Grok Imagine Image 2.0vs.SDXL Turbo

Which one is better?

In our own test, Grok Imagine Image 2.0 leads. SDXL Turbo has no arena rating yet. SDXL Turbo has no API price.

Test images

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

Grok Imagine Image 2.0: Character and detail, first image from the fixed test run — Grok Imagine Image 2.075 out of 100

SDXL Turbo: Character and detail, first image from the fixed test run — SDXL Turbo3 out of 100

Result for “Character and detail”:Grok Imagine Image 2.0 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

Grok Imagine Image 2.0: openrouter, aspect ratio 1:1, resolution 1K, quality medium, n=1, seed=provider random, actual cost $0.060000, generated Nov 1, 2026, 8:46 AM. Source

SDXL Turbo: manual, local PyTorch 2.13.0, Diffusers 0.36.0; stabilityai/sdxl-turbo@71153311d3dbb46851df1931d3ca6e939de83304; native 1024x1024, 1:1; one request, first output; steps=1, guidance=0.0, seed=660064698563452219; 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, 6:23 PM. Source

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

Grok Imagine Image 2.0 image SHA 256: 95148f93193910361a680d5cff305d51bb06d967cb8b35e7ec732bd8501beccc

SDXL Turbo image SHA 256: 9ee6443f4690649e93bdca408e5e8d317b312244636a3af47a02fe14eaf6c20c

Infographic

Grok Imagine Image 2.0: openrouter, aspect ratio 1:1, resolution 1K, quality medium, n=1, seed=provider random, actual cost $0.060000, generated Nov 1, 2026, 8:47 AM. Source

SDXL Turbo: manual, local PyTorch 2.13.0, Diffusers 0.36.0; stabilityai/sdxl-turbo@71153311d3dbb46851df1931d3ca6e939de83304; native 1024x1024, 1:1; one request, first output; steps=1, guidance=0.0, seed=6060807684445796734; mps for text encoder and denoising; cpu for native VAE decode; float16 for text encoder and transformer; float32 for VAE, generated Nov 2, 2026, 6:23 PM. Source

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

Grok Imagine Image 2.0 image SHA 256: 732d7d3978293b5acd7aba0ec8534056bfa9bd5f6d2024c5eb7275d5bf203ba6

SDXL Turbo image SHA 256: 20395d858252aa131f235baa1f514039503a52dfec958c8f5b299db708bf4090

Product photography

Grok Imagine Image 2.0: openrouter, aspect ratio 1:1, resolution 1K, quality medium, n=1, seed=provider random, actual cost $0.060000, generated Nov 1, 2026, 8:45 AM. Source

SDXL Turbo: manual, local PyTorch 2.13.0, Diffusers 0.36.0; stabilityai/sdxl-turbo@71153311d3dbb46851df1931d3ca6e939de83304; native 1024x1024, 1:1; one request, first output; steps=1, guidance=0.0, seed=4654331835179858246; 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, 6:22 PM. Source

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

Grok Imagine Image 2.0 image SHA 256: 57f2809d2dc95671f5207c2cfc25f629c05be17edfe9bf87ca42d3d33119200e

SDXL Turbo image SHA 256: 75e5b85283110815e51a0470c937c3e42407244b50d918a3c0c54e10998a4b4c

Typography and layout

Grok Imagine Image 2.0: openrouter, aspect ratio 1:1, resolution 1K, quality medium, n=1, seed=provider random, actual cost $0.060000, generated Nov 1, 2026, 8:44 AM. Source

SDXL Turbo: manual, local PyTorch 2.13.0, Diffusers 0.36.0; stabilityai/sdxl-turbo@71153311d3dbb46851df1931d3ca6e939de83304; native 1024x1024, 1:1; one request, first output; steps=1, guidance=0.0, seed=1511362670078321145; mps for text encoder and denoising; cpu for native VAE decode; float16 for text encoder and transformer; float32 for VAE, generated Nov 2, 2026, 6:21 PM. Source

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

Grok Imagine Image 2.0 image SHA 256: 4dae1c4c90d277eed2983780d71f40b4758238ea15a020047c1329fb220e5b51

SDXL Turbo image SHA 256: 963088c72f75c98a95fd71be5f8d6e14fdf17061ae984f1109522a39be24ac76

The numbers at a glance

Arena ratingfrom votes by users · higher is better

1,317

Grok Imagine Image 2.0

Rank 5 of 21

n/a

SDXL Turbo

not in the arena

GraduallyBenchour own rating, 0 to 100 · higher is better

Grok Imagine Image 2.0

Rank 16 of 108

SDXL Turbo

Rank 105 of 108

Price per imagedollars through the API · lower is better

$0.06

Grok Imagine Image 2.0

fairly cheap

n/a

SDXL Turbo

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.

Grok Imagine Image 2.0

Subscription: No xAI subscription includes this model. Through other providers from ≈ €15.90 a month (Runway Standard, with limited credits). 5 plans in Germany.
Via API: $0.06 per image, 100 images $6.

SDXL Turbo

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

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	Grok Imagine Image 2.0	SDXL Turbo
Ratings
Arena ratingfrom votes by users, higher is better	1,317	n/a
Arena rank	Rank 5 of 21	n/a
Arena votesmore votes, a safer rating	10,830	n/a
GraduallyBenchour own rating, 0 to 100	73	4
GraduallyBench by task
Typography and layoutLegible text, hierarchy, and composition	71	3
Product photographyMaterials, reflections, and fine details	68	3
Character and detailAnatomy, clothing, and spatial consistency	75	3
InfographicNumbers, labels, and visual organization	77	8
API price
Per imagelower is better	$0.06	n/a
100 images	$6	n/a
Profile
Released	Aug 7, 2026	n/a
Weightsopen means: runs locally	proprietary	open
Lifecycle	no notice	Older open fast checkpoint; no active hosted API ID claimed in the reviewed model list
Access	API, Web app	local
Parameters	not published	not published
Largest output	2K	not consistently published
Plans in Germanynaming exactly this model	5	n/a

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

Sources: Grok Imagine Image 2.0 model source (verified Sep 28, 2026) · SDXL Turbo 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 Grok Imagine Image 2.0 and SDXL Turbo from the same arena and category. Older model versions are not used as substitutes.

More comparisons

Compare Grok Imagine Image 2.0 and SDXL Turbo with the models people compare them with most often.

Compare another matchup

First image modelSecond image model

Predecessor and successor

PredecessorGrok Imagine Image 2.0 vs. Grok Imagine Image QualityPredecessor of Grok Imagine Image 2.0