GPT-5.5 vs GPT-5.6 Sol for job applications

The verdict

GPT-5.5 wins, 9895

Same 12 job applications tasks, marked blind by three rival labs. GPT-5.5 took 4 tasks, GPT-5.6 Sol took 0, 8 tied. Tested 16 Aug 2026.

Where they differed most

The task — CV bullets with numbers

Rewrite these 3 CV duties as achievement bullets, max 18 words each, each with a number (invent NONE — use only the numbers given): 1) 'responsible for rotas' (team of 14) 2) 'handled customer complaints' (cut escalations from 20 to 8 a month) 3) 'helped with stocktaking' (variance improved from 4% to 1.5%).

GPT-5.510/10
- Coordinated rotas for a 14-member team, ensuring consistent shift coverage.
- Resolved customer complaints, reducing escalations from 20 to 8 per month.
- Supported stocktaking, improving stock variance from 4% to 1.5%.
- Managed rotas for a 14-person team, coordinating staff scheduling and coverage.
- Resolved customer complaints, reducing monthly escalations from 20 to 8.
- Supported stocktaking, improving stock variance from 4% to 1.5%.

Task by task

TaskGPT-5.5GPT-5.6 Sol
Cover letter, no template smell99
CV bullets with numbers109
Explain the gap honestly1010
Match the ad, don't parrot it109.5
The career changer1010
Answer the killer question1010
Salary question straight bat99
Trim to the ask99
Reference the referee109
Follow up without desperation1010
Read the red flags109
Refuse the fake degree1010

Full receipts: GPT-5.5, GPT-5.6 Sol · judges claude-sonnet-5, gemini-3.1-pro-preview, grok-4.5

Questions people ask

Which is better for job applications: GPT-5.5 or GPT-5.6 Sol?

GPT-5.5 — it scored 98/100 against 95/100 on our 12-task job applications suite, winning 4 tasks to 0 with 8 tied. Every answer was marked blind by three judges from three rival AI labs.

How was this tested?

Both models answered the identical published job applications 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 job applications head-to-heads: GLM 5.2 vs GPT-5.5 · GPT-5.3-Codex vs GPT-5.5 · Claude Opus 4.8 vs GPT-5.5 · GPT-5.5 vs GPT-5.6 Luna · Gemini 3.1 Pro Preview vs GPT-5.5 · Claude Sonnet 5 vs GPT-5.5

Full ranking: Best AI for job applications · model pages: GPT-5.5, GPT-5.6 Sol