# Z.ai > Maker of the MIT-licensed GLM models, with a cheap flat-rate coding plan. Canonical: https://www.subconscious.dev/providers/z-ai · By The Subconscious Team · Updated September 30, 2026 - Founded: 2019, as Zhipu AI - Example models: GLM-5.3, GLM-5.3-Flash - Website: https://z.ai ## Overview 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. Z.AI's growth engine is the GLM Coding Plan. For $18 a month on the Lite tier, developers get a prompt quota that resets every five hours and weekly, which Z.AI says equals 15 to 30x the fee at API rates. An Anthropic-compatible endpoint lets Claude Code run on GLM with a few environment variables, which made it a popular cheap substitute. OpenAI-compatible endpoints are available too, and because the weights are open, GLM also runs on Together, Fireworks, Baseten and most other hosts in this doc. ## Upsides - Frontier-adjacent quality at a fraction of Claude or GPT prices, with MIT-licensed weights. - Drop-in Claude Code compatibility and a cheap flat-rate coding plan. ## Core use cases - Budget agentic coding inside Claude Code and similar tools. - Self-hosting or fine-tuning a strong open model with no license limits. ## Downsides - Servers sit mostly in China, adding 100 to 200ms from the US or Europe and raising data concerns for enterprises. - Coding Plan quota burns 2 to 3x faster on premium models during Beijing peak hours. ## At a glance | Attribute | Value | |---|---| | Model access | Open weights (MIT) | | Flagship models | GLM-5.3, GLM-5.3-Flash | | Speed | ~80 tok/s on GLM-5.3 | | Price | $1.40 in, $4.40 out (GLM-5.3); free Flash tier | | Customization | Open weights, no license limits | | Deployment | API, GLM Coding Plan | | Long context | 1M (GLM-5.3) | ## FAQ ### What is 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. ### What is Z.ai best for? Budget agentic coding inside Claude Code and similar tools; Self-hosting or fine-tuning a strong open model with no license limits. ### How much does Z.ai cost? Z.ai pricing at a glance: $1.40 in, $4.40 out (GLM-5.3); free Flash tier. Rates change often, so check Z.ai's pricing page before committing. ### How much context does Z.ai support? Z.ai's long-context support: 1M (GLM-5.3). ### What are the downsides of Z.ai? Servers sit mostly in China, adding 100 to 200ms from the US or Europe and raising data concerns for enterprises; Coding Plan quota burns 2 to 3x faster on premium models during Beijing peak hours. ### What are the best alternatives to Z.ai? Common alternatives include Subconscious, OpenAI, Anthropic, Google Vertex AI, Amazon Bedrock. Each has a head-to-head comparison with Z.ai on this site. ## Comparisons - [Subconscious vs Z.ai](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/subconscious-vs-z-ai.md) - [OpenAI vs Z.ai](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/openai-vs-z-ai.md) - [Anthropic vs Z.ai](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/anthropic-vs-z-ai.md) - [Google Vertex AI vs Z.ai](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/google-vertex-vs-z-ai.md) - [Amazon Bedrock vs Z.ai](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/aws-bedrock-vs-z-ai.md) - [Together AI vs Z.ai](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/together-ai-vs-z-ai.md) - [Fireworks AI vs Z.ai](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/fireworks-vs-z-ai.md) - [Baseten vs Z.ai](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/baseten-vs-z-ai.md) - [Groq vs Z.ai](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/groq-vs-z-ai.md) - [Cerebras vs Z.ai](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/cerebras-vs-z-ai.md) - [DeepInfra vs Z.ai](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/deepinfra-vs-z-ai.md) - [Modal vs Z.ai](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/modal-vs-z-ai.md) - [xAI vs Z.ai](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/xai-vs-z-ai.md) - [DeepSeek vs Z.ai](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/deepseek-vs-z-ai.md) - [Moonshot AI vs Z.ai](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/moonshot-ai-vs-z-ai.md) - [Z.ai vs Alibaba Cloud](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-alibaba-cloud.md) - [Z.ai vs Meta](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-meta.md) - [Z.ai vs SambaNova](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-sambanova.md) - [Z.ai vs Nebius](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-nebius.md) - [Z.ai vs fal](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-fal.md) - [Z.ai vs Novita AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-novita-ai.md) - [Z.ai vs Parasail](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-parasail.md) - [Z.ai vs Inference.net](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-inference-net.md) - [Z.ai vs GMI Cloud](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-gmi-cloud.md) - [Z.ai vs Sail Research](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-sail-research.md) - [Z.ai vs Morph](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-morph.md) - [Z.ai vs Relace](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-relace.md) - [Z.ai vs TypeSafe AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-typesafe-ai.md) - [Z.ai vs StepFun](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-stepfun.md) - [Z.ai vs Runware](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-runware.md) - [Z.ai vs StreamLake](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-streamlake.md) - [Z.ai vs Wafer](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-wafer.md) - [Z.ai vs RunInfra](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-runinfra.md) - [Z.ai vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-particle-ai.md) ## Sources - [Z.AI pricing, Layer3](https://www.layer3labs.io/guides/z-ai-pricing) - [GLM-5 review, AfricanAI](https://africanai.io/blog/glm-5-review/) - [Z.ai API guide](https://www.aimadetools.com/blog/z-ai-api-complete-guide/) Pricing and model lineups change often; figures are a snapshot.