GLM 5
GLM 5 is Z.AI's GLM-5 generation model released February 12, 2026, featuring multiple thinking modes, enhanced long-range planning and memory, and improved handling of complex multi-step agent tasks. It supports agentic coding and structured data extraction workflows.
View API reference- Input and output price
- Prices from: Input $1, Output $3.20, Per 1M tokens
- 24h uptime
- Loading AI Gateway uptime
import { streamText } from 'ai'
const result = streamText({ model: 'zai/glm-5', prompt: 'Why is the sky blue?'})Copy link to headingPlayground
Try out GLM 5 by Z.AI. Usage is billed to your team at API rates. Free users (those who haven't made a payment) get $5 of credits every 30 days.
GLM 5
GLM 5
Copy link to headingProviders
Route requests across multiple providers. Copy a provider slug to set your preference. Visit the docs for more info. Using a provider means you agree to their terms, listed under Legal.
Copy link to headingUptime24 hours
Direct request success rate on AI Gateway and per-provider. Visit the docs for more info.
Copy link to headingThroughput24 hours
P50 throughput on live AI Gateway traffic, in tokens per second (TPS). Visit the docs for more info.
Copy link to headingLatency24 hours
P50 time to first token (TTFT) on live AI Gateway traffic, in milliseconds. View the docs for more info.
Getting started
Call GLM 5 through AI Gateway with the AI SDK generateText and streamText functions, or through the OpenAI Chat Completions, OpenAI Responses, and Anthropic Messages APIs by changing the base URL. AI Gateway authenticates the request and routes it to an available provider.
Install the AI SDK (pnpm add ai dotenv), create an API key from the API Keys page, and set it as AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY in your environment. Full setup is covered in the text generation quickstart.
import { generateText } from 'ai';import 'dotenv/config';
async function main() { const result = await generateText({ model: 'zai/glm-5', prompt: 'Why is the sky blue?', });
console.log(result.text);}
main().catch(console.error);Top-level parameters
The same GLM 5 request in each API format AI Gateway supports.
import { generateText } from 'ai';import 'dotenv/config';
async function main() { const result = await generateText({ model: 'zai/glm-5', system: 'You are a concise technical assistant.', prompt: 'Summarize the tradeoffs between static generation and SSR.', maxOutputTokens: 1024, });
console.log(result.text);}
main().catch(console.error);Standard parameters like prompt, messages, temperature, and tools work as documented in the AI SDK docs. These are the parameters with model-specific behavior.
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
model | string | Yes | Model ID in the form creator/model, e.g. zai/glm-5. AI Gateway routes the request to an available provider. |
maxOutputTokens | number | No | Hard cap on generated tokens. GLM 5 supports up to 131,100 output tokens. Reasoning tokens count toward this limit. |
reasoning | 'provider-default' | 'none' | 'minimal' | 'low' | 'medium' | 'high' | 'xhigh' | No | Provider-agnostic reasoning effort, available in AI SDK 7 or later. Maps to the provider’s native reasoning configuration; reasoning settings under providerOptions take precedence when both are set. See the Reasoning section below. |
providerOptions | Record<string, JSONValue> | No | AI Gateway routing options under gateway, plus any provider-native options under the provider’s own namespace — see the table below. |
Input limits
| Input | Formats | Sources | Max count | Max size | Limits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Text | — | — | — | — | Prompt and response share the 203K-token context window |
Provider options
Set AI Gateway routing options under providerOptions.gateway. For provider-specific options, pass them under the provider’s namespace as documented by the AI SDK.
Learn more in the AI SDK provider docs.
import { generateText } from 'ai';import 'dotenv/config';
async function main() { const result = await generateText({ model: 'zai/glm-5', prompt: 'Why is the sky blue?', providerOptions: { gateway: { only: ['zai', 'bedrock'], }, }, });
console.log(result.text);}
main().catch(console.error);These AI Gateway routing options apply to every model. Provider-specific options pass through under the provider’s own namespace (for example providerOptions.anthropic) exactly as documented by the AI SDK.
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
providerOptions.gateway.only | string[] | No | Restrict routing to these provider slugs. Requests fail over only within the listed providers. |
providerOptions.gateway.order | string[] | No | Preferred provider order. Listed providers are tried first; unlisted providers remain available as fallbacks. |
providerOptions.gateway.sort | 'cost' | 'ttft' | 'tps' | No | Rank candidate providers by price, time to first token, or tokens per second instead of the default routing order. |
providerOptions.gateway.zeroDataRetention | boolean | No | Route only to providers with a zero-data-retention policy for this model. |
Routing across providers
AI Gateway serves the same model through multiple providers and fails over automatically. order expresses a preference while keeping every provider eligible; only is a hard allowlist — if none of the listed providers are available the request fails instead of falling back.
Options under a provider's own namespace (for example providerOptions.anthropic) are forwarded to that provider with the request. Providers ignore option namespaces that don't apply to them, so it is safe to set provider options alongside gateway routing options.
Reasoning
AI Gateway bridges reasoning across every API format. The AI SDK exposes a provider-agnostic top-level reasoning level (none, minimal, low, medium, high, or xhigh); the Chat Completions and Responses formats take the same effort under reasoning.effort; and the Anthropic Messages format uses a native thinking token budget. Whichever you send, the gateway maps it to the target model’s native configuration, converting between effort levels and token budgets as needed. Reasoning-related settings under providerOptions take full precedence over the top-level reasoning value and are never merged. Reasoning tokens typically count toward your output-token usage, though how they’re reported and billed varies by provider.
Learn more in the AI Gateway reasoning guide.
import { generateText } from 'ai';import 'dotenv/config';
async function main() { const result = await generateText({ model: 'zai/glm-5', prompt: 'Explain the Monty Hall problem step by step.', reasoning: 'high', });
console.log(result.text);}
main().catch(console.error);Tool calling
Expose tools the model can call. Define each tool’s inputs with a Zod schema.
import { generateText, tool } from 'ai';import { z } from 'zod';import 'dotenv/config';
async function main() { const result = await generateText({ model: 'zai/glm-5', prompt: 'What is the weather in San Francisco?', tools: { getWeather: tool({ description: 'Get the current weather for a location', inputSchema: z.object({ location: z.string() }), execute: async ({ location }) => ({ location, temperatureC: 18 }), }), }, });
console.log(result.text);}
main().catch(console.error);Copy link to headingMore models by Z.AI
| Model |
|---|
| 1M | 0.4 s | 222 tps | $0.70/M | $2.20/M | Read$0.13/M | — |  | 09/02/2026 | ||||||
| 1M | 0.3 s | 145 tps | $0.07/M | $0.24/M | Read$0.01/M | — | +1 |   +15 | 08/26/2026 | |||||
| 1M | 0.2 s | 471 tps | $0.70/M+1 more | $2.20/M+1 more | Read$0.12/M | — |   +15 | 08/18/2026 | ||||||
| 1M | 0.5 s | 212 tps | $2.10/M | $6.60/M | Read$0.21/M | — |   | 06/23/2026 | ||||||
| 1M | 0.2 s | 443 tps | $0.70/M+1 more | $2.20/M+1 more | Read$0.11/M | — | +15 | 06/16/2026 | ||||||
| 205K | 0.9 s | 63 tps | $1.40/M | $4.40/M | Read$0.26/M | — |  | 04/07/2026 |
Copy link to headingAbout GLM 5
GLM 5 was released February 12, 2026 as Z.AI's GLM-5 generation model, introducing multiple thinking modes and enhanced long-range planning. It builds on the GLM-4.x family, with added focus on agentic coding, autonomous tool use, and complex multi-step workflows.
The multiple thinking modes let you control how the model approaches problems. Different modes optimize for different task profiles: quick direct responses, structured reasoning, or deep deliberation with extended chain-of-thought. This flexibility is valuable in agentic architectures where different pipeline steps have different reasoning requirements, all served by a single model.
GLM 5 demonstrates improved long-range planning and memory, enabling it to maintain coherence across extended interactions and complex task sequences. Z.AI highlights structured extraction from documents like contracts and financial reports, and agentic coding workflows where the model autonomously plans, writes, tests, and iterates on code. Through AI Gateway, GLM 5 is available with unified API access, built-in observability, and intelligent provider routing.
Copy link to headingWhat To Consider When Choosing a Provider
- Configuration: GLM 5 supports multiple thinking modes. Experiment with different modes on your specific tasks to find the right balance between reasoning depth and response speed.
- Configuration: The combination of long-range planning, autonomous tool use, and multiple thinking modes makes GLM 5 well-suited as the central model in agentic pipelines. Design your tool schemas to leverage these capabilities.
- Configuration: For structured data extraction from contracts and financial reports, benchmark GLM 5 against general-purpose alternatives on your document types.
- Zero Data Retention: Zero Data Retention is available for this model. It is offered on a per-provider and model basis. See the documentation for details.
- Authentication: AI Gateway authenticates requests using an API key or OIDC token. You do not need to manage provider credentials directly.
Copy link to headingWhen to Use GLM 5
Best for
- Complex agentic workflows: Multi-step planning, autonomous tool use, and sustained reasoning across extended task sequences
- Agentic coding: The model autonomously plans, writes, tests, and iterates on code with minimal human intervention
- Structured data extraction: Contracts, financial reports, and complex documents where precision matters
- Workflow automation: Improved long-range planning and memory support multi-phase processes
- Applications requiring flexible reasoning: Multiple thinking modes let you optimize the accuracy-latency tradeoff per request
Consider alternatives when
- Speed and cost priority: GLM-4.7-Flash or GLM-4.7-FlashX provides faster inference for less demanding tasks
- Vision and multimodal input: GLM-4.6V or GLM-4.5V provides visual understanding capabilities
- Simple generation or classification: Earlier GLM models may be more cost-effective for straightforward tasks
- Frontend-specific code generation: GLM-4.7's targeted frontend improvements may be sufficient at lower cost
Copy link to headingConclusion
GLM 5 is Z.AI's GLM-5 generation model, with agentic features from multiple thinking modes, long-range planning, and autonomous tool use. For teams building agent systems, automated coding pipelines, or document processing workflows, it provides deep reasoning and planning capabilities in the GLM lineup.
Copy link to headingFrequently Asked Questions
What are the multiple thinking modes in GLM 5?
GLM 5 supports different thinking modes that optimize for different task profiles, from quick direct responses to deep deliberation with extended chain-of-thought reasoning. This lets you control the accuracy-latency tradeoff per request.
How does GLM 5 compare to GLM-4.7?
GLM 5 adds multiple thinking modes, improved long-range planning and memory, and expanded agentic features compared with GLM-4.7. GLM-4.7 can still fit coding and frontend tasks when you want lower cost.
What makes GLM 5 good at document extraction?
Z.AI cites structured extraction from contracts, financial reports, and other complex documents. Improved planning and reasoning help with multi-section files, cross-references, and complex formatting.
What is the context window for GLM 5?
202.8K tokens.
How do I authenticate with GLM 5 through AI Gateway?
AI Gateway provides a unified API key. No separate Z.AI account is needed. Use the model identifier to route requests. BYOK is also supported for direct provider access.
Is GLM 5 suitable for autonomous coding?
Yes. GLM 5 handles agentic coding where it autonomously plans, writes, tests, and iterates on code. The improved long-range planning helps maintain coherence across complex, multi-file coding tasks.
What is the pricing for GLM 5?
Rates are listed on this page. They reflect the providers routing through AI Gateway and shift when providers update their pricing.