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AI image model comparison

Seedream 5.0 Pro vs GPT Image 2.5

GPT Image 2.5 ranks well ahead of Seedream 5.0 Pro on every Arena board we checked: text-to-image, text rendering, and image editing, though its scores are still marked preliminary. ByteDance built Seedream 5.0 Pro for dense infographics and edits that follow marks drawn on an image, and it runs unlimited from the Pro plan on Mage.

Try Seedream 5.0 ProTry GPT Image 2.5 Flare
  • A watchmaker's workbench by a rain-streaked window at dusk. Brass gears and tiny screws are scattered across a green leather mat, a loupe rests on an open pocket watch, tweezers stand in a small ceramic cup next to a tin of oil, and a gooseneck lamp casts a warm pool of light. City lights blur outside the window. 50mm photograph, shallow depth of field. 2K.
    Seedream 5.0 ProA watchmaker's workbench by a rain-streaked window at dusk. Brass gears and tiny screws are scattered across a green leather mat, a loupe rests on an open pocket watch, tweezers stand in a small ceramic cup next to a tin of oil, and a gooseneck lamp casts a warm pool of light. City lights blur outside the window. 50mm photograph, shallow depth of field. 2K.
  • A K-drama style poster with its title lettered in English and Korean
    GPT Image 2.5A K-drama style poster with its title lettered in English and Korean

Side by side

Prices, plans, resolutions, ratios, and reference limits are Mage's own, for the model compared. Makers, release dates, search grounding, and watermarks are what each maker publishes. Arena ranks come from its text-to-image and text-rendering and image-edit boards of November 7, 2026.

Seedream 5.0 ProGPT Image 2.5
Made byByteDance SourceOpenAI Source
ReleasedJuly 8, 2026 SourceSeptember 8, 2026 Source
Price on Mage, from68 Gems ($0.068) per image9 Gems ($0.009) per image
Unlimited on Mage fromProBasic
Top resolution on Mage2K2K
Aspect ratios on Mage21:9, 16:9, 3:2, 5:4, 1:1, 4:5, 2:3, 9:16, 9:2121:9, 16:9, 3:2, 5:4, 1:1, 4:5, 2:3, 9:16, 9:21
Reference images on Mage, up to1015
Search groundingNone documented SourceNone documented Source
Arena text-to-image#17 of 84 Source#3 of 84 (preliminary) Source
Arena text rendering#19 of 84 Source#2 of 84 (preliminary) Source
Arena image edit#14 of 63 Source#2 of 63 (preliminary) Source
WatermarkNone stated SourceC2PA metadata and an invisible watermark Source

Last checked November 2026

Which should you use?

Choose Seedream 5.0 Pro for

  • Dense infographics, diagrams, and text-heavy posters, which ByteDance built it for
  • Edits that follow points, boxes, and sketches marked on your image
  • Prompts and lettering in a dozen widely used languages

Choose GPT Image 2.5 for

  • The highest-ranked images and edits of the two on Arena
  • Up to 15 reference images, with people in them kept recognizable
  • A quality setting for every job, from quick drafts to its most detailed renders

Image quality

In Arena's blind votes, GPT Image 2.5 Flare ranks third of 84 for text-to-image and second of 63 for image editing, on scores still marked preliminary. Seedream 5.0 Pro ranks 17th of 84 and 14th of 63, on scores that are not.

OpenAI positions GPT Image 2.5 Flare as its default model for most work, with higher quality than GPT Image 2 at half the latency. ByteDance released Seedream 5.0 Pro on July 8, 2026 and built it for dense infographics, photographic realism down to skin texture, and edits that follow points, boxes, and sketches marked on an image.

Text in images

GPT Image 2.5 Flare ranks second on Arena's text-rendering board and Seedream 5.0 Pro 19th. ByteDance says Seedream 5.0 Pro takes prompts and renders text natively in a dozen widely used languages, and OpenAI notes that precise text placement can still struggle on GPT Image 2.5.

Reference images

GPT Image 2.5 takes up to 15 reference images on Mage and keeps their subjects recognizable. Seedream 5.0 Pro takes up to 10, enough to put a person, an outfit, and a place into one scene.

Resolution and shape

Both render up to 2K on Mage in the same 9 aspect ratios, from 9:21 to 21:9.

Price on Mage

Seedream 5.0 Pro starts at 68 Gems (about $0.068) per image on Mage and runs unlimited from the Pro plan. GPT Image 2.5 starts at 9 Gems (about $0.009) per image on Mage and runs unlimited from the Basic plan.

GPT Image 2.5's price rises with its quality setting: its starting price and unlimited plans are for its quickest setting, and its most detailed settings cost many times more Gems.

A little more clarity

Questions

Is GPT Image 2.5 better than Seedream 5.0 Pro?
On Arena's leaderboards, yes: GPT Image 2.5 Flare ranks third for text-to-image, second for text rendering, and second for image editing, well ahead of Seedream 5.0 Pro on all three. Seedream 5.0 Pro is the pick for dense infographics, edits that follow marks drawn on an image, and lettering in other languages.
Which is better for text in images?
GPT Image 2.5, on Arena's text-rendering board: second, against 19th for Seedream 5.0 Pro. ByteDance says Seedream 5.0 Pro renders text natively in a dozen widely used languages, so try both for lettering that is not in English.
Which costs less on Mage?
GPT Image 2.5 starts at 9 Gems (about $0.009) per image on Mage and runs unlimited from the Basic plan, at its quickest quality setting; its higher settings cost more. Seedream 5.0 Pro starts at 68 Gems (about $0.068) per image on Mage and runs unlimited from the Pro plan.
Can I use both on Mage?
Yes. Both run in the same prompt box on Mage, on the same Gems and plans, and through the Mage API and the Mage MCP server for Claude and ChatGPT, so you can try a prompt on each and keep the better image.

Try Seedream 5.0 Pro and GPT Image 2.5 on one prompt

Run the same prompt on both in Mage's prompt box and keep the better image. New accounts get 300 free Gems.

Try Seedream 5.0 Pro