Comparison · Images
Seedream 5.0 Pro vs Nano Banana 2
Seedream 5.0 Pro vs Nano Banana 2: lifelike people and exact pixel sizes, or four quick variants, 4K and clean accented text. Nearly equal scores.
What each one accepts
| Seedream 5.0 Pro | Nano Banana 2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Vendor | ByteDance | |
| Type | Image | Image |
| Modes | text-to-image image-to-image | text-to-image image-to-image |
| Released | 2026-07 | 2026-02 |
| Resolutions | 1K, 1.5K, 2K | 0.5K, 1K, 2K, 4K |
| Aspect ratios | 1:1, 4:3, 3:4, 16:9, 9:16, 2:3, 3:2, 21:9 | 1:1, 2:3, 3:2, 3:4, 4:3, 4:5, 5:4, 9:16, 16:9, 21:9, 1:4, 4:1, 1:8, 8:1 |
| Reference images | up to 10 | up to 14 |
| Prompt length | up to 32,000 chars | up to 32,000 chars |
Rates and clip costs
| Model | Variant | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Seedream 5.0 Pro | 1K | $0.0783 / image |
| 2K | $0.157 / image | |
| Nano Banana 2 | 0.5K | $0.07 / image |
| 1K | $0.07 / image | |
| 2K | $0.0875 / image | |
| 4K | $0.113 / image |
Charged from a prepaid USD balance, no taxes added. A failed generation is $0.
In my ranking these two finished almost level, yet their strengths barely overlap. Seedream 5.0 Pro gives people the most lifelike look and accepts an exact pixel size, at the cost of slow renders and a habit of sprinkling accents onto plain letters. Nano Banana 2 finishes far sooner, can return four images per request, goes to 4K and wrote accented text with no mistakes in my tests.
When to pick Seedream 5.0 Pro
- Faces, portraits and reportage scenes with natural light: it scored 9/10 on my portrait.
- Print work at an exact size, such as 2480x3508.
- English-language posters where lettering style matters.
- A key visual assembled from several product shots.
When to pick Nano Banana 2
- Copy in Polish, Czech or other languages with diacritics.
- Several variants quickly: about 12 s per image against Seedream's 46 s average.
- 4K files or extreme 8:1 formats.
- A series where waiting adds up.
Differences you will notice
- Price. At 1K Seedream 5.0 Pro (from $0.0783 per image) is about 12% above Nano Banana 2 (from $0.07 per image). At 2K Seedream doubles its 1K rate and costs about 1.7x Nano Banana 2, and Nano Banana 2 at 4K is still below Seedream at 2K. Seedream charges its 1.5K tier as either 1K or 2K, depending on the pixel count, and each extra reference adds a small fee.
- Size. Seedream: 1K, 1.5K, 2K or a custom pixel size (about 0.9 to 4.6 MP), 8 ratios including 21:9. Nano Banana 2: 0.5K to 4K, 14 ratios including 1:8 and 8:1.
- Output and references. One image per request in Seedream, up to 4 in Nano Banana 2 (each billed). Reference limits: 10 for Seedream, 14 for Nano Banana 2.
- Lettering. Seedream over-corrected in my typography test, putting accents on plain letters. Nano Banana 2 got a perfect 10 for the sign with accented letters.
- Content check. Seedream may block a finished image at the last step. In Kadraris a rejected task costs nothing, like any failure.
How to decide
- People, light and exact print sizes: Seedream 5.0 Pro.
- Text, turnaround, 4K and variants: Nano Banana 2.
Averages in my ranking: Nano Banana 2 8.6/10, Seedream 8.5/10. Seedream needed 24 to 87 s per image; Nano Banana 2 stumbled on food, drawing pierogi that looked like gyoza. For prompting tips see the AI image prompt guide and my three-way test of GPT Image 2.5, Nano Banana Pro and FLUX.2. All tiers on /pricing.
Questions
Can I set an A4 print size directly?
In Seedream 5.0 Pro, yes, with an exact pixel size within about 0.9 to 4.6 MP. Nano Banana 2 only offers fixed tiers and ratios.
What does a 2K image cost relative to 1K?
Seedream charges double its 1K rate. Nano Banana 2 adds roughly a third on top of its 1K price.
Do I pay if Seedream's filter rejects my image?
No. The task counts as failed and the held funds return in full.
Samples from the makers
Seedream 5.0 Pro
Nano Banana 2
These clips and images come from the vendors, not from my runs.