Cloudflare Clef vs DeepSeek comparison

Cloudflare Clef and DeepSeek compared side by side in AI.

Cloudflare Clef

An open-source decision model released by Cloudflare in October 2026. Instead of text, it returns only choices and probabilities, and is compatible with the Jev API

What is good

Apache 2.0 open source, so free even on your own servers
Jev API compatible, so it is easy to swap in
Clef supports a 64K context (2x Jev's) and image decisions

What could be better

Decision-only, cannot chat or write
No app for general users

Cloudflare Clef official site

DeepSeek

A high-performance Chinese AI chatbot that is free to use. The models are also released as open source

What is good

Chatbot fully free
Good at math and reasoning
API is very cheap

What could be better

Controversy over overseas transfer of personal data
Slows down when traffic is heavy

DeepSeek official site

At a glance

Highlighted rows are where they differ.

Item	Cloudflare ClefVisit site	DeepSeekVisit site
Starting price	Check siteNot applicable	FreeNot applicable
Free tier	Free plan available	Free
Korean support	Limited	Good
Main models	Clef (based on Qwen3.8-27B, supports image input) Clef-flash (based on Qwen3.5-9B, low latency)	DeepSeek-V4.1-Flash-1017 (multimodal) DeepSeek-V4-Pro
Type	AI services	AI services
Category	Open Models, Developer API	Chatbot/Assistant, Open Models
Company	Cloudflare, United States	DeepSeek, China
Plans	Weights free (Apache 2.0) Workers AI pay-as-you-go: Clef $0.24 per 1 million input tokens, Clef-flash $0.038 Workers AI free allocation of 10,000 Neurons per day (excess $0.011 per 1,000 Neurons, Workers Paid required) Contact for fine-tuning	Web and app fully free API pay-as-you-go (50% off off-peak)
Pros	Apache 2.0 open source, so free even on your own servers Jev API compatible, so it is easy to swap in Clef supports a 64K context (2x Jev's) and image decisions Clef-flash has a very cheap input price Can be tried right away with the Workers AI free allocation	Chatbot fully free Good at math and reasoning API is very cheap
Cons	Decision-only, cannot chat or write No app for general users The self-service fine-tuning platform is still in preparation No public Korean performance data	Controversy over overseas transfer of personal data Slows down when traffic is heavy Censorship of sensitive topics

Prices and benefits may change. Check the official site before you pay.

Prices converted at 1 USD = ₩1,327.84 (2026-10-20). Original price shown in brackets. Taxes as listed by each provider.

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