GPT Image 1.5vs.MAI-Image-2.5 Flash

Which one is better?

In our own test both are on par. MAI-Image-2.5 Flash has no arena rating yet. GPT Image 1.5 costs 6.7 times as much per image.

Test images

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

GPT Image 1.5: Character and detail, first image from the fixed test run — GPT Image 1.589 out of 100

MAI-Image-2.5 Flash: Character and detail, first image from the fixed test run — MAI-Image-2.5 Flash68 out of 100

Result for “Character and detail”:GPT Image 1.5 slightly ahead

Prompt given to both modelsCreate a square cinematic full-body portrait of a fictional bicycle courier waiting under a transparent umbrella at a rainy tram stop in Hamburg at blue hour. She wears a mustard raincoat, navy trousers, red sneakers, a silver helmet, and carries a teal messenger bag. Keep both hands visible, render the bicycle correctly, use realistic wet-street reflections, and include no readable brand names.

What the rating looks at: Anatomy, clothing, and spatial consistency.

“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

GPT Image 1.5: together, 1024x1024, n=1, seed=provider random, provider default steps, generated Aug 14, 2026, 12:17 PM. Source

MAI-Image-2.5 Flash: manual, Official Bing Image Creator web app; MAI-Image-2.5-Flash; one request; 1:1; first result; free guest generation; 2026-08-14; https://www.bing.com/images/create/ai-image-generator, generated Aug 14, 2026, 4:23 PM. Source

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

GPT Image 1.5 image SHA 256: 0dff52ccd39400ac66ac8870c9ea937512ff1474688e70118688f420c38c2296

MAI-Image-2.5 Flash image SHA 256: a2637943faf5ae5210c69f645f96c70ea0a1d267c38a64705810947d2ba78dc8

Infographic

GPT Image 1.5: together, 1024x1024, n=1, seed=provider random, provider default steps, generated Aug 14, 2026, 12:17 PM. Source

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

GPT Image 1.5 image SHA 256: 1c9ff59c32621c8b48b002dacb0ae66487262280c7c0a5b3d6456c81b248ebe9

MAI-Image-2.5 Flash image SHA 256: 6af00e502934a24a9e535b3f72d9b1ca545a984fc463e785ffe796a700e015b3

Product photography

GPT Image 1.5: together, 1024x1024, n=1, seed=provider random, provider default steps, generated Aug 14, 2026, 12:16 PM. Source

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

GPT Image 1.5 image SHA 256: 67cfa2f324447027ceb5f82e9446d40a1395b46ce425890a74606b4d97731cf6

MAI-Image-2.5 Flash image SHA 256: 9cb652604f7c64d8ebaa4303e924155a1f45581a940045be12775419e635bd8f

Typography and layout

GPT Image 1.5: together, 1024x1024, n=1, seed=provider random, provider default steps, generated Aug 14, 2026, 1:59 PM. Source

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

GPT Image 1.5 image SHA 256: 6a4cec86850fd371b65274198e2bf630b3cf36a096f9fb953d4bfe17c3222ebe

MAI-Image-2.5 Flash image SHA 256: 185a852b71d68ea37a41091b57f3ec02829b2d1e87fd1045939ffa0f8e4c3cf8

The numbers at a glance

Arena ratingfrom votes by users · higher is better

1,236

GPT Image 1.5

Rank 13 of 21

n/a

MAI-Image-2.5 Flash

not in the arena

GraduallyBenchour own rating, 0 to 100 · higher is better

GPT Image 1.5

Rank 29 of 108

MAI-Image-2.5 Flash

Rank 24 of 108

Price per imagedollars through the API · lower is better

$0.13

GPT Image 1.5

expensive

$0.02

MAI-Image-2.5 Flash

cheap

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.

GPT Image 1.5

Subscription: No OpenAI subscription includes this model. Through other providers from ≈ €6.36 a month (ElevenLabs Starter, with limited credits). 42 plans in Germany.
Via API: $0.13 per image, 100 images $13.30.

MAI-Image-2.5 Flash

Subscription: n/a No plan in Germany names exactly this model.
Via API: $0.02 per image, 100 images $2.

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

Arena rating (LMArena) from Nov 6, 2026 · GraduallyBench from Nov 3, 2026 · API prices from Nov 6, 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.

Kennzahl	GPT Image 1.5	MAI-Image-2.5 Flash
Ratings
Arena ratingfrom votes by users, higher is better	1,236	n/a
Arena rank	Rank 13 of 21	n/a
Arena votesmore votes, a safer rating	173,798	n/a
GraduallyBenchour own rating, 0 to 100	68	69
GraduallyBench by task
Typography and layoutLegible text, hierarchy, and composition	60	70
Product photographyMaterials, reflections, and fine details	52	58
Character and detailAnatomy, clothing, and spatial consistency	89	68
InfographicNumbers, labels, and visual organization	72	81
API price
Per imagelower is better	$0.13	$0.02
100 images	$13.30	$2
Profile
Released	December 2025	June 2026
Weightsopen means: runs locally	proprietary	proprietary
Lifecycle	Marked as deprecated by OpenAI; removed from the API on December 1, 2026	Preview in Microsoft Foundry
Access	API, Web app	API, Web app
Parameters	not published	20 billion
Largest output	1,536 × 1,024 pixels	1,048,576 pixels
Plans in Germanynaming exactly this model	42	n/a

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

Sources: GPT Image 1.5 model source, status source (verified Aug 15, 2026) · MAI-Image-2.5 Flash model source, status source (verified Sep 22, 2026)

Arena ratings by category

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

Arena rating per categoryfrom votes by users · higher is betterGPT Image 1.5MAI-Image-2.5 Flash

Text to Image Arena1,1241,032ahead

Image Editing Arena1,1161,089ahead

Artificial Analysis from Nov 6, 2026

All individual values with sources

Rating	GPT Image 1.5	MAI-Image-2.5 Flash	Source
Text to Image Arena	1,124	1,032	Artificial AnalysisRetrieved Nov 6, 2026
Image Editing Arena	1,116	1,089	Artificial AnalysisRetrieved Nov 6, 2026

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