Overview
Hy3 is a 295B-parameter Mixture-of-Experts model from Tencent (21B active, 192 experts with top-8 routing) built for reasoning, agentic workflows, and real-world production use. It supports a configurable reasoning effort:...
How Tencent: Hy3 (free) stacks up
Among the 344 chatbots & llms tools in our directory, it ranks #143 of 339 on quality (7.8/10), right around the category average, and it's one of the free-to-use options in the category.
Tencent: Hy3 (free) in depth
Tencent: Hy3 (free), built by Tencent, sits in the chatbots & llms space and is completely free to use. Our editors rate it 7.8 out of 10 based on capability, ecosystem and value. It handles a context window of 262,144 tokens.
On the feature side, Tencent: Hy3 (free) brings 262,144-token context window, reasoning / chain-of-thought, tool / function calling and structured (json) outputs. These are the capabilities that most shape day-to-day use and separate it from thinner alternatives.
Its biggest strength is completely free to use via the openrouter api, while the main trade-off to weigh is that text-only: does not accept image input. Keep both in mind when deciding whether it fits your workflow.
Tencent: Hy3 (free) is most often chosen for research and writing. If that matches your goals, it's a strong candidate to shortlist.
Key features
- ✓262,144-token context window
- ✓Reasoning / chain-of-thought
- ✓Tool / function calling
- ✓Structured (JSON) outputs
Pricing
Pros
- +Completely free to use via the OpenRouter API
- +Built-in reasoning (chain-of-thought) mode for harder problems
- +Supports tool / function calling for agent-style workflows
- +Can return structured JSON output for reliable parsing
Cons
- −Text-only: does not accept image input
Who should use Tencent: Hy3 (free)
- →Anyone looking for a chatbots & llms tool from Tencent.
- →Teams and individuals focused on research and writing.
- →Users who want to try before they buy — there's a free tier.
- →People who value completely free to use via the openrouter api.
Who should look elsewhere
- →Those for whom text-only: does not accept image input is a dealbreaker.
Best for
10 Best Tencent: Hy3 (free) Alternatives in 2026
Tencent: Hy3 (free) is a strong chatbots & llms tool, but it is not the only option. Whether you are after a lower price, different features or a better fit for your workflow, here are the 10 best alternatives to Tencent: Hy3 (free), ranked and compared.
Anthropic
Claude is Anthropic's family of AI assistants, known for long-context reasoning, careful writing and strong coding…
OpenAI
ChatGPT is OpenAI's flagship conversational AI, powering hundreds of millions of weekly users across web, mobile and…
Google DeepMind
Gemini is Google's natively multimodal model family, deeply integrated across Search, Workspace, Android and the Pixel…
Anthropic
Sonnet 5 is Anthropic's most capable Sonnet-class model, with frontier performance across coding, agents, and…
Sakana AI
Fugu Ultra is the higher-performance model in Sakana AI's Fugu family. Rather than a single monolithic model, Fugu is a…
~anthropic
This model always redirects to the latest model in the Claude Fable family.
Anthropic
Claude Fable 5 is a Mythos-class model from Anthropic, built for autonomous knowledge work and coding.
Qwen
Qwen3.7-Plus is a cost-effective model in Alibaba's Qwen3.7 series. It supports text and image input with text output…
MiniMax
MiniMax-M3 is a multimodal foundation model from MiniMax. It supports text, image, and video inputs with text output, a…
Anthropic
Fast-mode variant of [Opus 4.8](/anthropic/claude-opus-4.8) - identical capabilities with higher output speed at 2x…
Tencent: Hy3 (free) vs top alternatives
A side-by-side look at how Tencent: Hy3 (free) stacks up against its closest rivals.
| Feature | Tencent: Hy3 (free)Tencent | ClaudeAnthropic | ChatGPTOpenAI | GeminiGoogle DeepMind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quality score | 7.8 / 10 | 9.6 / 10 | 9.5 / 10 | 9.2 / 10 |
| Starting price | Free | $20/mo | $20/mo | $20/mo |
| Free tier | Yes — Free tier available | Yes — Free tier available | Yes — Free tier available | Yes — Free tier available |
| API input price | $0 / 1M tokens | $2 / 1M tokens | $30 / 1M tokens | $1.5 / 1M tokens |
| API output price | $0 / 1M tokens | $10 / 1M tokens | $180 / 1M tokens | $9 / 1M tokens |
| Speed | — | Fast | Fast | Fast |
| Context window | 262,144 tokens | 200K tokens | 128K tokens | 1M-2M tokens |
| Categories | Chatbots & LLMs | Chatbots & LLMs, Coding, Writing | Chatbots & LLMs, Coding, Writing | Chatbots & LLMs, Coding, Writing |
| Key features |
|
|
|
|
| Pros |
|
|
|
|
| Cons |
|
|
|
|
Frequently asked questions
Q. Is Tencent: Hy3 (free) free?
Yes — Tencent: Hy3 (free) offers a free tier. Paid plans start at Free.
Q. How much does Tencent: Hy3 (free) cost?
Tencent: Hy3 (free) starts at Free. API usage is around $0 per 1M input tokens and $0 per 1M output tokens.
Q. What is Tencent: Hy3 (free) best for?
Tencent: Hy3 (free) is best suited to research and writing, within the chatbots & llms category.
Q. What are the best Tencent: Hy3 (free) alternatives?
Popular alternatives to Tencent: Hy3 (free) include Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini and Anthropic: Claude Sonnet 5. Each trades off price, quality and ecosystem differently.
Q. Is there a free alternative to Tencent: Hy3 (free)?
Yes. Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini offer a free tier, making them good starting points if you want to avoid an upfront subscription.
Q. Why switch from Tencent: Hy3 (free)?
Common reasons include pricing, specific feature gaps (Text-only: does not accept image input), data-privacy requirements, or simply wanting a tool that fits your stack better.
How we rate AI tools
Our quality score weighs capability on real tasks, breadth of features and integrations, pricing and value, and how actively the tool is maintained. Scores are editorial guidance, not benchmarks — always trial a tool on your own workflow before committing. Pricing and features change frequently, so verify current details on the official site.
Ready to try Tencent: Hy3 (free)?
Start with the free tier and upgrade as you grow.
Visit Tencent: Hy3 (free) →