Seedream 5.0 Litevs.Z-Image Base

Which one is better?

In our own test both are on par. 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.

Seedream 5.0 Lite: Product photography, first image from the fixed test run — Seedream 5.0 Lite89 out of 100

Z-Image Base: Product photography, first image from the fixed test run — Z-Image Base22 out of 100

Result for “Product photography”:Seedream 5.0 Lite 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

Seedream 5.0 Lite: fal, requested 2560x2560 square, the route's minimum native pixel width, n=1, seed=69737196, estimated cost $0.035000, source 2560x2560, stored 1024x1024 (Lanczos3 downscale), generated Nov 2, 2026, 2:54 PM. Source

Z-Image Base: fal, requested 1024x1024, n=1, seed=1788591829, estimated cost $0.020000, generated Nov 1, 2026, 9:35 PM. Source

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

Seedream 5.0 Lite image SHA 256: e462824323b9bc065e16a0ab8da5835ea1d32541153fa535fc3a94ef5cec85cd

Z-Image Base image SHA 256: 7a9c8b160230e302e618ad99ed1047d36b66bdc759d8455d0479048c442cdf75

Infographic

Seedream 5.0 Lite: fal, requested 2560x2560 square, the route's minimum native pixel width, n=1, seed=464378822, estimated cost $0.035000, source 2560x2560, stored 1024x1024 (Lanczos3 downscale), generated Nov 2, 2026, 2:54 PM. Source

Z-Image Base: fal, requested 1024x1024, n=1, seed=2013338091, estimated cost $0.020000, generated Nov 1, 2026, 9:35 PM. Source

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

Seedream 5.0 Lite image SHA 256: 6fab6f06e5f001f85b4c049f79e4220b50345b08eb3a8954e778c1d5802d2cf0

Z-Image Base image SHA 256: b306143deb4d133e60ff4840e5fb8271d445f5a4944b98e89346763d84a19d30

Product photography

Seedream 5.0 Lite: fal, requested 2560x2560 square, the route's minimum native pixel width, n=1, seed=1604459337, estimated cost $0.035000, source 2560x2560, stored 1024x1024 (Lanczos3 downscale), generated Nov 2, 2026, 2:53 PM. Source

Z-Image Base: fal, requested 1024x1024, n=1, seed=1140297503, estimated cost $0.020000, generated Nov 1, 2026, 9:35 PM. Source

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

Seedream 5.0 Lite image SHA 256: 3d6bb69ff171c033881277a81b933654b6213b317462c0be1e1f75150501fd64

Z-Image Base image SHA 256: 11b631f154a0ddff86df21d6d8ffab0d208d51df894f3563dd6818d20b450aae

Typography and layout

Seedream 5.0 Lite: fal, requested 2560x2560 square, the route's minimum native pixel width, n=1, seed=1149290713, estimated cost $0.035000, source 2560x2560, stored 1024x1024 (Lanczos3 downscale), generated Nov 2, 2026, 2:52 PM. Source

Z-Image Base: fal, requested 1024x1024, n=1, seed=194884257, estimated cost $0.010486, generated Nov 1, 2026, 9:20 PM. Source

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

Seedream 5.0 Lite image SHA 256: 8642e711e827c543a8bdd23be9d3142e014cb746d885dd37f9b7405666ed4350

Z-Image Base image SHA 256: 62dbb49a07e3efe0f82ae9051fac20fce00a8f82b57ebe37a526b5176523c84f

The numbers at a glance

Arena ratingfrom votes by users · higher is better

n/a

Seedream 5.0 Lite

not in the arena

n/a

Z-Image Base

not in the arena

GraduallyBenchour own rating, 0 to 100 · higher is better

Seedream 5.0 Lite

Rank 32 of 108

Z-Image Base

Rank 74 of 108

Price per imagedollars through the API · lower is better

n/a

Seedream 5.0 Lite

no API price

n/a

Z-Image Base

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.

Seedream 5.0 Lite

Subscription: No ByteDance / Volcengine subscription includes this model. Through other providers from €6.83 a month (Poe Basic, with limited points). 27 plans in Germany.
Via API: No API price known. Access: API, Web app.
Weights: unknown.

Z-Image Base

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	Seedream 5.0 Lite	Z-Image Base
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	67	37
GraduallyBench by task
Typography and layoutLegible text, hierarchy, and composition	76	33
Product photographyMaterials, reflections, and fine details	89	22
Character and detailAnatomy, clothing, and spatial consistency	49	71
InfographicNumbers, labels, and visual organization	56	24
API price
Per imagelower is better	n/a	n/a
100 images	n/a	n/a
Profile
Released	Feb 13, 2026	Jan 27, 2026
Weightsopen means: runs locally	unknown	open
Lifecycle	Still-listed T2I/I2I model ID; Ark marks it as pending shutdown without giving a date in the reviewed source	no notice
Access	API, Web app	local
Parameters	not published	6 billion
Largest output	not consistently published	not consistently published
Plans in Germanynaming exactly this model	27	n/a

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

Sources: Seedream 5.0 Lite model source, status source (verified Nov 1, 2026) · Z-Image Base 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 Seedream 5.0 Lite and Z-Image Base from the same arena and category. Older model versions are not used as substitutes.

More comparisons

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