Ideogram 4.0vs.Muse Image

Which one is better?

In our own test both are on par. Ideogram 4.0 has no arena rating yet. Ideogram 4.0 costs 6.0 times as much per image.

Test images

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

Ideogram 4.0: Product photography, first image from the fixed test run — Ideogram 4.022 out of 100

Muse Image: Product photography, first image from the fixed test run — Muse Image81 out of 100

Result for “Product photography”:Muse Image 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

Ideogram 4.0: together, requested 2048x2048, stored 1024x1024 (Lanczos3 downscale), n=1, seed=provider random, provider default steps, generated Aug 14, 2026, 12:28 PM. Source

Muse Image: fal, aspect ratio 1:1, n=1, seed=provider random, estimated cost $0.010000, source 1600x1600, stored 1024x1024 (Lanczos3 downscale), generated Nov 1, 2026, 8:48 AM. Source

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

Ideogram 4.0 image SHA 256: d63d24515e4c3a8b7feafecaf995a511433307ae5faae1a1c26b2f0289578af9

Muse Image image SHA 256: 356427fe1ec15a444aae4eab2194344c7fe6b17ef205a8db16c1d64dbacb750e

Infographic

Ideogram 4.0: together, requested 2048x2048, stored 1024x1024 (Lanczos3 downscale), n=1, seed=provider random, provider default steps, generated Aug 14, 2026, 12:28 PM. Source

Muse Image: fal, aspect ratio 1:1, n=1, seed=provider random, estimated cost $0.010000, source 1600x1600, stored 1024x1024 (Lanczos3 downscale), generated Nov 1, 2026, 8:49 AM. Source

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

Ideogram 4.0 image SHA 256: f57e6f5b7ae9038953087720387aa4a901832a1794dbb5e3f337f9d3ef213d62

Muse Image image SHA 256: c8b096001990f57cb5225f6387485b391a4a5e3c3031e7b0524a4c19e1e01bc8

Product photography

Ideogram 4.0: together, requested 2048x2048, stored 1024x1024 (Lanczos3 downscale), n=1, seed=provider random, provider default steps, generated Aug 14, 2026, 12:27 PM. Source

Muse Image: fal, aspect ratio 1:1, n=1, seed=provider random, estimated cost $0.010000, source 1600x1600, stored 1024x1024 (Lanczos3 downscale), generated Nov 1, 2026, 8:48 AM. Source

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

Ideogram 4.0 image SHA 256: 59b59cf5294653460f06085eedcfeb676b8c50f88f58f038b32659841f0500dd

Muse Image image SHA 256: 0cb5d4c3dbe33c840ba87f0e8af255deec9e7e02eb6c7f172310af433e78fdb6

Typography and layout

Ideogram 4.0: together, requested 2048x2048, stored 1024x1024 (Lanczos3 downscale), n=1, seed=provider random, provider default steps, generated Aug 14, 2026, 2:01 PM. Source

Muse Image: fal, aspect ratio 1:1, n=1, seed=provider random, estimated cost $0.010000, source 1600x1600, stored 1024x1024 (Lanczos3 downscale), generated Nov 1, 2026, 8:48 AM. Source

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

Ideogram 4.0 image SHA 256: 088eabf7b8c37bd377011dd2649a2deeee49ffb903e4798a6930bb94144f1eb4

Muse Image image SHA 256: b8232890082d6bdd72dd7be99d98a573566a2c62f94597ecdda2bd9110e2e143

The numbers at a glance

Arena ratingfrom votes by users · higher is better

n/a

Ideogram 4.0

not in the arena

1,269

Muse Image

Rank 7 of 21

GraduallyBenchour own rating, 0 to 100 · higher is better

Ideogram 4.0

Rank 57 of 108

Muse Image

Rank 4 of 108

Price per imagedollars through the API · lower is better

$0.06

Ideogram 4.0

fairly cheap

$0.01

Muse Image

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.

Ideogram 4.0

Subscription: Free to use at Ideogram (Ideogram Free, with limited credits), more from ≈ €21.12 a month (Ideogram Plus, with limited credits). Through other providers from ≈ €9.51 a month (Krea Basic, with limited credits). 16 plans in Germany.
Via API: $0.06 per image, 100 images $6.
License: Open weights.

Muse Image

Subscription: Free to use at Meta (Meta AI Free). Through other providers from ≈ €9.51 a month (Krea Basic, with limited credits). 6 plans in Germany.
Via API: $0.01 per image, 100 images $1.

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.

Kennzahl	Ideogram 4.0	Muse Image
Ratings
Arena ratingfrom votes by users, higher is better	n/a	1,269
Arena rank	n/a	Rank 7 of 21
Arena votesmore votes, a safer rating	n/a	53,444
GraduallyBenchour own rating, 0 to 100	55	78
GraduallyBench by task
Typography and layoutLegible text, hierarchy, and composition	67	86
Product photographyMaterials, reflections, and fine details	22	81
Character and detailAnatomy, clothing, and spatial consistency	59	61
InfographicNumbers, labels, and visual organization	73	86
API price
Per imagelower is better	$0.06	$0.01
100 images	$6	$1
Profile
Released	June 2026	Jul 7, 2026
Weightsopen means: runs locally	open	proprietary
Access	API, Web app, local	API, Web app
Parameters	9.3 billion	not published
Largest output	2K	not consistently published
Plans in Germanynaming exactly this model	16	6

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

Sources: Ideogram 4.0 model source (verified Aug 15, 2026) · Muse Image model source (verified Sep 26, 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 betterIdeogram 4.0Muse Image

Text to Image Arena1,0021,127ahead

Artificial Analysis from Nov 3, 2026

All individual values with sources

Rating	Ideogram 4.0	Muse Image	Source
Text to Image Arena	1,002	1,127	Artificial AnalysisRetrieved Nov 3, 2026

More comparisons with Ideogram 4.0 and Muse Image

Compare Ideogram 4.0 and Muse Image with the models people compare them with most often.

Ideogram 4.0vs.Muse Image

Test images

The numbers at a glance

Ideogram 4.0

Muse Image

All data side by side

Arena ratings by category

More comparisons with Ideogram 4.0 and Muse Image

Compare another matchup

Predecessor and successor

The most popular comparisons