not comparable
HLE w/o toolsSource 30%Not comparable
MathInkling wins
BenchmarkGLM-5InklingResult
AIME26Source 95.8%97.1%Inkling leads
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%Not comparable
FrontierMath v2 (Tier 4)Source 2.100%Not comparable
Multilingual
BenchmarkGLM-5InklingResult
MMLU-ProXSource 83.1%Not comparable
NOVA-63Source 55.1%Not comparable
Multimodal
BenchmarkGLM-5InklingResult
Design Arena WebsiteSource 1282Not comparable
MMMU-ProSource 73.5%Not comparable
CharXivSource 82%Not comparable
CharXiv w/o toolsSource 78.1%Not comparable
Inst. FollowingGLM-5 wins
BenchmarkGLM-5InklingResult
IFEvalSource 92.6%Not comparable
AA-IFBenchSource 72.3%Not comparable
IFBenchSource 79.8%Not comparable
Frequently Asked Questions (6)

Which is better, GLM-5 or Inkling?

Inkling is ahead on BenchLM's provisional leaderboard, 69 to 63. The biggest single separator in this matchup is Terminal-Bench 2.0, where the scores are 56.2% and 63.8%.

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

GLM-5 has the edge for knowledge tasks in this comparison, averaging 66.6 versus 51.7. Inside this category, HLE is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.

Which is better for coding, GLM-5 or Inkling?

Inkling has the edge for coding in this comparison, averaging 68.6 versus 66.3. Inside this category, SWE-bench Pro is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.

Which is better for math, GLM-5 or Inkling?

Inkling has the edge for math in this comparison, averaging 97.1 versus 56.3. Inside this category, AIME26 is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.

Which is better for agentic tasks, GLM-5 or Inkling?

Inkling has the edge for agentic tasks in this comparison, averaging 69.4 versus 56.2. Inside this category, MCP Atlas is the benchmark that creates the most daylight between them.

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

GLM-5 has the edge for instruction following in this comparison, averaging 92.6 versus 79.8. Inkling stays close enough that the answer can still flip depending on your workload.

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Last updated: July 15, 2026

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