QuEra Aquila vs Rigetti Ankaa-3 Specs, Pricing & Performance [2026]
Quick Verdict
QuEra Aquila uses Neutral Atom while Rigetti Ankaa-3 uses Superconducting technology. Both QPUs have comparable 2Q gate fidelity (~99.50%). QuEra Aquila offers more physical qubits (256 qubits).
Specification Comparison
| Metric | QuEra Aquila | Rigetti Ankaa-3 |
|---|---|---|
| Physical Qubits | 256 ✓ | 84 |
| Technology | Neutral Atom | Superconducting |
| 2Q Gate Fidelity | 99.50% | 99.50% |
| 1Q Gate Fidelity | — | 99.90% ✓ |
| Readout Fidelity | 99.00% ✓ | 98.50% |
| Quantum Volume | — | 128 ✓ |
| CLOPS | 10 | 15,000 ✓ |
| T1 (Relaxation) | 5 ms ✓ | 80 µs |
| T2 (Dephasing) | 1.5 ms ✓ | 60 µs |
| 1Q Gate Time | — | 40 ns ✓ |
| 2Q Gate Time | 500 µs | 80 ns ✓ |
| Connectivity | Custom | Grid (deg 4) |
| Max Circuit Depth | 100 | 2,000 ✓ |
| Max Shots | 1,000 | 100,000 ✓ |
| Dynamic Circuits | No | No |
| Error Mitigation | No | Available |
| Cloud Platforms | 2 platforms | 5 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: QuEra Aquila: $10.30 vs Rigetti Ankaa-3: $1.00
Neutral Atom QuEra Aquila
| Platform | Price | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Best Amazon Braket | $0.0100/shot | Available |
| qBraid | $0.0100/shot | Available |
Superconducting Rigetti Ankaa-3
| Platform | Price | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Amazon Braket | $0.000900/shot | Available |
| Azure Quantum | $0.000970/shot | Available |
| Best Rigetti QCS | $0.000750/shot | Available |
| qBraid | $0.000900/shot | Available |
| Strangeworks | $0.000900/shot | Available |
Neutral Atom vs Superconducting: Technology Tradeoffs
- 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
- 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
Use Case Recommendations
More qubits (256 qubits) allows encoding larger problem instances.
Higher CLOPS (15,000) means faster circuit execution for high-repetition workloads.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between QuEra Aquila and Rigetti Ankaa-3?
QuEra Aquila uses Neutral Atom while Rigetti Ankaa-3 uses Superconducting technology. Both QPUs have comparable 2Q gate fidelity (~99.50%). QuEra Aquila offers more physical qubits (256 qubits). These QPUs use fundamentally different qubit technologies: Neutral Atom vs Superconducting.
Which is better for quantum chemistry, QuEra Aquila or Rigetti Ankaa-3?
For quantum chemistry simulations (VQE, UCCSD), QuEra Aquila is preferred due to its higher 2Q gate fidelity (99.50% vs 99.50%). Higher gate fidelity directly reduces circuit error rates in chemistry algorithms.
How do the prices compare between QuEra Aquila and Rigetti Ankaa-3?
QuEra Aquila is available from $0.0100/shot on Amazon Braket. Rigetti Ankaa-3 is available from $0.000750/shot on Rigetti QCS. 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, QuEra Aquila or Rigetti Ankaa-3?
QuEra Aquila uses Custom connectivity (degree N/A) while Rigetti Ankaa-3 uses Grid connectivity (degree 4).
What are the coherence times for QuEra Aquila vs Rigetti Ankaa-3?
QuEra Aquila: T1=5 ms, T2=1.5 ms. Rigetti Ankaa-3: T1=80 µs, T2=60 µs. QuEra Aquila has longer coherence times, which generally allows for deeper circuits before errors accumulate.
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