03
Images
Ordered by Arena text-to-image Elo, a free tier, entry price, and the product's App Store rating and review count. A missing board row stays blank. A tool under half the category weight has no numeric rank.
Updated · Compare ChatGPT and Gemini
Machine-readable scores: images.json. Method on the methodology page. Published by AIToolStack.
Quick answers
What is the top Images pick?
- ChatGPT is rank 1 of 5, with composite 92 and coverage 100%. Composite 92 from 100% of the category weight. Largest weighted input: Text-to-image Arena Elo.
What is the top free or freemium Images pick?
- ChatGPT is the highest-ranked freemium tool, at rank 1 of 5, with composite 92.
How do these ranks work?
- Composite equals evidence times coverage. Only sourced metrics count. A tool under 50% coverage is labeled Insufficient data and has no numeric rank. The full method is on the methodology page.
Rank 1 of 5.
ChatGPT
FreemiumOpenAI's assistant for writing, images, voice, and coding agents.
- Composite
- 92.0
- Evidence
- 92.0
- Coverage
- 100%
Composite 92 from 100% of the category weight. Largest weighted input: Text-to-image Arena Elo.
Score breakdown for ChatGPT Metric Value Weight Normalized Source Text-to-image Arena EloPreliminary on the source board 1425gpt-image-2.5-sunburst1425±7, preliminary, from 17,752 votes. 30% 87.5 Source for Text-to-image Arena Elo (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-07 Free tier YesFree planThe pricing page has a Free plan and says the free version is available to everyone. It does not print a dollar price for Go or Plus. 18% 100.0 Source for Free tier (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 Entry monthly price $8ChatGPT Go, USThe January 16, 2026 post says ChatGPT Go is $8 USD per month in the US, Plus is $20, and Pro is $200. The Go help article, updated in October 2026, still describes Go as the low-cost plan but does not restate the dollar amount and points at the pricing page. That pricing page returned 403 on this retrieval, so the cell keeps the blog figure and its date. 18% 80.0 Source for Entry monthly price (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-01-16 App Store rating 4.83ChatGPTApple App Store listing in the US. iTunes Search API lookup on 2026-10-16 returned averageUserRating 4.82592 and userRatingCount 11313295 for ChatGPT by OpenAI OpCo, LLC. The stored rating is that average rounded to two decimal places. The store page does not print a rating timestamp. 18% 96.6 Source for App Store rating (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 App Store reviews 11313295ChatGPTApple App Store listing in the US. iTunes Search API lookup on 2026-10-16 returned averageUserRating 4.82592 and userRatingCount 11313295 for ChatGPT by OpenAI OpCo, LLC. The stored rating is that average rounded to two decimal places. The store page does not print a rating timestamp. 16% 100.0 Source for App Store reviews (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 Rank 2 of 5.
Gemini
FreemiumGoogle's assistant for writing, research, and work in Google apps.
- Composite
- 86.7
- Evidence
- 86.7
- Coverage
- 100%
Composite 86.7 from 100% of the category weight. Largest weighted input: Text-to-image Arena Elo.
Score breakdown for Gemini Metric Value Weight Normalized Source Text-to-image Arena EloPreliminary on the source board 1328gemini-nano-banana-2.11328±9, preliminary, from 5,310 votes. 30% 71.3 Source for Text-to-image Arena Elo (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-07 Free tier YesWithout an AI planThe Gemini Apps help article lists a row for people without an AI plan, with standard limits and a 32k token context window. That is the free tier. Paid Google AI plans raise the limits. 18% 100.0 Source for Free tier (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 Entry monthly price $4.99Google AI PlusThe US comparison table lists Google AI Plus at $4.99 per month, Google AI Pro at $19.99 per month, and Google AI Ultra from $99.99 per month. Plus is the cheapest paid Google AI plan. 18% 87.5 Source for Entry monthly price (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 App Store rating 4.72Google GeminiApple App Store listing in the US. iTunes Search API lookup on 2026-10-16 returned averageUserRating 4.72459 and userRatingCount 2343258 for Google Gemini by Google LLC. The stored rating is that average rounded to two decimal places. The store page does not print a rating timestamp. 18% 94.4 Source for App Store rating (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 App Store reviews 2343258Google GeminiApple App Store listing in the US. iTunes Search API lookup on 2026-10-16 returned averageUserRating 4.72459 and userRatingCount 2343258 for Google Gemini by Google LLC. The stored rating is that average rounded to two decimal places. The store page does not print a rating timestamp. 16% 91.0 Source for App Store reviews (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 Rank 3 of 5.
Grok
FreemiumSpaceXAI's assistant for chat, search, images, video, voice, and code.
- Composite
- 85.8
- Evidence
- 85.8
- Coverage
- 100%
Composite 85.8 from 100% of the category weight. Largest weighted input: Text-to-image Arena Elo.
Score breakdown for Grok Metric Value Weight Normalized Source Text-to-image Arena EloPreliminary on the source board 1334grok-imagine-image-2.0 (canvas)1334±12, preliminary, from 3,113 votes. 30% 72.3 Source for Text-to-image Arena Elo (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-07 Free tier YesFreeThe X Subscription price table lists Free at $0. New self-serve plans include Grok. Existing SuperGrok plans can continue. 18% 100.0 Source for Free tier (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 Entry monthly price $8PlusPlus is $8 per month, or $80 per year. It is the cheapest paid individual plan in the table. Premium is $30 per month. Annual discounts are not scored. 18% 80.0 Source for Entry monthly price (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 App Store rating 4.87Grok AIApple App Store listing in the US. iTunes Search API lookup on 2026-10-16 returned averageUserRating 4.87411 and userRatingCount 1510343 for Grok AI by X Corp.. The stored rating is that average rounded to two decimal places. The store page does not print a rating timestamp. 18% 97.4 Source for App Store rating (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 App Store reviews 1510343Grok AIApple App Store listing in the US. iTunes Search API lookup on 2026-10-16 returned averageUserRating 4.87411 and userRatingCount 1510343 for Grok AI by X Corp.. The stored rating is that average rounded to two decimal places. The store page does not print a rating timestamp. 16% 88.3 Source for App Store reviews (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 Rank 4 of 5.
Ideogram
FreemiumImage generator with a public text-to-image Arena row.
- Composite
- 67.3
- Evidence
- 67.3
- Coverage
- 100%
Composite 67.3 from 100% of the category weight. Largest weighted input: Text-to-image Arena Elo.
Score breakdown for Ideogram Metric Value Weight Normalized Source Text-to-image Arena Elo 1205ideogram-4.0-quality1205±4 from 60,591 votes. 30% 50.8 Source for Text-to-image Arena Elo (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-07 Free tier YesFree accountsThe pricing FAQ says eligible free accounts receive weekly credits when signing in with Google, Apple, or Microsoft. It also says subscription plans do not include a free trial. 18% 100.0 Source for Free tier (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 Entry monthly price $20PlusThe Plus card shows $20 and $15 per month, with $180 billed annually. $180 divided by 12 is $15, so $15 is the annual rate. The monthly price scored is $20. 18% 50.0 Source for Entry monthly price (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 App Store rating 4.77Ideogram AI - Image GeneratorApple App Store listing in the US. iTunes Search API lookup on 2026-10-16 returned averageUserRating 4.77327 and userRatingCount 2664 for Ideogram AI - Image Generator by Ideogram AI Inc. The stored rating is that average rounded to two decimal places. The store page does not print a rating timestamp. 18% 95.4 Source for App Store rating (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 App Store reviews 2664Ideogram AI - Image GeneratorApple App Store listing in the US. iTunes Search API lookup on 2026-10-16 returned averageUserRating 4.77327 and userRatingCount 2664 for Ideogram AI - Image Generator by Ideogram AI Inc. The stored rating is that average rounded to two decimal places. The store page does not print a rating timestamp. 16% 48.9 Source for App Store reviews (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 Rank 5 of 5.
Recraft
FreemiumImage and vector generator for icons, illustrations, and brand assets.
- Composite
- 53.9
- Evidence
- 65.7
- Coverage
- 82%
Composite 53.9 from 82% of the category weight. Largest weighted input: Text-to-image Arena Elo.
Score breakdown for Recraft Metric Value Weight Normalized Source Text-to-image Arena EloPreliminary on the source board 1169recraft-v4.1-utility-pro1169±11, preliminary, from 2,617 votes. 30% 44.8 Source for Text-to-image Arena Elo (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-07 Free tier YesFree planThe pricing FAQ describes images generated on the Free plan. Dollar prices for paid plans were not in the fetched page text, so entry price is blank. 18% 100.0 Source for Free tier (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 Entry monthly price Not available 18% — Not available App Store rating 4.8Recraft: AI Images and VideosApple App Store listing in the US. iTunes Search API lookup on 2026-10-16 returned averageUserRating 4.8 and userRatingCount 185 for Recraft: AI Images and Videos by Recraft, Inc.. The stored rating is that average rounded to two decimal places. The store page does not print a rating timestamp. 18% 96.0 Source for App Store rating (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 App Store reviews 185Recraft: AI Images and VideosApple App Store listing in the US. iTunes Search API lookup on 2026-10-16 returned averageUserRating 4.8 and userRatingCount 185 for Recraft: AI Images and Videos by Recraft, Inc.. The stored rating is that average rounded to two decimal places. The store page does not print a rating timestamp. 16% 32.4 Source for App Store reviews (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 Insufficient data
Midjourney
PaidImage and video studio with a member gallery.
- Composite
- 13.5
- Evidence
- 37.5
- Coverage
- 36%
Insufficient data. Coverage is 36%, under 50% of the category weight, so this row has no numeric rank.
Score breakdown for Midjourney Metric Value Weight Normalized Source Text-to-image Arena Elo Not available 30% — Not available Free tier NoBasicThe plans page says all Midjourney plans are subscriptions and lists Basic, Standard, Pro, and Mega. No free plan is listed. 18% 0.0 Source for Free tier (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 Entry monthly price $10BasicBasic monthly price is $10. The annual price is $96, shown as $8 per month, and is not scored. Midjourney has no row on the Arena text-to-image board we read, and no official App Store app was in the iTunes lookup. 18% 75.0 Source for Entry monthly price (opens in a new tab)as of 2026-10-16 App Store rating Not available 18% — Not available App Store reviews Not available 16% — Not available
Latest releases
ByteDance Seedream 5.5
ByteDance Seed introduced Seedream 5.5, an image model with more stable multi-turn editing across 100 rounds, native RGBA output including transparency, and more realistic images and text rendering. Evaluation scores on the post are vendor-reported.
Gemini Omni 1.2 Flash generally available
Google made Gemini Omni 1.2 Flash generally available on November 5, 2026, for generating and editing video up to 15 seconds, on the Gemini API and Google Cloud. Google says 720p video is $0.07 per second, 30% less than Omni 1.1; that price comparison is vendor-reported.
Gemini app file editing
Google added file generation, preview, and editing in the Gemini app for documents, PDFs, slides, spreadsheets, and code. PDF preview and editing work on web and mobile; Google says the other formats are web only, and that this is available to all users where the Gemini app is available.
Gemini 4 Carbon, limited access
Google announced Gemini 4 Carbon, and it is not generally available. Access starts with a subset of cyber defenders through the Fairwind Program, with wider availability later, at an introductory $2 per million input tokens and $10 per million output tokens.
iCloud Mail and Calendar in ChatGPT
OpenAI's English release notes for October 27, 2026 say iCloud users can connect Mail and Calendar in ChatGPT to find emails, catch up on an inbox, check a schedule, and update calendar events. It is available on all ChatGPT plans on the web, the desktop app, and iOS.
OpenAI release notes (opens in a new tab)ChatGPT on AIToolStack
GPT-6.1 Terra
OpenAI introduced GPT-6.1 Terra for ChatGPT Work and Codex, and in the API as gpt-6.1-terra at $1 per million input tokens and $5 per million output tokens. The English release notes date the rollout October 26, 2026, include Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise, and Edu, and say Terra is available in Work and Codex, not Chat.
OpenAI (opens in a new tab)ChatGPT on AIToolStackCodex on AIToolStack