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GPT Image 2vs.Qwen-Image-2.1

Which one is better?

In our own test both are on par. In the arena, GPT Image 2 leads. Qwen-Image-2.1 has no API price.

Test images

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

GPT Image 2: Character and detail, first image from the fixed test run
GPT Image 260 out of 100
Qwen-Image-2.1: Character and detail, first image from the fixed test run
Qwen-Image-2.134 out of 100

Result for “Character and detail”:GPT Image 2 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 2: together, 1024x1024, n=1, seed=provider random, provider default steps, generated Aug 14, 2026, 12:13 PM. Source

Qwen-Image-2.1: manual, 1:1, requested and received 1024x1024, one request, first output, Qwen/Qwen-Image-2.1 base, 40 steps, true CFG 1.0, prompt enhancement disabled, no negative prompt, no reference images, seed=1591420783, official Space commit 5694809f4c56a4e8c40787b5392cecac36493c5d, generated Nov 1, 2026, 8:49 AM. Source

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

GPT Image 2 image SHA 256: 82f6e2369ab4fb6efb0ef48feeff0d14f1d6087c64c35113a983456f0f0879ac

Qwen-Image-2.1 image SHA 256: b29bb7e207ad464957ee060bbf0655104bcbece703360254e48daa3ec35a62d7

Infographic

GPT Image 2: together, 1024x1024, n=1, seed=provider random, provider default steps, generated Aug 14, 2026, 12:14 PM. Source

Qwen-Image-2.1: manual, 1:1, requested and received 1024x1024, one request, first output, Qwen/Qwen-Image-2.1 base, 40 steps, true CFG 1.0, prompt enhancement disabled, no negative prompt, no reference images, seed=1283422012, official Space commit 5694809f4c56a4e8c40787b5392cecac36493c5d, prior anonymous attempt refused before inference (ZeroGPU quota), completed through authenticated browser, generated Nov 1, 2026, 8:49 AM. Source

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

GPT Image 2 image SHA 256: 6c15466e258e2b14a8e862959cb6a67b4f7a23896ea5d42c5a5618d848847711

Qwen-Image-2.1 image SHA 256: 316e38ed63ff401f86a7ceee9cc65c74413e0e9c7c899a6e6bf453acc2940dac

Product photography

GPT Image 2: together, 1024x1024, n=1, seed=provider random, provider default steps, generated Aug 14, 2026, 12:13 PM. Source

Qwen-Image-2.1: manual, 1:1, requested and received 1024x1024, one request, first output, Qwen/Qwen-Image-2.1 base, 40 steps, true CFG 1.0, prompt enhancement disabled, no negative prompt, no reference images, seed=196359631, official Space commit 5694809f4c56a4e8c40787b5392cecac36493c5d, generated Nov 1, 2026, 8:49 AM. Source

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

GPT Image 2 image SHA 256: 471c71b30618afb1a8a67ab8363308d67f99c65ef6740ca72417806d06d3c346

Qwen-Image-2.1 image SHA 256: 041f559d4261865b327fcae4f8bb0bd3b176c55a3b1255a042ab3e0fc4f9bc4b

Typography and layout

GPT Image 2: together, 1024x1024, n=1, seed=provider random, provider default steps, generated Aug 14, 2026, 1:59 PM. Source

Qwen-Image-2.1: manual, 1:1, requested and received 1024x1024, one request, first output, Qwen/Qwen-Image-2.1 base, 40 steps, true CFG 1.0, prompt enhancement disabled, no negative prompt, no reference images, seed=158818011, official Space commit 5694809f4c56a4e8c40787b5392cecac36493c5d, generated Nov 1, 2026, 8:49 AM. Source

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

GPT Image 2 image SHA 256: 434cf9939b9be2a2c2711e13d027c9438c47038bb32229ceeaf405d2e89d2afc

Qwen-Image-2.1 image SHA 256: 4670269190f492154c05e3f18c4eb9e3938910ca1aca32503b6a1ceb16d39b38

The numbers at a glance

Arena ratingfrom votes by users · higher is better
1,381

GPT Image 2

Rank 3 of 21

1,225

Qwen-Image-2.1

Rank 14 of 21

GraduallyBenchour own rating, 0 to 100 · higher is better
73

GPT Image 2

Rank 15 of 108

65

Qwen-Image-2.1

Rank 40 of 108

Price per imagedollars through the API · lower is better
$0.21

GPT Image 2

expensive

n/a

Qwen-Image-2.1

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.

GPT Image 2

Subscription
No OpenAI subscription includes this model. Through other providers from ≈ €6.34 a month (ElevenLabs Starter, with limited credits). 61 plans in Germany.
Via API
$0.21 per image, 100 images $21.10.

Qwen-Image-2.1

Subscription
No Alibaba subscription includes this model. Through other providers from ≈ €9.51 a month (Krea Basic, with limited credits). 5 plans in Germany.
Via API
No API price known. Access: local, Web app.
License
Open weights, Qwen Research License: non-commercial use only; commercial use requires a separate license.

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

Arena rating (LMArena) from Oct 28, 2026 · GraduallyBench from Nov 3, 2026 · API prices 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.

KennzahlGPT Image 2Qwen-Image-2.1
Ratings
Arena ratingfrom votes by users, higher is better1,3811,225
Arena rankRank 3 of 21Rank 14 of 21
Arena votesmore votes, a safer rating103,38519,604
GraduallyBenchour own rating, 0 to 1007365
GraduallyBench by task
Typography and layoutLegible text, hierarchy, and composition7554
Product photographyMaterials, reflections, and fine details8990
Character and detailAnatomy, clothing, and spatial consistency6034
InfographicNumbers, labels, and visual organization6683
API price
Per imagelower is better$0.21n/a
100 images$21.10n/a
Profile
ReleasedApril 2026Sep 20, 2026
Weightsopen means: runs locallyproprietaryopenQwen Research License: non-commercial use only; commercial use requires a separate license
AccessAPI, Web applocal, Web app
Parametersnot publishednot published
Largest output4K2K
Plans in Germanynaming exactly this model615

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

Sources: GPT Image 2 model source (verified Aug 15, 2026) · Qwen-Image-2.1 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 2Qwen-Image-2.1
Text to Image ArenaGPT Image 2: 1,189Qwen-Image-2.1: 1,043GPT Image 2 ahead
Image Editing ArenaGPT Image 2: 1,137Qwen-Image-2.1: 1,081GPT Image 2 ahead
Text to Image: 3D modelingGPT Image 2: 1,363Qwen-Image-2.1: 1,213GPT Image 2 ahead
Text to Image: Agentic image generationGPT Image 2: 1,339Qwen-Image-2.1: 1,231GPT Image 2 ahead
Text to Image: ArtGPT Image 2: 1,370Qwen-Image-2.1: 1,234GPT Image 2 ahead
Text to Image: CartoonGPT Image 2: 1,402Qwen-Image-2.1: 1,234GPT Image 2 ahead
Text to Image: Commercial designGPT Image 2: 1,385Qwen-Image-2.1: 1,238GPT Image 2 ahead
Text to Image: OverallGPT Image 2: 1,381Qwen-Image-2.1: 1,225GPT Image 2 ahead
Text to Image: PhotorealismGPT Image 2: 1,378Qwen-Image-2.1: 1,227GPT Image 2 ahead
Text to Image: PortraitsGPT Image 2: 1,426Qwen-Image-2.1: 1,252GPT Image 2 ahead
Text to Image: Text renderingGPT Image 2: 1,423Qwen-Image-2.1: 1,250GPT Image 2 ahead
Image Editing: Agentic image generationGPT Image 2: 1,459Qwen-Image-2.1: 1,368GPT Image 2 ahead
Image Editing: OverallGPT Image 2: 1,460Qwen-Image-2.1: 1,362GPT Image 2 ahead

Artificial Analysis from Nov 3, 2026 · LMArena from Oct 28, 2026

All individual values with sources
RatingGPT Image 2Qwen-Image-2.1Source
Text to Image Arena1,1891,043Artificial AnalysisRetrieved Nov 3, 2026
Image Editing Arena1,1371,081Artificial AnalysisRetrieved Nov 3, 2026
Text to Image: 3D modeling1,3631,213LMArenaRetrieved Oct 28, 2026
Text to Image: Agentic image generation1,3391,231LMArenaRetrieved Oct 28, 2026
Text to Image: Art1,3701,234LMArenaRetrieved Oct 28, 2026
Text to Image: Cartoon1,4021,234LMArenaRetrieved Oct 28, 2026
Text to Image: Commercial design1,3851,238LMArenaRetrieved Oct 28, 2026
Text to Image: Overall1,3811,225LMArenaRetrieved Oct 28, 2026
Text to Image: Photorealism1,3781,227LMArenaRetrieved Oct 28, 2026
Text to Image: Portraits1,4261,252LMArenaRetrieved Oct 28, 2026
Text to Image: Text rendering1,4231,250LMArenaRetrieved Oct 28, 2026
Image Editing: Agentic image generation1,4591,368LMArenaRetrieved Oct 28, 2026
Image Editing: Overall1,4601,362LMArenaRetrieved Oct 28, 2026

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