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Grok Imagine Image Qualityvs.GPT Image 2.5 Flare

Which one is better?

In our own test both are on par. Grok Imagine Image Quality has no arena rating yet. GPT Image 2.5 Flare costs 4.2 times as much per image.

Test images

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

Grok Imagine Image Quality: Product photography, first image from the fixed test run
Grok Imagine Image Quality37 out of 100
GPT Image 2.5 Flare: Product photography, first image from the fixed test run
GPT Image 2.5 Flare69 out of 100

Result for “Product photography”:GPT Image 2.5 Flare ahead

Prompt given to both modelsCreate a square premium product photograph of a brushed titanium wristwatch standing upright on dark green marble. The watch has a cream dial, thin black hands set to 10:10, twelve distinct hour markers, a realistic crown, and a dark brown leather strap. Soft window light from the left, controlled reflections, shallow depth of field, no text, no logo, no extra objects.

What the rating looks at: Materials, reflections, and fine details.

“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 Quality: openrouter, aspect ratio 1:1, resolution 1K, n=1, seed=provider random, actual cost $0.050000, generated Aug 14, 2026, 1:34 PM. Source

GPT Image 2.5 Flare: openai, 1024x1024, quality high, n=1, generated Sep 28, 2026, 8:53 PM. Source

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

Grok Imagine Image Quality image SHA 256: b6cccae7af9a70af45a46b9e3264fa6971101e04979f7a0539e889ba6521250a

GPT Image 2.5 Flare image SHA 256: 85b17c41b19389cae3ea073ef582e6065a321d741978e772987d22e3ea3e3b08

Infographic

Grok Imagine Image Quality: openrouter, aspect ratio 1:1, resolution 1K, n=1, seed=provider random, actual cost $0.050000, generated Aug 14, 2026, 1:34 PM. Source

GPT Image 2.5 Flare: openai, 1024x1024, quality high, n=1, generated Sep 28, 2026, 8:53 PM. Source

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

Grok Imagine Image Quality image SHA 256: 03fbeae7859be72584048dfc23fba0651220ab44c707da66c386b77d90cc86f7

GPT Image 2.5 Flare image SHA 256: bc752abfce1c0d27b73e4084c3e7d82c4c0f71e0e5af97a80f4b24326cc4686e

Product photography

Grok Imagine Image Quality: openrouter, aspect ratio 1:1, resolution 1K, n=1, seed=provider random, actual cost $0.050000, generated Aug 14, 2026, 1:34 PM. Source

GPT Image 2.5 Flare: openai, 1024x1024, quality high, n=1, generated Sep 28, 2026, 8:53 PM. Source

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

Grok Imagine Image Quality image SHA 256: 0ea1e48f20bf61ff10414398b5248b0496c9040b3868c915580efd11d0dbaf11

GPT Image 2.5 Flare image SHA 256: 69fedb7d635d1329c461ff1ee9e5cf8384119e218e3b3bdb93b9e11f728335d8

Typography and layout

Grok Imagine Image Quality: openrouter, aspect ratio 1:1, resolution 1K, n=1, seed=provider random, actual cost $0.050000, generated Aug 14, 2026, 2:05 PM. Source

GPT Image 2.5 Flare: openai, 1024x1024, quality high, n=1, generated Sep 28, 2026, 8:52 PM. Source

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

Grok Imagine Image Quality image SHA 256: 84d88fb03bdbba672fc91268f4c120b17a19e4c9d637425aeca8ed44b2397d9f

GPT Image 2.5 Flare image SHA 256: cc90d54a99e1bad9e0cc8e4196746fb1d56a2fdd2a9ee101dbbf270ef5e4b6a8

The numbers at a glance

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

Grok Imagine Image Quality

not in the arena

1,399

GPT Image 2.5 Flare

Rank 2 of 21

GraduallyBenchour own rating, 0 to 100 · higher is better
60

Grok Imagine Image Quality

Rank 54 of 108

72

GPT Image 2.5 Flare

Rank 18 of 108

Price per imagedollars through the API · lower is better
$0.05

Grok Imagine Image Quality

fairly cheap

$0.21

GPT Image 2.5 Flare

expensive

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 Quality

Subscription
n/a No plan in Germany names exactly this model.
Via API
$0.05 per image, 100 images $5.

GPT Image 2.5 Flare

Subscription
No OpenAI subscription includes this model. Through other providers from ≈ €6.36 a month (ElevenLabs Starter, with limited credits). 61 plans in Germany.
Via API
$0.21 per image, 100 images $21.07.

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.

KennzahlGrok Imagine Image QualityGPT Image 2.5 Flare
Ratings
Arena ratingfrom votes by users, higher is bettern/a1,399
Arena rankn/aRank 2 of 21
Arena votesmore votes, a safer ratingn/a53,925
GraduallyBenchour own rating, 0 to 1006072
GraduallyBench by task
Typography and layoutLegible text, hierarchy, and composition8864
Product photographyMaterials, reflections, and fine details3769
Character and detailAnatomy, clothing, and spatial consistency5663
InfographicNumbers, labels, and visual organization6191
API price
Per imagelower is better$0.05$0.21
100 images$5$21.07
Profile
ReleasedApril 2026Sep 8, 2026
Weightsopen means: runs locallyproprietaryproprietary
LifecycleDeprecated: xAI retires the model slug on November 2, 2026; requests are then served by grok-imagine-image-2.0 (quality=low)no notice
AccessAPI, Web appAPI
Parametersnot publishednot published
Largest output2Knot consistently published
Plans in Germanynaming exactly this modeln/a61

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

Sources: Grok Imagine Image Quality model source, status source (verified Aug 15, 2026) · GPT Image 2.5 Flare model 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 betterGrok Imagine Image QualityGPT Image 2.5 Flare
Text to Image ArenaGrok Imagine Image Quality: 1,049GPT Image 2.5 Flare: 1,208GPT Image 2.5 Flare ahead
Image Editing ArenaGrok Imagine Image Quality: 1,097GPT Image 2.5 Flare: 1,182GPT Image 2.5 Flare ahead
Image Editing: OverallGrok Imagine Image Quality: 1,391GPT Image 2.5 Flare: 1,482GPT Image 2.5 Flare ahead

Artificial Analysis from Nov 6, 2026 · LMArena from Nov 6, 2026

All individual values with sources
RatingGrok Imagine Image QualityGPT Image 2.5 FlareSource
Text to Image Arena1,0491,208Artificial AnalysisRetrieved Nov 6, 2026
Image Editing Arena1,0971,182Artificial AnalysisRetrieved Nov 6, 2026
Image Editing: Overall1,3911,482LMArenaRetrieved Nov 6, 2026

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