AI Image Generator Cheat Sheet: Nano Banana, ChatGPT, and More

Everything you need to know, without the overwhelm.

Somewhere between “AI images look creepy” and “wait, is this photo real?” we crossed a line without noticing. These tools got genuinely good, fast, and everywhere. The problem now isn’t capability. It’s the decision fatigue of comparing ten different tools, each claiming to be the best, most of them technically right, depending on what you’re actually making.

This cheat sheet skips the lab-report format. It tells you what each tool is actually for, where it breaks down, and how to prompt it properly.

Google Gemini (Nano Banana Pro): Best overall

Google’s flagship model took the crown in 2025 and has held it.

Nano Banana Pro is the strongest all-around image generator tested by every major publication, photorealistic, high-resolution, and uniquely capable of generating readable text inside images. It can also combine multiple uploaded images, maintain character consistency across panels, and output in 2K or 4K resolution. The free version is usable; the paid tiers are exceptional.

• Max res: 4K 
• Text-in-image: Yes 
• Image editing: Yes
• Multi-image input: Yes 
• Daily limits (not credits)
• Android preinstalled

Strengths	Weaknesses
Best realism across all test prompts	Slower generation time
Readable text in images (rare)	Invasive data collection policies
Combines/edits multiple images	Paid via Google bundle (not image-only)
4K output available
Integrates with Google apps
Strong free tier with daily limits

OpenAI ChatGPT (GPT Image 2): Best free

OpenAI invented the modern text-to-image era with DALL·E.

After being overtaken, GPT Image 2 has put them firmly back in contention. Its biggest strength is its ability to understand complex, multi-layered prompts and adhere to reference images with unusual accuracy. Upload a photo and ask for it in the style of Studio Ghibli or Vermeer, and it genuinely delivers. 

Built into ChatGPT, so there’s zero learning curve. Adobe Express and Photoshop are integrated for in-chat editing.

• Max res: Native 2K (up to 2048×2048), with higher resolutions up to 4K (3840×2160) available in beta via the API.
• Adobe integration: Yes 
• Chat-based editing: Yes 
• 1 image per generation 
• Autoregression model

Strengths	Weaknesses
Zero learning curve	Only 1 image per generation
Excellent style-transfer from uploads	No inpainting/true editing
Adobe Photoshop editing built-in
Strong complex prompt understanding
Free access available

Adobe Firefly: Commercially safe

The only AI image tool that advertising agencies and enterprise teams can use without a lawyer on speed dial.

Firefly is trained on Adobe Stock, licensed content, and public domain material. Your outputs carry no copyright risk. It also serves as a platform for other models (Nano Banana, GPT Image, FLUX, Ideogram, and more), so you can test many generators in one place. Its real superpower is inside Photoshop: Generative Fill and Generative Expand match the context of your existing image with uncanny accuracy.

• Max res: 2304×1792 
• Commercially safe: Yes 
• Photoshop integration: Yes 
• Multi-model platform 
• Doesn’t train on your work

Strengths	Weaknesses
Zero copyright liability on outputs	Native model can be generic-looking
Industry-best Photoshop integration	Not ideal as pure text-to-image
Access to 10+ third-party models	Text in images unreliable
Style/aspect ratio controls

Midjourney: Most artistic

If you want an image that looks like it was made by a genuinely talented artist, rich textures, intentional color grading, compositional flair, Midjourney still has no peer.

Other tools have surpassed it on prompt accuracy, but none match its visual instinct. The web app is now excellent (Discord is optional). The personalization feature fine-tunes results to your aesthetic taste over time. The ongoing lawsuit with Disney and Universal over the replication of copyrighted characters is worth monitoring for commercial users.

• Best visual quality 
• Style personalization 
• Character references 
• Public gallery (default) 
• No free trial currently

Strengths	Weaknesses
Best-looking outputs aesthetically	Images public by default
Outstanding textures and color	No free trial
Style personalization over time	Prompt accuracy lags behind FLUX/Reve
Great community and Discord	Disney/Universal lawsuit ongoing
Commercial rights on paid plans

xAI Grok Imagine: The unfiltered option

Grok sits at the intersection of an AI assistant and an image generator, living inside X and the Grok app. It’s the only major tool that allows the generation of explicit/NSFW content by default, including real people, which is where serious ethical and legal red flags appear. For non-NSFW use, it’s a solid and simple tool. xAI is transparent about commercial usage rights. 

The Grok Image Generator no longer has a functional, dedicated free tier for image and video generation. While xAI previously offered free access to image generation, it is now locked behind a paid subscription, specifically X Premium or Premium+. Pricing gets expensive fast if you only want images.

• Max res: 2048×2048 
• NSFW enabled: Yes 
• X platform integration
• Video generation: Yes

Strengths	Weaknesses
NSFW content allowed	Expensive for image-only use
Clear commercial rights	Ethical red flags around real people
Also generates video
Simple, fast interface

FLUX.2: The open-source champion

FLUX is what happens when the original Stable Diffusion team starts over. Black Forest Labs built a model family that prioritizes professional-grade control: multiple reference image inputs, exceptional prompt fidelity, clean typography, and consistent character/product rendering across variations. 

It comes in several variants; choose speed vs. quality based on your workload. Not beginner-friendly, but for businesses producing high-volume branded visuals, it’s the industrial-strength option. Available via the BFL playground or integrated into Magnific (formerly Freepik) and other platforms.

• Max res: 2048 x 2048 
• Multi-reference input 
• 4 model variants 
• Best text rendering 
• Enterprise tier available

Strengths	Weaknesses
Highest prompt accuracy	No free plan at BFL directly
Multi-reference image support	Steep learning curve
Best text-in-image after Ideogram	Model selection confusing at first
Consistent character/product rendering	Not designed for casual use
Scalable model tiers

Ideogram: Best text in images

Every other tool on this list treats text-in-image as a bonus feature that usually fails.

Ideogram was built from day one to solve that problem. For social media graphics, event posters, presentation slides, ad creatives, anything where words need to be part of the visual, Ideogram is the only reliable choice. It’s also just a genuinely good image generator overall, with competitive quality on stylized and artistic prompts. The free plan is unusually generous.

• Max res: up to 8K capability 
• Best text rendering 
• Batch generator 
• Character creator 
• Canvas feature 
• Free: 10 credits/week

Strengths	Weaknesses
Best text rendering of any model	Photorealism is not its forte
Generous free plan	Free images are public by default
Good stylized/poster aesthetics
Commercial rights on all plans

Recraft: Best designer

Recraft is built like a design tool that happens to include AI image generation, not an AI tool that bolted on some design features.

The SVG output alone sets it apart from everything else on this list: actual editable vector files, not just rasterized PNGs. Beyond that: mockup builder, background removal, color palette enforcement, reusable brand styles, format export to Illustrator and Photoshop. For anyone working in a visual design context, this is the most complete platform.

• Max res: 2048×2048 
• SVG vector output: ✓ 
• Brand style control 
• Product mockups 
• AI + design in one

Strengths	Weaknesses
Only tool with SVG vector export	Free tier: Recraft owns your images
Full design workflow in one app	Free images are public
Color palette & style enforcement	More complex to master
Access to many third-party models
Collaboration tools

Stable Diffusion: Ideal if you need control

The foundation model that democratised AI image generation.

Open source, freely available, and runnable entirely on your own hardware, your prompts and outputs never touch anyone else’s server. Used through DreamStudio (web), or locally via Automatic1111 or ComfyUI. The ecosystem is vast: thousands of fine-tuned community models, LoRAs, and custom checkpoints. Needs a decent GPU locally, and some technical comfort. Stability AI’s recent turbulence created uncertainty around the project, but the community remains enormous.

• Fully open source 
• Run locally: Yes 
• Max privacy 
• Thousands of community models 
• No cloud dependency

Strengths	Weaknesses
Complete privacy (local use)	Requires GPU for local use
No per-image cost (local)	Technical setup required
Enormous community ecosystem	Commercial license varies by model
Custom fine-tuned models
Full control over every parameter

Canva Magic Media: Beginner-friendly

If the thought of model variants and LoRA fine-tuning makes your eyes glaze over, start here and stay here.

Canva’s Magic Media generator is the most approachable on the market. Prompt it, get an image, and drag it straight into a Canva design. Canva is notably private: it doesn’t train its AI on your content, and generated images are always private. The free plan has a hard generation cap.

Output quality won’t win awards, but for most social media and amateur use cases, it’s more than enough.

• Private by default: Yes 
• No AI training on content
• Design platform integration 
• Mobile app: Yes 
• Hard free cap

Strengths	Weaknesses
Easiest to use on this list	Hard limit on free generations
Seamless design workflow	Quality below specialist models
Strong privacy policy	Less control over outputs
Good mobile app
Private outputs by default

How they work

Diffusion Models

Used by: Stable Diffusion, FLUX, Midjourney, Firefly, Ideogram, Recraft

• Start with pure random noise
• Repeatedly “de-noise” toward the prompt
• Each step refines detail and coherence
• Faster generation, parallel processing
• Can generate multiple images per request
• Better at diverse stylistic outputs

Autoregressive Models

Used by: ChatGPT (GPT Image), some Gemini variants

• Build image chunk by chunk, left to right
• Each chunk informed by what came before
• Slower but better at text rendering
• Better contextual consistency in complex prompts
• Usually generates one image at a time
• Better at following detailed instructions

Platforms vs. Models

Key distinction to understand before spending money

• A model is the AI algorithm doing the work
• A platform is the interface you access it through
• Same model can be on multiple platforms
• Firefly, Magnific (formerly Freepik), and Shutterstock host many models
• Pricing and features differ per platform
• Check which model you’re actually using

Model quality testing

How reviewers evaluate image generators

• Basic photorealistic scenes (home interiors, people)
• Complex multi-panel comics with story arc
• Text-in-image: labels, diagrams, instructions
• Historical figures in recognizable scenes
• Business use: social graphics, report covers
• Editing: localised changes, not full regeneration

Write better prompts. Get better images

Structure that works

[Subject] + [Action/Pose] + [Setting] + [Lighting] + [Style] + [Mood] + [Format]

Each layer adds specificity. The model can only guess what you leave out, and its guesses won’t match your vision.

Strong prompt example

“A tired astronaut sitting at a diner booth at 3am, cold fluorescent light, rain on the windows outside, hyperrealistic, cinematic, 16:9”

Subject, state, setting, lighting, weather, style, mood, format, all present. Model has everything it needs.

Weak prompt example (avoid)

“A cool astronaut picture”

The model will fill gaps with the most statistically average result it knows. You get stock-photo blandness.

Style references that work

“in the style of a 1970s National Geographic photo” “shot on 35mm film, slightly overexposed” “illustrated like a vintage Penguin paperback” “isometric vector illustration, flat colors”

Reference real-world visual languages rather than artist names (to avoid copyright issues and inconsistent results).

For text inside images

“The text ‘20% OFF’ in bold black sans-serif on a yellow badge in the top-right corner”

Use Ideogram or GPT Image for text. Be specific about font weight, color, position, and size. Always proofread output.

Iteration strategy

• First prompt: Get layout right 
• Second prompt: Refine lighting 
• Third prompt: Adjust style/color
• Final: Fix specific details

Don’t try to nail it in one shot. Treat each generation as a draft. Most professionals run 5–15 generations per final image.

9 things worth knowing

• Run multiple generations, always: Even the best tools fail unpredictably. Three arms, floating objects, blurred faces, no model is immune. Generate at least 3–4 versions per prompt before deciding you’ve hit a wall.
• Free tiers are more useful than they look: Gemini, ChatGPT, and Canva all offer meaningful free access. Test properly before subscribing. Free tiers often use slightly lower-tier models but are genuinely functional for light use.
• Credits vs. daily limits, understand the difference: Credit systems (FLUX, Recraft, Magnific (formerly Freepik)) charge per image and vary by model quality. Daily limit systems (Gemini) reset every 24 hours regardless of usage. Daily limits are more predictable for regular use.
• Text in images almost always needs proofreading: Even Ideogram, the best at this, introduces errors in longer text, numbers, or complex layouts. Never use AI-generated text in images for final client deliverables without manually verifying every word.
• Check ownership rights before using commercially: Most paid plans grant commercial rights. Many free plans don’t. Recraft’s free tier actually transfers image ownership to Recraft. Read each tool’s terms of use before using its outputs for client work or monetized content.
• Disclosure is becoming the ethical standard: AI images are now realistic enough to fool journalists, lawyers, and family members. Disclosing AI use when posting publicly isn’t legally required in most regions yet, but the expectation is growing fast.
• You can’t always tell a fake image anymore: Traditional tells, such as weird hands, strange ears, blurry backgrounds, are disappearing fast. Tools like C2PA content credentials and Google’s SynthID embed invisible watermarks, but they’re not universal.
• Different tools, same underlying models: Shutterstock AI, Magnific, and Adobe Firefly all offer access to models like GPT Image, Nano Banana, and FLUX. You may already have access to top-tier models through a platform you’re already paying for.
• The best model today won’t be the best in six months: This space updates faster than almost any other. Both Nano Banana Pro and FLUX.2 didn’t exist two years ago. What’s on this list will be partially obsolete by mid-2027. Check rankings at Artificial Analysis’s Image Arena.

Want sharper results from any AI image generator? Read our practical guide to writing better prompts.

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