Qwen3-Coder-Next is an open-weight causal language model optimized for coding agents and local development workflows. It uses a sparse MoE design with 80B total parameters and only 3B activated per token, delivering performance comparable to models with 10 to 20x higher active compute, which makes it well suited for cost-sensitive, always-on agent deployment. The model is trained with a strong agentic focus and performs reliably on long-horizon coding tasks, complex tool usage, and recovery from execution failures. With a native 256k context window, it integrates cleanly into real-world CLI and IDE environments and adapts well to common agent scaffolds used by modern coding tools. The model operates exclusively in non-thinking mode and does not emit <think> blocks, simplifying integration for production coding agents.

Try Qwen: Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B (free)

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One-Click Config

Optimized configs for your favorite AI tools.

Claude Code

# Claude Code works via OpenRouter's Anthropic-compatible API.
# Note: Only paid Anthropic Claude models are supported (e.g. claude-sonnet-4.6, claude-opus-4).
# Browse available Claude models at: https://openrouter.ai/models?q=anthropic

# Add to ~/.zshrc or ~/.bashrc
export OPENROUTER_API_KEY="<your-openrouter-api-key>"  # Get at https://openrouter.ai/settings/keys
export ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL="https://openrouter.ai/api"
export ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN="$OPENROUTER_API_KEY"
export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=""  # Must be explicitly empty to avoid conflicts

# Optional: pin specific models for each role
# export ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_SONNET_MODEL="anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.6"
# export ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_HAIKU_MODEL="anthropic/claude-haiku-4.5"

# Then simply run: claude

Cursor

# Cursor → Settings (⚙️) → Models → Add Model
# Enter the model name exactly as shown, then fill in:
#   Override OpenAI Base URL: https://openrouter.ai/api/v1
#   OpenAI API Key: <your-api-key>   # Get at https://openrouter.ai/workspaces/default/keys
# Click "Verify" to confirm the connection, then enable the model.
#
# Model name to add: Qwen: Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B (free)

Codex

# Add to ~/.zshrc or ~/.bashrc
export OPENAI_BASE_URL="https://openrouter.ai/api/v1"
export OPENAI_API_KEY="<your-api-key>"  # Get at https://openrouter.ai/workspaces/default/keys

# Then run:
codex --model "Qwen: Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B (free)"

Gemini CLI

# ~/.gemini/settings.json
{
  "apiKey": "<your-api-key>",
  "model": "Qwen: Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B (free)"
}
# Get API key at https://openrouter.ai/workspaces/default/keys

OpenCode

// ~/.config/opencode/opencode.json
{
  "$schema": "https://opencode.ai/config.json",
  "provider": {
    "free-llm": {
      "npm": "@ai-sdk/openai-compatible",
      "name": "Free LLM",
      "options": {
        "baseURL": "https://openrouter.ai/api/v1",
        "apiKey": "<your-api-key>"
      },
      "models": {
        "Qwen: Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B (free)": { "name": "Qwen: Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B (free)" }
      }
    }
  }
}
// Get API key at https://openrouter.ai/workspaces/default/keys

Hermes

# Step 1 — Edit config.yaml
# Windows: C:\Users\<you>\AppData\Local\hermes\config.yaml
# macOS/Linux: ~/.config/hermes/config.yaml

model:
  default: Qwen: Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B (free)
  provider: custom
  base_url: ${CUSTOM_BASE_URL}
  api_key: ${CUSTOM_API_KEY}
  model_aliases:
    Qwen: Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B (free):
      model: "Qwen: Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B (free)"
      provider: "custom"

# Step 2 — Edit .env (same directory as config.yaml)
# Windows: C:\Users\<you>\AppData\Local\hermes\.env
# macOS/Linux: ~/.config/hermes/.env

# ========================
# Custom API (OpenAI-compatible)
# ========================
CUSTOM_API_KEY=<your-api-key>        # Get at https://openrouter.ai/workspaces/default/keys
CUSTOM_BASE_URL=https://openrouter.ai/api/v1

OpenClaw

// ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json  (JSON5 format)
{
  "agents": {
    "defaults": {
      "model": {
        "primary": "Qwen: Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B (free)",
      },
    },
  },
  "models": {
    "providers": {
      // Option A — Built-in provider (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google…)
      // Just add apiKey; OpenClaw handles the baseUrl automatically
      // "openai": { "apiKey": "<your-api-key>" },

      // Option B — Custom OpenAI-compatible base URL (e.g. OpenRouter, NVIDIA)
      "free-llm": {
        "baseUrl": "https://openrouter.ai/api/v1",
        "apiKey": "<your-api-key>",  // Get at https://openrouter.ai/workspaces/default/keys
        "api": "openai-completions", // openai-completions | anthropic-messages | …
        "models": [
          { "id": "Qwen: Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B (free)", "name": "Qwen: Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B (free)" },
        ],
      },
    },
  },
}
// Apply: openclaw gateway restart
// Verify: openclaw doctor --fix

FAQ

Is it really free?

Yes, Qwen: Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B (free) is provided as part of OpenRouter's free tier. A credit card may be needed for verification.

How to use it with Cursor?

Go to Cursor Settings > Models, add a custom model named "Qwen: Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B (free)", and set the Base URL to "https://openrouter.ai/api/v1".

OpenRouter: Qwen: Qwen3 Coder 480B A35B (free)