Guide
Which image model to useThe best AI image generator for each kind of picture
The best one depends on the picture: whether it has words in it, whether it starts from your own photos, how large it has to print and how many you need. Here are ten image models on Leap with real images, their prices and how long they took, and a pick for each of those jobs.
Last updated
The short answer
Which one for what
- Try Recraft V4.1 Flash
- Try Recraft V4.1 Flash
The quickest image
About 2 seconds in Leap's own runs at the default settings, the shortest wait here.
- Try Nano Banana Pro
- Try Nano Banana Pro
Edits that start from your photos
Nano Banana Pro and Nano Banana 2
Up to 6 photos in one run, so you can edit a picture or combine several.
- Try Recraft V4.1
One prompt
The same prompt on 8 models
“A hand-painted shop sign that reads OPEN LATE above a tiny ramen bar on a rainy night, warm light spilling onto wet cobblestones, cinematic 35mm photo”
One run per model, and all eight spell OPEN LATE right. Each image is as it came back.
Nano Banana ProSplit the frame in two, the sign up close and then the street, and named the bar Ramen Yaro.
Charged $0.19, ready in 16 s
GPT Image 2Added a chalkboard menu (tonkotsu ramen, $11, cash only) and lanterns that read ラーメン. A few small signs behind aren't real words.
Charged $0.056, ready in 30 s
Seedream 5.0 ProA clean corner storefront, with OPEN in black and LATE in red.
Charged $0.039, ready in 44 s
![FLUX.2 [pro]'s answer to the same prompt: a ramen bar sign reading OPEN LATE on a rainy night](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fgpdiatw6a9ifgvnx.public.blob.vercel-storage.com%2Fmedia%2Fcompare%2Fflux-2-pro.5be60450.jpg&w=3840&q=75)
FLUX.2 [pro]A warm, grainy film look with diners at the counter. The katakana on a sign behind it is garbled.
Charged $0.033, ready in 7 s
Nano Banana 2A busy street of umbrellas and bicycles, with real Japanese on the signs and a ramen bowl drawn into the sign.
Charged $0.081, ready in 13 s
Recraft V4.1Hand-lettered in white on a dark board, over a small window bar in a cobbled alley.
Charged $0.039, ready in 5 s
Grok Imagine 2.0Added "ramen bar" under the sign, with a red ラーメン lantern by the door.
Charged $0.066, ready in 14 s
Recraft V4.1 FlashIt also wrote the prompt's "tiny ramen bar" on the door.
Charged $0.0077, ready in 2 s
Side by side
Every model in this guide, spec by spec
Prices are Leap’s, per image, in dollars. Run times are Leap’s own, at the default settings. A dash means Leap’s catalog doesn’t list it.
| Model | Starts from | Resolution | Price | Run time on Leap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nano Banana ProGoogle | Words or up to 6 photos | Up to 4K | From $0.19 | – |
| GPT Image 2OpenAI | Words | – | From $0.056 | – |
| Seedream 5.0 ProByteDance | Words or up to 4 photos | – | From $0.039 | About 60 seconds |
| FLUX.2 [pro]Black Forest Labs | Words | – | From $0.033 | About 7 seconds |
| Nano Banana 2Google | Words or up to 6 photos | Up to 4K | From $0.057 | About 10 seconds |
| Recraft V4.1Recraft | Words | – | From $0.039 | About 4 seconds |
| Grok Imagine 2.0xAI | Words | Up to 2K | From $0.044 | – |
| FLUX.3Black Forest Labs | Words | – | From $0.053 | – |
| Ideogram 3.0Ideogram | Words | – | From $0.033 | About 27 seconds |
| Recraft V4.1 FlashRecraft | Words | – | From $0.0077 | About 2 seconds |
The models
What each one makes
Festival poster, made on Leap with Nano Banana Pro Nano Banana Pro
By Google
Gemini 3 Pro Image: Google's best for legible text, infographics and edits of up to 6 references.
- Starts from
- Words or up to 6 photos
- Resolution
- Up to 4K
- Default run
- $0.19 for a 1K image
- Price
- From $0.19
Nine years, made on Leap with GPT Image 2 GPT Image 2
By OpenAI
OpenAI's image model: precise prompt following and text, at medium quality.
- Starts from
- Words
- Default run
- $0.069 for a 1:1 image
- Price
- From $0.056
Slow Water, made on Leap with Seedream 5.0 Pro Seedream 5.0 Pro
By ByteDance
ByteDance's newest: detailed 2K images and edits of up to 4 reference images.
- Starts from
- Words or up to 4 photos
- Default run
- $0.039 for an image
- Price
- From $0.039
- Run time
- About 60 seconds
Night serum, made on Leap with FLUX.2 [pro] FLUX.2 [pro]
By Black Forest Labs
Black Forest Labs' second generation: sharper detail and text than FLUX1.1, at a lower price.
- Starts from
- Words
- Default run
- $0.033 for an image
- Price
- From $0.033
- Run time
- About 7 seconds
The potter, made on Leap with Nano Banana 2 Nano Banana 2
By Google
Gemini 3.1 Flash Image: fast, from 512 px to 4K, with edits of up to 6 references.
- Starts from
- Words or up to 6 photos
- Resolution
- Up to 4K
- Default run
- $0.081 for a 1K image
- Price
- From $0.057
- Run time
- About 10 seconds
City of Knowledge, made on Leap with Recraft V4.1 Recraft V4.1
By Recraft
Design-grade images, and true vector output as SVG.
- Starts from
- Words
- Default run
- $0.039 for an image
- Price
- From $0.039
- Run time
- About 4 seconds
Dawn run, Iten, made on Leap with Grok Imagine 2.0 Grok Imagine 2.0
By xAI
xAI's second Grok Imagine, with a 2K option and a cheaper draft quality.
- Starts from
- Words
- Resolution
- Up to 2K
- Default run
- $0.066 for a 1k image
- Price
- From $0.044
Salt Line, made on Leap with FLUX.3 FLUX.3
By Black Forest Labs
Black Forest Labs' newest image model, released on 2026-10-01, at 1K.
- Starts from
- Words
- Default run
- $0.053 for an image
- Price
- From $0.053
Slow Sunday, made on Leap with Ideogram 3.0 Ideogram 3.0
By Ideogram
Images, posters and logos with reliable text.
- Starts from
- Words
- Default run
- $0.066 for an image
- Price
- From $0.033
- Run time
- About 27 seconds
Sticker sheet, made on Leap with Recraft V4.1 Flash Recraft V4.1 Flash
By Recraft
Recraft's design look in about two seconds, under a cent.
- Starts from
- Words
- Default run
- $0.0077 for an image
- Price
- From $0.0077
- Run time
- About 2 seconds
Questions
Questions people ask
- What is the best AI image generator?
- It depends on the image. For the lowest price per image, Recraft V4.1 Flash: $0.0077 for an image, the cheapest run here. For the quickest image, Recraft V4.1 Flash: about 2 seconds in Leap's own runs at the default settings, the shortest wait here. For the sharpest picture, Nano Banana Pro and Nano Banana 2: up to 4K, the highest resolution here. For edits that start from your photos, Nano Banana Pro and Nano Banana 2: up to 6 photos in one run, so you can edit a picture or combine several. They all run in the same studio, so you can give two of them the same prompt and keep the better image.
- Why isn't Midjourney here?
- This guide compares the image models you can run on Leap, where it can show a real picture, its price and how long it took. Midjourney isn't on Leap, so it isn't in it. If you pay for Midjourney now, Leap vs Midjourney sets the two side by side.
- Which AI image generator can I try for free?
- All of them. Sign up with a Gmail, Outlook or work address and you start with $2 of free credit, no card needed. The credit works on every model here; on Recraft V4.1 Flash, the cheapest, it covers 259 images. After that you pay per image, in dollars, with no subscription.
- Do I need an account with each maker?
- No. One Leap account runs all 10 of them, in the studio and through the API, from one balance in dollars. You see the price before each run, and a run that fails costs nothing.
- Can I use what I make commercially?
- Yes. You own what you make on Leap, so you can use it commercially, and we never train AI on it. The people and brands shown in a result can still have rights in it; the Terms say more.
- Is there an API?
- Yes. Every model here runs through Leap's REST API at the same price as in the studio, and agents can call them through Leap's MCP server.