● Cheapest and most predictable Grok Imagine Image 2.0, from $0.02 per image at 1K and 2K.
● Best editing and Google integration Gemini, with Nano Banana 2 and Nano Banana Pro.
● Best if you already pay for it ChatGPT. Go gives 10x the free tier on image creation for $8/month.
The real finding: only one of these three tells you what an image costs.
The pricing asymmetry is the story. xAI publishes a per-image and a per-second price in its public developer docs. OpenAI describes consumer image creation as a multiple of the free tier. Google describes it on its plan pages as "More", "Expanded", "Higher" and "Highest" access, with no counts anywhere except Google Flow credits. If you need to forecast what generating 500 images will cost, two of these three cannot be forecast at all.
| Grok | ChatGPT | Gemini |
|---|
| Image model | Grok Imagine Image 2.0 | Built into ChatGPT | Nano Banana 2, Nano Banana Pro |
| Published per-image price | From $0.02 (1K and 2K) | Not published | Not published |
| Consumer volume stated as | Rate limits by tier | 10x free tier on Go | "More" / "Expanded" / "Higher" |
| Video in the same product | Grok Imagine Video 1.5, from $0.02/sec | Not on consumer plan pages | Veo 3.1, plus Flow credits |
| Resolutions named | 1K, 2K; video 480p / 720p / 1080p | Not published | Not published on plan pages |
| Cheapest tier with generation | SuperGrok $30/mo | Go $8/mo | AI Plus - price not published |
| Where it lives | Grok app and API | Inside ChatGPT | Gemini app, AI Studio, Google Photos |
Grok Imagine: the one you can budget
xAI lists Grok Imagine Image 2.0 as its recommended image generation and editing model, starting at $0.02 per image for 1K and 2K output. Grok Imagine Video 1.5 starts at $0.02 per second across 480p, 720p and 1080p. Those numbers are on the public model page, not behind a sales call.
On the consumer side, image and video generation are listed as SuperGrok features at $30/month. That is the most expensive entry tier of the three, but it is the only one where you can also move the same work to the API and know in advance what a batch will cost.
Honest limitation
The $0.02 figure is an API price starting point, not a consumer allowance, and "starting at" means higher resolutions cost more. The plan grid also does not show which of SuperGrok Lite, Plus and Heavy include generation, because the per-tier marks are not published.
Best for: anyone generating at volume who needs to forecast spend, and anyone who wants image and video from one vendor.
Gemini: Nano Banana 2 and Nano Banana Pro
Google ships two named image models, Nano Banana 2 and Nano Banana Pro, with Nano Banana Pro usage described as expanded in AI Studio on Google AI Pro. Video runs through Veo 3.1, which Google notes is available in more than 140 countries, with Veo 3 photo-to-video in Google Photos in the US. Google Flow carries its own credit allowance: 200 a month on AI Plus, 1,000 on AI Pro, 10,000 on Ultra 5x and 25,000 on Ultra 20x.
Those Flow credits are the only numeric generation allowance Google publishes anywhere. Everything else on the plan comparison is a word.
Honest limitation
You cannot tell from Google’s own pages how many images a plan gets you. "More access" on AI Plus and "expanded access" on AI Pro are not quantities. Combine that with the compute-based limit introduced in May 2026, which refreshes every five hours until a weekly cap and then downgrades you to smaller models, and the honest answer to "how many images do I get" is that Google does not say.
Best for: editing existing images, work that lands in Google Photos or Workspace, and anyone already on a Google AI plan.
ChatGPT: fine if images are occasional
OpenAI treats image creation as one capability among many rather than a separate product line. The one hard number on the consumer side is that ChatGPT Go, at $8/month, gives 10x the free tier on messages, file uploads and image creation. Plus at $20/month raises limits further.
Because the baseline free-tier allowance is not published either, 10x is a multiplier on an unknown. It tells you Go is meaningfully more generous than free without telling you what either one is.
Honest limitation
No published per-image price and no stated resolution options on the plans page. Ads are also planned for Free and Go in the US, so the cheapest tier with expanded image creation is the one carrying ads.
Best for: occasional images inside a subscription you already have for other reasons.
Which one should you use?
| If you... | Pick | Why |
|---|
| Need to forecast cost | Grok Imagine | The only published per-image price |
| Generate a handful a week | ChatGPT Go, $8/mo | 10x free tier, cheapest entry |
| Edit more than you create | Nano Banana Pro | Editing is where Google is strongest |
| Want image and video together | SuperGrok, $30/mo | Imagine Image 2.0 and Video 1.5 in one tier |
| Work inside Google Photos | Google AI Pro | Veo 3 photo-to-video, US only |
| Need a hard monthly cap | Grok via API | Per-image billing instead of an unstated allowance |
How to stack them
- Draft in whatever you already pay for. Early concepts do not need the best model, they need to be fast and free.
- Move volume to the Grok API once a project needs more than a handful of images, because $0.02 each is the only number you can multiply.
- Finish edits in Nano Banana Pro if the work ends up in Google Photos, Docs or Slides.
- Keep video with whoever made the stills - Grok Imagine Video 1.5 or Veo 3.1 - because matching style across vendors costs more time than it saves.
Frequently asked questions
Which is best for AI image generation, Grok, ChatGPT or Gemini?
For cost control, Grok, because Grok Imagine Image 2.0 starts at a published $0.02 per image. For editing and anything inside Google Photos or Workspace, Gemini with Nano Banana 2 and Nano Banana Pro. For occasional images in a subscription you already have, ChatGPT.
How much does Grok Imagine cost per image?
xAI lists Grok Imagine Image 2.0 starting at $0.02 per image at 1K and 2K through the API. Grok Imagine Video 1.5 starts at $0.02 per second at 480p, 720p and 1080p. On the consumer side, image and video generation are listed as SuperGrok features at $30/month.
How many images do you get on Google AI Pro?
Google does not publish a number. Its plan comparison describes image, music and video generation as "expanded access" on AI Pro and "more access" on AI Plus. The only numeric generation allowance Google states is Google Flow credits: 200 a month on Plus, 1,000 on Pro, 10,000 on Ultra 5x and 25,000 on Ultra 20x.
What is Nano Banana?
Nano Banana is the name of Google’s image generation and editing model line. Two versions appear on Google’s current plan pages, Nano Banana 2 and Nano Banana Pro, with Nano Banana Pro usage described as expanded in AI Studio for Google AI Pro subscribers.
Can ChatGPT Go generate images?
Yes. OpenAI states that ChatGPT Go, at $8/month in the US, includes 10x the free tier’s messages, file uploads and image creation. Because the free-tier allowance is not published, the multiplier does not translate into a specific number of images.
Which can generate video as well as images?
Grok and Gemini. Grok Imagine Video 1.5 starts at $0.02 per second across 480p, 720p and 1080p, and video generation is listed under SuperGrok. Google runs video through Veo 3.1, available in more than 140 countries, with Google Flow credits on each AI plan. OpenAI does not list video generation on its consumer plan pages.
Related comparisons
Sources
All plan prices and model names on this page were read from the vendor pages above on 29 October 2026. Where a vendor does not publish a monthly price on its own plan page, this page says so rather than repeating a third-party figure. Consumer AI pricing changes often and is localised by country, so check the vendor page before you subscribe.