Google Willow vs Pasqal Fresnel Specs, Pricing & Performance [2026]
Quick Verdict
Google Willow uses Superconducting while Pasqal Fresnel uses Neutral Atom technology. Google Willow leads on 2Q gate fidelity (99.88%). Google Willow offers more physical qubits (105 qubits).
Specification Comparison
| Metric | Google Willow | Pasqal Fresnel |
|---|---|---|
| Physical Qubits | 105 ✓ | 100 |
| Technology | Superconducting | Neutral Atom |
| 2Q Gate Fidelity | 99.88% ✓ | 99.50% |
| 1Q Gate Fidelity | 99.97% ✓ | 99.80% |
| Readout Fidelity | 99.90% ✓ | 98.50% |
| Quantum Volume | — | — |
| CLOPS | 100,000 ✓ | 20 |
| T1 (Relaxation) | 100 µs | 4 ms ✓ |
| T2 (Dephasing) | 80 µs | 1 ms ✓ |
| 1Q Gate Time | 25 ns ✓ | 1 µs |
| 2Q Gate Time | 68 ns ✓ | 300 µs |
| Connectivity | Grid (deg 4) | Custom |
| Max Circuit Depth | 1,000 ✓ | 200 |
| Max Shots | 1,000,000 ✓ | 2,000 |
| Dynamic Circuits | No | No |
| Error Mitigation | Available | No |
| Cloud Platforms | 0 platforms | 2 platforms |
Green bold values with a checkmark indicate the better result for each metric.
Pricing Comparison
Example: 10-qubit, 50-depth circuit, 1,000 shots — estimated cost on cheapest platform: Google Willow: N/A vs Pasqal Fresnel: $0.1000
Superconducting Google Willow
Neutral Atom Pasqal Fresnel
| Platform | Price | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Azure Quantum | $0.0250/shot | Available |
| Best Azure Quantum | $0.00/shot | Available |
Superconducting vs Neutral Atom: Technology Tradeoffs
- Advantage
- Fast gate speeds (tens to hundreds of nanoseconds), mature fabrication technology using standard semiconductor processes, and strong industry investment make this the most commercially advanced platform.
- Challenge
- Requires dilution refrigerators operating near absolute zero (~15 mK), leading to large physical footprints and high infrastructure costs. Qubits are sensitive to noise, limiting coherence times to microseconds-to-milliseconds range.
- Gate Speed
- 10–700 ns per gate
- Fidelity
- 99.5–99.9% for 2-qubit gates
- Advantage
- Large qubit counts (100–10,000+ atoms in reconfigurable arrays), programmable connectivity via atom repositioning, and operation at room temperature (atoms laser-cooled to µK). Naturally suited to analog quantum simulation.
- Challenge
- Gate fidelities are lower than trapped-ion systems, coherence times are shorter, and mid-circuit measurement and classical feedback are still maturing. Rydberg blockade errors limit 2-qubit gate fidelity.
- Gate Speed
- 0.1 µs – 1 ms per gate
- Fidelity
- 98–99.5% for 2-qubit gates
Use Case Recommendations
Higher 2Q gate fidelity (99.88%) means fewer errors in VQE/UCCSD circuits.
More qubits (105 qubits) allows encoding larger problem instances.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between Google Willow and Pasqal Fresnel?
Google Willow uses Superconducting while Pasqal Fresnel uses Neutral Atom technology. Google Willow leads on 2Q gate fidelity (99.88%). Google Willow offers more physical qubits (105 qubits). These QPUs use fundamentally different qubit technologies: Superconducting vs Neutral Atom.
Which is better for quantum chemistry, Google Willow or Pasqal Fresnel?
For quantum chemistry simulations (VQE, UCCSD), Google Willow is preferred due to its higher 2Q gate fidelity (99.88% vs 99.50%). Higher gate fidelity directly reduces circuit error rates in chemistry algorithms.
How do the prices compare between Google Willow and Pasqal Fresnel?
Google Willow is available from no public cloud access. Pasqal Fresnel is available from $0.00/shot on Azure Quantum. Note that pricing models differ — per-shot pricing is directly comparable while AQT and HQC models depend on circuit structure.
Which QPU has better connectivity, Google Willow or Pasqal Fresnel?
Google Willow uses Grid connectivity (degree 4) while Pasqal Fresnel uses Custom connectivity (degree N/A).
What are the coherence times for Google Willow vs Pasqal Fresnel?
Google Willow: T1=100 µs, T2=80 µs. Pasqal Fresnel: T1=4 ms, T2=1 ms. Pasqal Fresnel has longer coherence times, which generally allows for deeper circuits before errors accumulate.
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