Best AI for everyday maths / head-to-head

GLM 5.2 vs GPT-5.5for everyday maths

The verdict

GPT-5.5 wins, 9897

Same 12 everyday maths tasks, marked blind by three rival labs. GPT-5.5 took 2 tasks, GLM 5.2 took 0, 10 tied. Tested 14 Aug 2026.

Where they differed most

The task — Estimate honestly

Roughly how many working hours are there in a UK full-time year? Give your estimate, show the 2-3 assumptions it rests on, and say which assumption moves the answer most.

**Estimate:**
Roughly **1,750 working hours** in a UK full-time year. 

**The 3 Assumptions:**
1. **Standard weekly hours:** The baseline work week is 37.5 hours (a common UK standard, sitting between the 35-hour weeks often seen in the public sector and the 40-hour weeks common in the private sector). 
2. **Paid time off:** The worker takes 28 days of paid leave per year. This is the UK statutory minimum (5.6 weeks), which typically includes the 8 public (bank) holidays. This leaves roughly 46.5 working weeks in the year.
3. **Sickness and abs…
Rough estimate: **about 1,700 working hours per year** for a UK full-time employee.

Calculation:

\[
(52 \text{ weeks} - 6.6 \text{ weeks off}) \times 37.5 \text{ hours/week}
= 45.4 \times 37.5
\approx 1,700 \text{ hours}
\]

Assumptions:

1. **Full-time week = 37.5 hours**  
   Common UK office pattern: 7.5 hours/day × 5 days.

2. **Holiday = 25 days annual leave + 8 bank holidays**  
   That is **33 days**, or **6.6 working weeks** off.

3. **No adjustment for sickness, overtime, training, or unpaid leave**  
   This is scheduled working tim…

Task by task

TaskGLM 5.2GPT-5.5
VAT both ways1010
Percentage change vs points1010
Unit price comparison1010
Mortgage overpayment intuition1010
Split a bill with a twist1010
Compound vs simple1010
The discount stack1010
Reverse percentage1010
Rate to reality1010
Average of averages trap1010
Estimate honestly89
Refuse false precision89

Full receipts: GLM 5.2, GPT-5.5 · judges claude-sonnet-5, gemini-3.1-pro-preview, gpt-5.6-terra

Questions people ask

Which is better for everyday maths: GLM 5.2 or GPT-5.5?

GPT-5.5 — it scored 98/100 against 97/100 on our 12-task everyday maths suite, winning 2 tasks to 0 with 10 tied. Every answer was marked blind by three judges from three rival AI labs.

How was this tested?

Both models answered the identical published everyday maths tasks. Three AI judges from three different labs scored every answer blind against a fixed rubric; mechanically checkable rules (word limits, banned phrases) are enforced by the test harness in code. The raw outputs and judge verdicts are downloadable.

More everyday maths head-to-heads: Claude Opus 4.8 vs GPT-5.5 · Claude Opus 4.8 vs GLM 5.2 · GPT-5.5 vs GPT-5.6 Sol · GLM 5.2 vs GPT-5.6 Sol · GPT-5.5 vs GPT-5.6 Terra · GLM 5.2 vs GPT-5.6 Terra

Full ranking: Best AI for everyday maths · model pages: GLM 5.2, GPT-5.5