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AI image model comparison

Flux 2 vs GPT Image 2.5

GPT Image 2.5 ranks well ahead of Flux 2 on every Arena board we checked: text-to-image, text rendering, and image editing. Flux 2 is the open-weights choice from Black Forest Labs, and both run unlimited from the Basic plan on Mage.

Try Flux 2Try GPT Image 2.5 Flare
  • Editorial product still life
    Flux 2Editorial product still life
  • 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 boards of October 26, 2026 and its image-edit board of October 23, 2026. Arena ranks each open-weights model as Arena runs it, not as Mage hosts it.

Flux 2GPT Image 2.5
Made byBlack Forest Labs SourceOpenAI Source
Where it runsOpen weights, hosted on Mage's GPUsRun by OpenAI, reached through Mage
ReleasedNovember 25, 2025 SourceSeptember 8, 2026 Source
Price on Mage, from40 Gems ($0.04) per image9 Gems ($0.009) per image
Unlimited on Mage fromBasicBasic
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 to315
Search groundingNone documented SourceNone documented Source
Arena text-to-image#38 of 82 Source#2 of 82 (preliminary) Source
Arena text rendering#31 of 82 Source#2 of 82 (preliminary) Source
Arena image edit#45 of 61 Source#2 of 61 (preliminary) Source
WatermarkA sample pixel-layer watermark in its reference code SourceC2PA metadata and an invisible watermark Source

Last checked October 2026

Which should you use?

Choose Flux 2 for

  • Open-weights images from Black Forest Labs, with nothing to install
  • Long prompts with many conditions that all have to show
  • Product and still-life photography with careful lighting

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 second of 82 for text-to-image and second of 61 for image editing, on scores still marked preliminary. Flux 2 Dev, the version of Flux 2 that Mage runs, ranks 38th and 45th.

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. Black Forest Labs released Flux 2 on November 25, 2025, with Flux 2 Dev as an open-weights model of the family.

Text in images

GPT Image 2.5 Flare ranks second on Arena's text-rendering board and Flux 2 Dev 31st. Black Forest Labs says the Flux 2 family handles complex typography, infographics, and UI mockups with legible fine text, 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. Flux 2 takes up to 3, enough to edit one image or combine a few.

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

Flux 2 starts at 40 Gems (about $0.04) per image on Mage and runs unlimited from the Basic 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 Flux 2?
On Arena's leaderboards, yes: GPT Image 2.5 Flare ranks second for text-to-image, second for text rendering, and second for image editing, well ahead of Flux 2 Dev on all three. Flux 2 is the pick when you want open-weights output.
Which one is open weights?
Flux 2. Black Forest Labs publishes the Flux 2 Dev weights on Hugging Face, and Mage runs them on its own GPUs, so there is nothing to install or rent. GPT Image 2.5 is closed: it runs on OpenAI's servers, reached through Mage.
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. Flux 2 starts at 40 Gems (about $0.04) per image on Mage and runs unlimited from the Basic 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 Flux 2 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 Flux 2