# DeepInfra vs Z.ai

> Z.ai builds GLM and bundles it into a cheap flat-rate coding plan. DeepInfra bills per token across 150+ open models with no subscription.

Canonical: https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/deepinfra-vs-z-ai · By The Subconscious Team · Updated September 30, 2026

## How they compare

Z.ai is the lab behind GLM, and its pitch is aimed at developers inside coding tools. The GLM Coding Plan starts at $18 a month on the Lite tier, with a prompt quota that resets every five hours and weekly, and an Anthropic-compatible endpoint lets Claude Code run on GLM with a few environment variables. DeepInfra has no subscription and no coding-tool angle in its profile. It bills per token across 150+ open models through an OpenAI-compatible API, with no minimums or contracts, and developers treat it as the reference for what a token should cost.

On API price the two sit closer than the brand gap suggests. GLM-5.3-Flash lists at $0.075 in and $0.25 out, several older Flash models cost nothing, and the flagship GLM-5.3 runs $1.40 in and $4.40 out. Where they part is reach and location. Z.ai's servers sit mostly in China, adding 100 to 200ms from the US or Europe and raising data questions, and Coding Plan quota burns faster during Beijing peak hours. DeepInfra spans many model families plus image and speech. For budget agentic coding in Claude Code, the Coding Plan is the natural buy. For bulk jobs across many models, DeepInfra fits.

## What each one does

### DeepInfra

DeepInfra is the price floor for open-model inference. Developers treat it as the reference point for what a token should cost, with small models like Llama 3.1 8B at $0.02 per million and DeepSeek V4 Flash at $0.14 in and $0.28 out. The catalog covers 150+ open models across text, image and speech behind a fully OpenAI-compatible API. There are no minimums, setup fees or contracts on the shared API.

### Z.ai

Z.AI is the international brand of Chinese lab Zhipu AI, maker of the GLM models. Its current flagship, GLM-5.3, shipped August 17, 2026 at $1.40 in and $4.40 out per million tokens, with cached input at $0.26. GLM-5.3-Flash costs $0.075 in and $0.25 out, and several older Flash models are priced at zero, a real free tier instead of trial credits. GLM-5, released in February 2026, is a 744B mixture-of-experts model under an MIT license, and at launch it ranked first among open-weight models on the Artificial Analysis index with a record-low hallucination score.

## Which is best, and when

### Choose DeepInfra for

- Per-token bulk work across many model families
- Pipelines that mix text with image or speech models
- Teams that want no subscription or quota resets

### Choose Z.ai for

- Cheap flat-rate agentic coding inside Claude Code
- Prototyping on free older GLM Flash models
- Getting the newest GLM directly from its maker

## At a glance

| Attribute | DeepInfra | Z.ai |
|---|---|---|
| Model access | Open weights | Open weights (MIT) |
| Flagship models | DeepSeek V4 Flash, Llama 3.1 8B | GLM-5.3, GLM-5.3-Flash |
| Speed | ~33 tok/s on DeepSeek V4 Pro (FP4) | ~80 tok/s on GLM-5.3 |
| Price | From $0.02 per 1M | $1.40 in, $4.40 out (GLM-5.3); free Flash tier |
| Customization | No managed fine-tuning | Open weights, no license limits |
| Deployment | Shared API, no contracts | API, GLM Coding Plan |
| Long context | 66K on FP4 DeepSeek V4 Pro | 1M (GLM-5.3) |

## FAQ

### What is the difference between DeepInfra and Z.ai?

Z.ai builds GLM and bundles it into a cheap flat-rate coding plan. DeepInfra bills per token across 150+ open models with no subscription.

### When should I choose DeepInfra over Z.ai?

Per-token bulk work across many model families; Pipelines that mix text with image or speech models; Teams that want no subscription or quota resets.

### When should I choose Z.ai over DeepInfra?

Cheap flat-rate agentic coding inside Claude Code; Prototyping on free older GLM Flash models; Getting the newest GLM directly from its maker.

### Is DeepInfra or Z.ai cheaper?

DeepInfra: From $0.02 per 1M. Z.ai: $1.40 in, $4.40 out (GLM-5.3); free Flash tier. The cheaper choice depends on the model and workload.

### Which has more context, DeepInfra or Z.ai?

DeepInfra: 66K on FP4 DeepSeek V4 Pro. Z.ai: 1M (GLM-5.3).

## Running long-horizon agents?

If your agents run past 200K tokens, compare both against Subconscious: [Subconscious vs DeepInfra](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/subconscious-vs-deepinfra.md), [Subconscious vs Z.ai](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/subconscious-vs-z-ai.md).

Full profiles: [DeepInfra](https://www.subconscious.dev/providers/deepinfra.md), [Z.ai](https://www.subconscious.dev/providers/z-ai.md).