Recraft V4.1 Utility Provs.Chroma1-HD

Which one is better?

In our own test, Recraft V4.1 Utility Pro leads. Neither is in the arena. Neither has an API price.

Test images

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

Recraft V4.1 Utility Pro: Infographic, first image from the fixed test run — Recraft V4.1 Utility Pro75 out of 100

Chroma1-HD: Infographic, first image from the fixed test run — Chroma1-HD22 out of 100

Result for “Infographic”:Recraft V4.1 Utility Pro ahead

Prompt given to both modelsCreate a square German infographic titled SO FUNKTIONIERT PHOTOSYNTHESE. Show exactly four numbered steps in this order: 1 LICHT, 2 WASSER, 3 CO₂, 4 ZUCKER + SAUERSTOFF. Use a clean editorial science style with one plant cross-section, simple arrows, high contrast, legible labels, and no other text.

What the rating looks at: Numbers, labels, and visual organization.

“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

Recraft V4.1 Utility Pro: openrouter, aspect ratio 1:1, provider default resolution, n=1, seed=provider random, actual cost $0.210000, source 2048x2048, stored 1024x1024 (Lanczos3 downscale), generated Nov 1, 2026, 8:40 PM. Source

Chroma1-HD: manual, local PyTorch 2.13.0, Diffusers 0.36.0; lodestones/Chroma1-HD@0e0c60ece1e82b17cb7f77342d765ba5024c40c0; native 1024x1024, 1:1; one request, first output; steps=40, guidance=3.0, seed=4845693986590311438; mps for text encoder and denoising; cpu for native VAE decode; bfloat16 for text encoder and transformer; float32 for VAE, generated Nov 2, 2026, 7:16 PM. Source

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

Recraft V4.1 Utility Pro image SHA 256: bd91dab4bec8386e191d73503d7df4b67c3c6019f345d436659db432ca4049f7

Chroma1-HD image SHA 256: 7ca51c510884638a4d8c09d0e361e2bf0328c466d36ec4235f5305580dc10a8a

Infographic

Chroma1-HD: manual, local PyTorch 2.13.0, Diffusers 0.36.0; lodestones/Chroma1-HD@0e0c60ece1e82b17cb7f77342d765ba5024c40c0; native 1024x1024, 1:1; one request, first output; steps=40, guidance=3.0, seed=3726635088695005336; mps for text encoder and denoising; cpu for native VAE decode; bfloat16 for text encoder and transformer; float32 for VAE, generated Nov 2, 2026, 7:22 PM. Source

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

Recraft V4.1 Utility Pro image SHA 256: 10f1aa7a0152cbeaa379c9df088528810dbc6f28b1f8064d22dca51107760880

Chroma1-HD image SHA 256: 834ab94e5514295d56b66f606572d348fc4b5d1cdeba5874921c79c00774c76a

Product photography

Chroma1-HD: manual, local PyTorch 2.13.0, Diffusers 0.36.0; lodestones/Chroma1-HD@0e0c60ece1e82b17cb7f77342d765ba5024c40c0; native 1024x1024, 1:1; one request, first output; steps=40, guidance=3.0, seed=7965145008513162443; mps for text encoder and denoising; cpu for native VAE decode; bfloat16 for text encoder and transformer; float32 for VAE, generated Nov 2, 2026, 7:10 PM. Source

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

Recraft V4.1 Utility Pro image SHA 256: a70ee76cf6bf6561eade58a43f67874358b13d711417b864249fbd386c143b1d

Chroma1-HD image SHA 256: 8a0ebbb527f4db84a42a98a256333b00b4dc5ffae699a31b694f36bf34613e4b

Typography and layout

Chroma1-HD: manual, local PyTorch 2.13.0, Diffusers 0.36.0; lodestones/Chroma1-HD@0e0c60ece1e82b17cb7f77342d765ba5024c40c0; native 1024x1024, 1:1; one request, first output; steps=40, guidance=3.0, seed=2582507270187158929; mps for text encoder and denoising; cpu for native VAE decode; bfloat16 for text encoder and transformer; float32 for VAE, generated Nov 2, 2026, 7:04 PM. Source

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

Recraft V4.1 Utility Pro image SHA 256: de7f5a691e0fe0b251a93730c92603059b25432af9126fee410568fcaf829348

Chroma1-HD image SHA 256: d0ccb26f1a27cc3142c3c669b3e05ed7bb568b58706a237e7e34b3bbb68a9cc5

The numbers at a glance

Arena ratingfrom votes by users · higher is better

n/a

Recraft V4.1 Utility Pro

not in the arena

n/a

Chroma1-HD

not in the arena

GraduallyBenchour own rating, 0 to 100 · higher is better

Recraft V4.1 Utility Pro

Rank 50 of 108

Chroma1-HD

Rank 94 of 108

Price per imagedollars through the API · lower is better

n/a

Recraft V4.1 Utility Pro

no API price

n/a

Chroma1-HD

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.

Recraft V4.1 Utility Pro

Subscription: Free to use at Recraft (Recraft Free, with limited credits), more from ≈ €12.72 a month (Recraft Basic, with limited credits). 4 plans in Germany.
Via API: No API price known. Access: API.
Weights: unknown.

Chroma1-HD

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.

GraduallyBench 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	Recraft V4.1 Utility Pro	Chroma1-HD
Ratings
Arena ratingfrom votes by users, higher is better	n/a	n/a
Arena rank	n/a	n/a
Arena votesmore votes, a safer rating	n/a	n/a
GraduallyBenchour own rating, 0 to 100	62	23
GraduallyBench by task
Typography and layoutLegible text, hierarchy, and composition	71	36
Product photographyMaterials, reflections, and fine details	36	16
Character and detailAnatomy, clothing, and spatial consistency	65	17
InfographicNumbers, labels, and visual organization	75	22
API price
Per imagelower is better	n/a	n/a
100 images	n/a	n/a
Profile
Released	n/a	n/a
Weightsopen means: runs locally	unknown	open
Lifecycle	Separate API pricing/product SKU; no independent checkpoint identity confirmed	no notice
Access	API	local
Parameters	not published	8.9 billion
Largest output	not consistently published	not consistently published
Plans in Germanynaming exactly this model	4	n/a

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

Sources: Recraft V4.1 Utility Pro model source, status source (verified Nov 1, 2026) · Chroma1-HD model 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 Recraft V4.1 Utility Pro and Chroma1-HD from the same arena and category. Older model versions are not used as substitutes.

More comparisons

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