Best AI Image Generators of 2025
There are plenty of AI image generators, but not all fit your project or budget. Here’s how to choose between OpenAI, Midjourney, Stable Diffusion and more.
Our Experts
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Generative AI has made it quicker than ever to create digital images. With a simple text description called a prompt, you can bring almost any artistic vision to life without needing to know how to use advanced editing tools. My fellow CNET reviewers and I have spent a lot of time trying out different AI image generators. We created hundreds of images, everything from photo-realistic stock images to dramatic sci-fi scenes and fun, cartoonish animals. But every program has its own eccentricities, andgood prompt writing skills only get you so far. So we put together this list to help you find the right program for your project, skill level and wallet.
Our Picks
CNET reviewers have spent months reviewing every program on this list, pushing the programs to their limits. At some point during our testing, every service on this list produced a wonky or unusable image -- no AI image generator is perfect. The test of a truly superior AI image generator is how well-equipped it is to handle those quirks and fix flaws. Editing tools and customization options are a big part of that, which is why we test those extensively. Privacy policies, including how generators potentially train on your content, are also important considerations when selecting the best services, so we inspect those closely.
Here are our top AI image generators. For more, you can check out ourtop AI chatbots andAI essentials.
Read More:What Are AI Video Generators? What to Know About Google's Veo 3, Sora and More
What’s the best AI image generator?
Dall-E 3 by OpenAI is our best AI image generator pick. It can handle long, complex queries, giving you many editing and customization options. Its unique conversational flow also makes it easy to bring your artistic visions to life. If you don’t want to sign up for the $20 per month ChatGPT Plus subscription,Leonardo AI offers great AI imagery in its free plan. Beginners will findCanva’s user-friendly design easy and accessible to use, and professional creatives looking to experiment with AI art ought to tryAdobe Firefly and its family of AI tools.
Best AI image generator of 2024
Dall-E did the best of text-to-image AI models I tried when it came to creating a caricature of an older man playing pickleball. The image is generally engaging and entertaining and doesn't have major anatomical problems that are common witih AI.
Best overall AI image generator
Dall-E 3
Pros
- Understands long, complex queries
- Engaging, dynamic images
- Conversational style allows for easy modifications
Cons
- Photorealistic images can look fake
- Slow to generate images
Dall-E 3 by OpenAI is CNET’s2024 Editor’s choice for the best AI image generator. Dall-E 3 is great for amateurs and professionals, with many editing tools like different styles and customizations to take advantage of. Dall-E is unique among its competitors for its conversational flow, making it easy to send follow-up requests, and its ability to handle complex queries. OpenAI may use your content to improve its models, but the company says it won’t share your data with advertisers and offers a way to request to opt out of model training. With the $20 per month ChatGPT Plus subscription, Dall-E 3 creates vivid, engaging images with limited AI quirks.
Specs & Configurations
Pros
- Excellent artistic styles
- Good fine-tuning options
- Competitive generation speed
Cons
- Struggles with photorealistic images
- Difficulty when elements contact or interact
- Doesn’t accept complex queries
Adobe Firefly’s family of generative AI image tools is built directly into Adobe Creative Cloud, including Photoshop, which makes it a great option for professional creatives looking to experiment. Firefly offers a lot of stylistic and artistic options, and its refinement tools feel similar to editing software that creatives will be familiar with. Firefly is trained on Adobe’s own Stock catalog, which includes high-quality licensed and public domain content. Firefly does not train on your content. If you’re already paying for an Adobe Creative Cloud subscription, Firefly can be an easy way to mock up ideas or spark inspiration.
Specs & Configurations
Best free AI image generator
Leonardo AI
Pros
- Clear and detailed images
- Helpful prompt engineering tools
Cons
- No post-generation editing tools on the free plan
- Lackluster privacy policy
Leonardo is great for AI creatives on a budget. It has a comprehensive free plan that gives you ample generation credits at a fast speed. It doesn’t have any free post-generation editing tools (they’re paywalled), but it does have a prompt improvement tool and other customization elements that can guide you toward building the best prompts. Leonardo makes it easy to explore what’s possible with AI and create vivid, detailed AI images. Its free plan easily knocks its competitors out of the water, even the user-friendly Canva.
Specs & Configurations
Best basic AI image generator for beginners
Canva
Pros
- Excels at creating fun, whimsy and cartoon images
- Easy to use on desktop and on the mobile app
- Doesn’t share your content to train its AI
Cons
- Free plan has a hard limit on how many images you can create
- Hard to generate non-square images
Canva is an extremely user-friendly graphic design service, and its AI image generator Magic Media is a great option for amateur AI creators. Magic Media is a minimalist service, which isn’t great if you need extensive editing tools, but it’s great for folks on a budget and time crunch. Canva’s privacy policy is notably secure, as Canva does not train its AI on your content, and the images you generate are always private, unlike many competitors. Canva also makes it easy to integrate your AI images into your other projects, on desktop and on the mobile app. It’s a no-frills, easy-to-navigate AI image generator perfect for beginners and Canva lovers.
Specs & Configurations
Pros
- Fast generation time
- Great editing tools
- Very creative
Cons
- Complicated availability
- Too realistic product images
Stable Diffusion is one of the most common names among AI image generators, and as shown in our testing, it's for a good reason. This family of AI image models is open source and great at creating detailed and colorful AI images. If you use Stability AI, you'll have access to some of the most comprehensive editing tools we've seen in AI image generators. There are a lot of different ways to access Stable Diffusion models -- that's the nature of open source -- including through Stability AI's programs, other third-party platforms and running models locally on your own device. The privacy policy and price will depend on what method you pick. Stability AI offers a $10 per month plan and lets you opt out of model training.
Specs & Configurations
How we tested AI image generators
CNET takes a practical approach to reviewing AI image generators. Our goal is to determine how good it is relative to the competition and which purposes it serves best. To do that, we give the AI prompts based on real-world use cases, such as rendering in a particular style, combining elements into a single image and handling lengthier descriptions. We score the image generators on a 10-point scale that considers factors such as how well images match prompts, creativity of results and response speed. Seehow we test AI for more.
Factors to consider
Accuracy is an important factor to consider when evaluating AI image generators. Accuracy in this case refers to how well a service matches your prompt and how clearly elements and details are rendered. For example, a service that closely matches the sci-fi/fantasy spaceship scene described in a prompt would be considered accurate, as would a service that generates a picture of a human with a clear expression.
On the flip side,hallucinations, or the way AI makes stuff up, are also important to consider. Hallucinations for AI images tend to be seen in the weird quirks or flaws that you didn’t request, like people with three arms or disappearing elements.Creativityis an inherent necessity of an AI image generator, but hallucinations are obvious flubs, not whimsical or non-realistic style elements. All AI image generators run into these problems, but great AI services have them less infrequently and offer editing tools ready to fix them.
The number ofclarifying prompts required indicates how much work you’ll have to put into getting the image you want. If you can’t follow up with an edit or additional request, that can be a red flag or annoyance to look out for. Generators that adhere closely to prompts and offer editing tools make it easier to bring your vision to life.
Response speedis also important to consider. Most image generators are pretty quick, under two minutes or so. Services that can generate images quicker than that, between 10-30 seconds, bring an edge to their user experience.
Other AI image generators we tested
OpenAI's image generator is not the same as Dall-E 3. While both share the same parent company, generating images in ChatGPT is a frustrating experience. There were only very basic editing tools, which didn't consistently remediate errors. OpenAI says its defining characteristic is that it can generate legible, sensical text, but that wasn't always the case in our testing. If you're already a regularChatGPT user and have time to wait for the image to load and then edit it, it's a solid option. But ChatGPT is a chatbot first, image generator second.
Midjourney is a solid option for an AI image generator, but it didn’t make our top picks because it’s paid-only and inconsistently matched prompts in our testing. Midjourney does offer nice upscaling or editing tools for individual images, but you’ll have to use them often. It’s also noteworthy that all your images will be public and accessible in an online gallery unless you create in stealth mode, which is only available in the more expensive Pro and Mega plans.
Google’sImageFX didn't make our top picks either due to persistent inaccuracies and its “overbearing nannying,” which results in rejecting innocuous prompts. All AI generators struggle with photorealistic faces and hands, but ImageFX also struggles with inanimate objects and logos. This wouldn’t be a deal breaker, except its editing and fine tuning tools aren’t up to par to make images usable. Google has released several newer image models, includingImagen 4, that would be better options.
AI image generator FAQs
What is the best AI image generator?
Dall-E 3 by OpenAI is CNET’s Editor’s choice for the best AI image generator because of its breadth of editing and customization tools, close adherence to prompts and level of detail in images. Dall-E uses a conversational flow, and it’s great at handling more complex prompts well.
Is there a free AI image generator?
There are a couple of free and freemium AI image generators to choose from, but we recommend starting withLeonardo AI orCanva. Both of these services offer free AI image generation with quick response speeds and suitable prompt adherence.
How do I make the best AI images?
To make the best AI image, you’re going to want to build the right image prompt. As you’re writing what you want your generator to create, make sure you’re including the style, aesthetic, dimension and any specific elements you want to be included. Some generators have a hard time adhering to specific prompts, but it’s better to start with a specific prompt and refine or scale back as needed. Check out our guide towriting the best AI image prompts for more tips.
Why does my AI image look weird?
There are many reasons your AI image generator might not be giving you what you want. Try adjusting your prompt, using customization settings and editing tools to eliminate quirks or conflicting elements. Unfortunately, sometimes your only option is to scrap your idea and start again. Our guide tofixing the most common AI image hallucinations offers more in-depth advice.
Should I disclose that my image is made by AI?
Yes. If you are using an image that is entirely created by an AI image generator, you should disclose that wherever you are sharing it.
Can I copyright an image made with AI?
Copyright is one of the most pressing legal questions in the age of AI. Unfortunately, it's also something of a tangled web. The short answer is probably not. According to guidance fromthe US Copyright Office, you cannot receive copyright protection for an image made entirely with AI. However, if you use generative AI tools to only edit your pictures, you may be eligible for protection. For more on copyright and AI, check out this explainer onhow copyright law applies to AI in 2025.
About the Author
Katelyn Chedraoui
Writer IKatelyn Chedraoui
Writer IKatelyn is a writer with CNET covering artificial intelligence, including chatbots, image and video generators. Her work explores how new AI technology is infiltrating our lives, shaping the content we consume on social media and affecting the people behind the screens. She graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a degree in media and journalism. You can reach her at kchedraoui@cnet.com.
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