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FLUX.2 Devvs.Stable Diffusion XL 1.0

Which one is better?

In our own test, FLUX.2 Dev leads. Neither is in the arena. Neither has an API price.

Test images

Same task, the first image of each. The task with the biggest difference is preselected.

FLUX.2 Dev: Infographic, first image from the fixed test run
FLUX.2 Dev72 out of 100
Stable Diffusion XL 1.0: Infographic, first image from the fixed test run
Stable Diffusion XL 1.05 out of 100

Result for “Infographic”:FLUX.2 Dev ahead

Prompt given to both modelsCreate a square German infographic titled SO FUNKTIONIERT PHOTOSYNTHESE. Show exactly four numbered steps in this order: 1 LICHT, 2 WASSER, 3 CO₂, 4 ZUCKER + SAUERSTOFF. Use a clean editorial science style with one plant cross-section, simple arrows, high contrast, legible labels, and no other text.

What the rating looks at: Numbers, labels, and visual organization.

“Ahead”: better in all three rating rounds. “Slightly ahead”: a higher value, but not in every round.

Test protocol of the images

Each test attempt uses the same archived prompt and one request. The first output of that attempt counts. Repeats after technical test failures are disclosed for the affected images. Files are normalized to 1,024 × 1,024 pixels without cropping. Provider resolution, randomness, quality tier and prompt processing can still differ. The images are a practical visual test, not a reconstruction of the arena configuration.

Character and detail

FLUX.2 Dev: fal, requested 1024x1024, n=1, seed=1345966812, prompt expansion disabled, estimated cost $0.012000, generated Nov 1, 2026, 9:01 PM. Source

Stable Diffusion XL 1.0: manual, local PyTorch 2.13.0, Diffusers 0.36.0; stabilityai/stable-diffusion-xl-base-1.0@462165984030d82259a11f4367a4eed129e94a7b; native 1024x1024, 1:1; one request, first output; steps=50, guidance=5.0, seed=268378870826470633; mps for text encoder and denoising; cpu for native VAE decode; float16 for text encoder and transformer; float32 for VAE; native tokenizer truncation: tokenizer 80 to 77 tokens, tokenizer_2 80 to 77 tokens; archived input unchanged, generated Nov 2, 2026, 6:07 PM. Source

Protocol gradually-image-comparison-v1. Prompt SHA 256: 985a75b38642a9f0e5e0c0e0c67f1b7f67780d42bd2168fa24e9a7a7a94b0da6

FLUX.2 Dev image SHA 256: 8054c286745c39b416a62b1f80d96a4a17557caf60412fab1d459dd8d767fe99

Stable Diffusion XL 1.0 image SHA 256: 26d3c3d3e687614e24dd12191246bc1d96c1576d31f9211840a3e02b64d4d507

Infographic

FLUX.2 Dev: fal, requested 1024x1024, n=1, seed=1192078982, prompt expansion disabled, estimated cost $0.012000, generated Nov 1, 2026, 9:01 PM. Source

Stable Diffusion XL 1.0: manual, local PyTorch 2.13.0, Diffusers 0.36.0; stabilityai/stable-diffusion-xl-base-1.0@462165984030d82259a11f4367a4eed129e94a7b; native 1024x1024, 1:1; one request, first output; steps=50, guidance=5.0, seed=5455008934753613262; mps for text encoder and denoising; cpu for native VAE decode; float16 for text encoder and transformer; float32 for VAE, generated Nov 2, 2026, 6:08 PM. Source

Protocol gradually-image-comparison-v1. Prompt SHA 256: ed65cb4e6a51e2336f8b149ad4cbb16e020f07d527ad94362e719d2dcf91d94f

FLUX.2 Dev image SHA 256: 1d45a1bb65d40e7e3eba00ea6b5d40a20d7a97e98607c7ebc02880761d9a1d77

Stable Diffusion XL 1.0 image SHA 256: ebfe8d1c223478c94ff1973ab2600cd4f696b40b8c3388ca40f26f52c83afdb2

Product photography

FLUX.2 Dev: fal, requested 1024x1024, n=1, seed=885069928, prompt expansion disabled, estimated cost $0.012000, generated Nov 1, 2026, 9:01 PM. Source

Stable Diffusion XL 1.0: manual, local PyTorch 2.13.0, Diffusers 0.36.0; stabilityai/stable-diffusion-xl-base-1.0@462165984030d82259a11f4367a4eed129e94a7b; native 1024x1024, 1:1; one request, first output; steps=50, guidance=5.0, seed=490593220006868735; mps for text encoder and denoising; cpu for native VAE decode; float16 for text encoder and transformer; float32 for VAE; native tokenizer truncation: tokenizer 80 to 77 tokens, tokenizer_2 80 to 77 tokens; archived input unchanged, generated Nov 2, 2026, 6:06 PM. Source

Protocol gradually-image-comparison-v1. Prompt SHA 256: c67fd71e91304458a2feef5c91efa8677260fab0c0099a29a2c52cb579f5b2f3

FLUX.2 Dev image SHA 256: 68aa5ddbce5f0f6f7171551485609e39c3978b949d8b08687d9c582eb127cfa2

Stable Diffusion XL 1.0 image SHA 256: f59af9c84f6fbb3e4ca34bf87ebb0f7c088e8caa520fa4cdf815a96d1bffda83

Typography and layout

FLUX.2 Dev: fal, requested 1024x1024, n=1, seed=880936191, prompt expansion disabled, estimated cost $0.012000, generated Nov 1, 2026, 9:01 PM. Source

Stable Diffusion XL 1.0: manual, local PyTorch 2.13.0, Diffusers 0.36.0; stabilityai/stable-diffusion-xl-base-1.0@462165984030d82259a11f4367a4eed129e94a7b; native 1024x1024, 1:1; one request, first output; steps=50, guidance=5.0, seed=253938565953989943; mps for text encoder and denoising; cpu for native VAE decode; float16 for text encoder and transformer; float32 for VAE, generated Nov 2, 2026, 6:05 PM. Source

Protocol gradually-image-comparison-v1. Prompt SHA 256: 2e012c3d14ee5dd02203a94f394ca80a5038cdebd6032b25a8b8a221f2255419

FLUX.2 Dev image SHA 256: e8d9ea0262b0292e90422235ccb6d762c89d5f81d1c58184069dc5d7c04fb85c

Stable Diffusion XL 1.0 image SHA 256: c81e5d0d70afcb53fcffb51a0d548041fd0b33df300aed14b8ecd354aaaaec4e

The numbers at a glance

Arena ratingfrom votes by users · higher is better
n/a

FLUX.2 Dev

not in the arena

n/a

Stable Diffusion XL 1.0

not in the arena

GraduallyBenchour own rating, 0 to 100 · higher is better
62

FLUX.2 Dev

Rank 46 of 108

13

Stable Diffusion XL 1.0

Rank 100 of 108

Price per imagedollars through the API · lower is better
n/a

FLUX.2 Dev

no API price

n/a

Stable Diffusion XL 1.0

no API price

Ranks among the 21 image models with an arena rating and the 108 with a GraduallyBench run; prices compared with 28 models with an API price.

FLUX.2 Dev

Subscription
No Black Forest Labs subscription includes this model. Through other providers from €6.83 a month (Poe Basic, with limited points). 8 plans in Germany.
Via API
No API price known. Access: local.
License
Open weights, Open weights under a non-commercial license; no hosted BFL T2I API endpoint established.

Stable Diffusion XL 1.0

Subscription
n/a No plan in Germany names exactly this model.
Via API
No API price known. Access: API, local.
License
Open weights.

Subscriptions only count plans that name exactly this model. Subscription prices include VAT, API prices are in dollars.

GraduallyBench from Nov 3, 2026 · Subscription database from Sep 29, 2026 (38 days old)

All data side by side

The better value is bold. For ratings only when the gap is clear.

KennzahlFLUX.2 DevStable Diffusion XL 1.0
Ratings
Arena ratingfrom votes by users, higher is bettern/an/a
Arena rankn/an/a
Arena votesmore votes, a safer ratingn/an/a
GraduallyBenchour own rating, 0 to 1006213
GraduallyBench by task
Typography and layoutLegible text, hierarchy, and composition505
Product photographyMaterials, reflections, and fine details4613
Character and detailAnatomy, clothing, and spatial consistency8228
InfographicNumbers, labels, and visual organization725
API price
Per imagelower is bettern/an/a
100 imagesn/an/a
Profile
ReleasedNov 25, 2025n/a
Weightsopen means: runs locallyopenOpen weights under a non-commercial license; no hosted BFL T2I API endpoint establishedopen
Lifecycleno noticeOlder open checkpoint; provider still lists it in its legacy model overview
AccesslocalAPI, local
Parameters32 billionnot published
Largest outputnot consistently publishednot consistently published
Plans in Germanynaming exactly this model8n/a

API prices for one image at 1,024 × 1,024 pixels according to Artificial Analysis.

Sources: FLUX.2 Dev model source, status source (verified Nov 1, 2026) · Stable Diffusion XL 1.0 model source, status source (verified Nov 1, 2026)

Arena ratings by category

From blind votes on LMArena. “Ahead” means the lead is clear.

No shared arena score in the stored snapshot

The stored benchmark database contains no measurement for FLUX.2 Dev and Stable Diffusion XL 1.0 from the same arena and category. Older model versions are not used as substitutes.

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