How much does the GLM 5.3 API cost?

$0.3276 per million input tokens and $1.0296 per million output tokens, with cached input at $0.0608. Z.ai's list price is $1.092 and $3.432, so this is 70% under Z.ai's list price.

It is pay as you go: prepaid credit from $10, with no subscription or monthly fee, billed per token. A 1,000-token prompt with a 500-token reply costs about $0.0008.

What is the GLM 5.3 context window?

GLM 5.3 has a 1,000,000-token context window, with up to 131,072 output tokens per request. It takes text input.

What is the GLM 5.3 model id?

glm-5.3. Send it as the model through the OpenAI SDK with base URL https://api.uplinkswitch.com/v1.

Is it the real GLM 5.3?

Every day each model gets the same test prompt, and a model always counts that prompt the same way; a swapped one would not. GLM 5.3's latest result: Same fingerprint since Oct 12.

UplinkSwitch

Models / Z.ai

GLM 5.3 API pricing

$0.3276 in, $1.0296 out per million tokens, 70% under Z.ai's list price.

glm-5.3managed routeOpenAI SDK

Price · per million tokens, USD

Tokens	Z.ai list price	UplinkSwitch	Saving
Input	$1.092	$0.3276	-70%
Cached input	$0.2028	$0.0608	-70%
Output	$3.432	$1.0296	-70%

List price: Z.ai's published rate, read October 2026. Same price on every host.

Real-model check: Same fingerprint since Oct 12

GLM 5.3 specs

Context window: 1,000,000 tokens
Max output: 131,072 tokens
Input: text
Released: August 18, 2026

GLM 5.3 API · base URL and key

Python · OpenAI SDK

from openai import OpenAI

client = OpenAI(
    base_url="https://api.uplinkswitch.com/v1",
    api_key="sk-uplink-live-...",
)

completion = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="glm-5.3",
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Summarize this in one line."}],
)
print(completion.choices[0].message.content)

TypeScript · OpenAI SDK

import OpenAI from 'openai';

const client = new OpenAI({
  baseURL: 'https://api.uplinkswitch.com/v1',
  apiKey: 'sk-uplink-live-...',
});

const completion = await client.chat.completions.create({
  model: 'glm-5.3',
  messages: [{ role: 'user', content: 'Summarize this in one line.' }],
});
console.log(completion.choices[0].message.content);

curl

curl https://api.uplinkswitch.com/v1/chat/completions \
  -H "authorization: Bearer sk-uplink-live-..." \
  -H "content-type: application/json" \
  -d '{"model":"glm-5.3","messages":[{"role":"user","content":"Hello"}]}'

Guides: Cursor, Cline, Roo Code, Kilo Code, SDKs.

What would it cost? · paste a prompt, priced before you send it

Prompt

Answer length, tokens

Input is counted at about 4 characters per token.

Cheapest first. A real request is billed on the provider's own token count. Same estimate as JSON: POST https://api.uplinkswitch.com/v1/estimate, no key needed.

GLM 5.3 questions

How much does the GLM 5.3 API cost?: $0.3276 per million input tokens and $1.0296 per million output tokens, with cached input at $0.0608. Z.ai's list price is $1.092 and $3.432, so this is 70% under Z.ai's list price.
Is GLM 5.3 free?: It is pay as you go: prepaid credit from $10, with no subscription or monthly fee, billed per token. A 1,000-token prompt with a 500-token reply costs about $0.0008.
What is the GLM 5.3 context window?: GLM 5.3 has a 1,000,000-token context window, with up to 131,072 output tokens per request. It takes text input.
What is the GLM 5.3 model id?: glm-5.3. Send it as the model through the OpenAI SDK with base URL https://api.uplinkswitch.com/v1.
Is it the real GLM 5.3?: Every day each model gets the same test prompt, and a model always counts that prompt the same way; a swapped one would not. GLM 5.3's latest result: Same fingerprint since Oct 12.

Read: GLM API cost per request, October 2026: a chat turn and a long document.

Get a key · All models