GI GPT-Image-2 is OpenAI's current state-of-the-art image model for fast generation and editing with flexible sizes and high-fidelity image inputs.
GPT-Image-2 is OpenAI's current state-of-the-art image generation and editing model for high-quality visuals, flexible sizes and faithful image-input editing.
GPT-Image-2 is OpenAI’s current flagship model for generating and editing images through the API, replacing older GPT Image and DALL-E generations as the recommended starting point for new visual products.
The model is designed around two related workflows: creating an image from a text description and transforming one or more supplied images while following natural-language instructions. This is important for production use because many commercial image tasks are not pure text-to-image generation. Teams often need to preserve a product, person, layout or visual identity while changing background, lighting, composition or styling. OpenAI specifically highlights high-fidelity image inputs and flexible image sizes as core strengths of GPT-Image-2.
GPT-Image-2 accepts text and image input and produces images. It supports the Images API and can also participate in image-generation workflows through OpenAI’s Responses platform. Unlike general language models, it does not expose function calling, structured JSON output or fine-tuning. The value comes from visual instruction following: creating new assets, editing existing images, iterating through prompt changes and using reference imagery to anchor the result.
A practical e-commerce workflow might feed a clean product photo into GPT-Image-2, ask for several contextual lifestyle scenes and then generate campaign variants at multiple sizes. A design team can provide an existing creative and request localized text/layout variants. An app can let users upload a room, outfit or object and make conversational edits. These tasks are more reliable when prompts explicitly describe what must remain unchanged as well as what should be modified.
The model is active and OpenAI lists a dated snapshot, gpt-image-2-2026-04-21, for applications that need version consistency. GPT-Image-2 is also the model OpenAI recommends over deprecated DALL-E 2 and earlier image-generation endpoints. Rate limits are based on account tier and include both token throughput and images per minute.
Pricing is not best represented by a single input/output-token pair because image generation cost depends on dimensions, quality and image-token usage. OpenAI’s model page directs developers to the current pricing page and image-generation calculator. For a real production budget, calculate average cost per requested size/quality and include regeneration rates, because users often request multiple iterations before accepting one image.
Choose GPT-Image-2 when your application already uses OpenAI, needs both generation and editing, or relies on source-image fidelity. It is especially suitable for product imagery, marketing concepts, personalized design, asset localization and conversational editing. Compare Google Nano Banana 2 when Google Search grounding or very explicit per-resolution pricing is more important, and compare specialist visual providers when you need a distinctive rendering workflow.
Image-generation models can still produce incorrect typography, anatomy, object geometry, brand details or subtle changes to supposedly preserved source content. Teams should add review steps for public-facing assets, avoid assuming visual factuality and test prompts across representative edge cases. Image safety requirements and provider policies can also limit certain content categories.
Create a premium product hero image using this reference photo while preserving the product design.Edit this room photo to show a modern Scandinavian interior without changing the camera angle.Generate a campaign poster with the exact headline and a clean editorial layout.Usage is billed through OpenAI's image-generation pricing and depends on image dimensions, quality and tokenized image/text usage. Use OpenAI's current pricing page or image-generation calculator for exact per-request cost.
The default OpenAI image model to evaluate for new visual applications, especially when generation and editing need to share one API.
