This is a comprehensive list of the best AI generators. Explore the advanced technology that transforms imagination into stunning artworks.
Today, artificial intelligence-based art generation technology is gaining traction, as these solutions introduce new possibilities for creative expression and can help businesses stay ahead in a rapidly evolving digital landscape.
AI art generation refers to the use of artificial intelligence algorithms and technologies to create visual artwork. It involves utilizing machine learning techniques to generate unique and original artwork or enhance the creative process for users.
SEE: Moderate your business’s AI usage with TechRepublic Premium’s AI ethics policy template.
By streamlining certain elements within creative workflows, AI art generation saves users time and resources. This increased efficiency can lead to faster turnaround times, increased productivity and cost savings!
Furthermore, investing in AI art generators can provide competitive advantages to businesses both in and out of creative industries. AI-generated art can be used to generate visually compelling content that allows businesses to stand out in a crowded marketplace.
So read on to learn more about AI art generation technology and the top AI art generators available in 2023.
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Top AI art generators comparison
AI art generators enable users to experiment with different styles, techniques and aesthetics, pushing the boundaries of traditional artistic expression. Below is a comparison of some of the best AI art generators on the market.
| Software | Text-to-image generation | Editing and upscaling of imported media | Art community access | Free software version | Pricing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DALL·E 2 | Yes | Yes | No | No | $15 per 115 credits |
| Midjourney | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Starting at $10 per month |
| Craiyon | Yes | No | No | Yes | Paid plans starting at $5 per month |
| Jasper Art | Yes | No | No | No | Starting at $39 per month |
| NightCafe | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Starting at $5.99 per month |
| DeepAI | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Paid plans starting at $4.99 per month |
| Runway | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Paid plans starting at $15 per user per month |
DALL·E 2: Best for user-friendliness
It seems like everybody is talking about DALL·E 2, and it’s no wonder why. This web-based tool is handy for generating high-quality, copyright-free AI graphics from text cues. What people enjoy about this AI model is its user-friendliness, making it accessible for anyone to utilize, even beginners!
DALL·E 2 was developed by OpenAI as an off-shoot of its original image-generating model, DALL·E. You may be familiar with OpenAI’s other popular AI product, ChatGPT. Like ChatGPT, the DALL·E 2 interface is simplistic and self-explanatory, providing a foolproof resource for people looking to create unique AI images.
So, whether you’re looking to create a photo-realistic image or transform an existing image to a specific style, just describe your wishes in natural language and let DALL·E 2 do the rest.
Platform
Web
Developer
OpenAI
Pricing
$15 per 115 credits (approximately 460 images at default settings).
Features
- Easy-to-use interface.
- Ability to combine attributes, styles and concepts.
- Image expansion/outpainting.
- Image editing/inpainting.
- Generating variations of existing images.
- Supports many integrations through Zapier.
Pros
- Generates art from text descriptions written in natural language for easy use.
- New users receive 50 free credits, and all users receive 15 additional credits each month.
- The model was trained on approximately 650 million image-text pairs sourced from the internet that were filtered to remove harmful content and support safe generations.
- OpenAI developed safety mitigations to prevent harmful generations and curb misuse.
Cons
- Although new users receive 15 free credits, those credits would produce approximately, only about 60 images.
- Although the tool can produce many different images based on the text input, the simplistic nature of the model makes it unable to not provide as many customization options as other AI image generators.
Midjourney: Best for generating photo realistic art
Midjourney is among the best resources out there for creating photorealistic AI art, making it ideal for image upscaling. However, the factor that sets the tool apart the most is definitely its interface. Users must access the image generations by requesting them from a Discord bot.
For anyone out there who is unfamiliar, Discord is a social messaging platform and the only way to utilize Midjourney. But once you make a Discord account and begin requesting images from the robot using specialized commands, you’ll get the hang of the process.
From there, Midjourney allows users to request image generations and learn tips and tricks from other program users within their Discord public channels. This solution makes it easy to create stunningly realistic generations and integrate yourself among a community of other AI digital artists.
Platform
Mac, Windows, Linux (deb, tar.gz), iOS and Android
Developer
Discord-based
Pricing
- Basic Plan: $10 per month.
- Standard Plan: $30 per month.
- Pro Plan: $60 per month.
Features
- Ability to upscale and edit imported images.
- Graphic generation based on text description.
- Stylize function to improve artistic quality and realism.
- Zoom-Out, tool to expand on original images.
- Tile parameter feature for creating repeatable images.
Pros
- The pricing model is ideal for people that are looking to generate a lot of AI art images.
- The platform makes it easy to join a supportive community of other Midjourney users and AI artists.
Cons
- Midjourney no longer offers a free version of the tool, and subscription plans may be too costly for members that rarely use the product.
- Users have reported difficulty in generating realistic images of hands and teeth.
- Only Pro plan members can generate images privately. Otherwise, users’ AI generation prompts are visible to all members within the public Discord channels.
- Midjourney’s user interface relies on the use of Discord, which may cause an initial learning curve for those unfamiliar with the platform.
Craiyon: Best for free access
As its name would suggest, Craiyon is a tool that can be used to create art images, and the developer even offers a free version of the platform. Formerly known as DALL·E Mini, the service can generate photos from written descriptions and features an easy-to-use interface.
Craiyon provides its service for free to all website visitors who feel like giving it a spin. The simplistic model is ideal for any AI artist newbies who may be curious about learning the ins and outs of AI graphic generation but aren’t ready to purchase a subscription plan just yet.
To provide the free server, the model relies on ads. If you’re not a fan of the ads and want to support the developer, you have the option to purchase the service through one of the paid subscription plans. The paid plans provide access to speedier generations, watermark-free artwork, an ad-free experience and more inexpensive perks.
Platform
Web
Developer
Craiyon LLC
Pricing
- Free Plan for $0.
- Supporter Plan for $5/month (billed yearly).
- Professional Plan for $20/month (billed yearly).
- Enterprise Plan for a customized price.
Features
- Basic AI art generation.
- Ability to enhance generated art in higher resolutions.
- Customization options for different styles and parameters.
- A printing service to order t-shirts with prints of AI-generated images.
Pros
- Create free, basic designs without a membership.
- Turn your AI creations into wearable art through the website.
- Introductory tool into the world of AI digital art creation.
Cons
- Craiyon’s free users will encounter ads and may experience long generation wait times due to server overload.
- Generated art may be used for personal, academic and professional purposes, but users must respect the Terms of Use and credit craiyon.com for the images if they are free subscribers.
- The image generation model has limitations and can produce results that contain harmful stereotypes or reinforce or exacerbate societal biases.
Jasper Art: Best for professional use
Through Jasper Art, marketing teams, content creators, business owners and non-professionals alike can create unique and high-quality AI images. While anyone can set up an account to access the service, there are several features that make it ideal for business use.
The model can generate custom art, images, illustrations and even 3D animations for business marketing and other royalty-free commercial uses. And although it may be pricier than some of the other AI art generators out there, it does save time and money when compared to sourcing art from other means.
Marketing teams and professionals can also use it alongside the Jasper AI writing generator if they use the service. The multiple content creation tools offered by Jasper make it easy to create visual art and professional writing for all of your business needs.
Platform
Web
Developer
Jasper AI
Pricing
- Creator Plan: $39 per month.
- Teams Plan: $99 per month.
- Business Plan: custom pricing.
Features
- Unlimited text-to-picture image generations.
- Creates four watermark-free images at a time.
- Different art and design styles.
- Fast time to generate.
- High-resolution 2K pixel images.
- Royalty-free commercial use.
Pros
- Jasper AI is perfect for users seeking faster generation times, as most prompts take less than 10 seconds to process.
- Since the generations are watermark and royalty-free, users can instantly apply the art to business cards, websites, packaging or any other on-brand commercial content.
Cons
- Jasper Art doesn’t allow users to upload images for reference, instead relying on text descriptions.
- Some users have reported issues with generating realistic body extremities and faces.
NightCafe: Best for seasoned AI artists
NightCafe is a popular AI art generator that stands apart for its creative features and artistic options, making it a perfect tool for AI artists.
The model’s expansive features and deep customization tools are ideal for skilled AI artists looking to create unique images. Users can select from a wide range of styles and features to generate a visually impressive image. Alternatively, they can input their own photos to generate an all-new and completely unique creation!
While the text-to-image AI model does allow for easy art generation, this tool is anything but basic. Its features enable users to create in multiple AI art models, including Stable Diffusion, DALL·E 2, CLIP-Guided Diffusion, VQGAN-CLIP and even Neural Style Transfer.
Platform
Web and mobile
Developer
NightCafe Studio Pty Ltd
Pricing
- Free plan.
- AI Beginner plan: $5.99 per month.
- AI Hobbyist plan: $9.99 per month.
- AI Enthusiast plan: $19.99 per month.
- AI Artist plan: $49.99 per month.
Features
- Code-free image generation.
- Multiple style options and art models.
- Access to the AI art community.
- Cross-device creation.
- Chat rooms and other collaboration features.
Pros
- Although the model is extremely versatile, its intuitive user interface makes it easy and accessible for all users, including beginners.
- The platform saves user creations in their account for easy access and storage.
- NightCafe users can participate in art challenges, vote on their favorite creations, share their AI art in the online gallery or discuss AI art through the Discord server.
Cons
- While NightCafe is intuitive enough for all users to generate basic outputs, beginners may experience a learning curve as they master the model’s more advanced creative features.
- Many of the model’s features are limited to paid plans.
DeepAI: Best for customization
DeepAI’s customization capabilities enable users to generate tailor-made images that are fine-tuned for their needs. The open-source software solution is an AI text-to-image generator that can produce unique artwork from a single-word text prompt.
DeepAI is a great model for users that want to quickly create a resolution-independent vector image. While the free version of the software produces art based on text prompts, DeepAI’s paid plans provide extensive options for creating and customizing AI images, including many stylistic options for adjusting textures, colors and other details.
While DeepAI does a great job at generating impressively realistic images, its highly customizable nature lets users bring their ideas to life. The tool also ensures that its users can create unlimited unique works of art, as no two generations are the same.
Platform
Web
Developer
DeepAI
Pricing
- Free plan.
- Pro Plan from $4.99/month and 500 calls per month.
- Pay-As-You-Go plan from $5 per 100 API calls.
Features
- Resolution-independent vector image generation.
- Fantasy World Generator to create fantasy style artwork.
- BigGAN for headshot creation.
- CartoonGAN to create cartoon style animations.
- Image colorization capabilities.
Pros
- API developers can connect DeepAI to another software using the text-to-picture API.
- DeepAI’s Nudity Detector tool can filter out images containing nudity and rate images on whether they should be considered not safe for work.
- DeepAI users can create an unlimited number of graphics.
- The BogGAN feature enables users to generate realistic images.
Cons
- Some users have reported slow processing time.
- Many features are limited to paid subscription plans.
Runway: Best for video editing
Runway offers a suite of AI tools for generating and editing images, videos, images, 3D media and audio. Its use of ML models allows for an expansive list of features and capabilities that go beyond those of your standard art generator.
The platform provides various art-generation tools, from text-to-image to AI animations and video edits. Users can even transform images into animated videos or simply use text prompts to generate unique videos.
Video editing and generation aside, this is a robust resource that can allow artists to harness the creative powers of AI. Developers can even utilize the solution to train their own custom models and AI image generators.
Platform
Web
Developer
Runway AI, Inc.
Pricing
- Basic plan is free.
- Standard plan from $15 per user per month.
- Pro plan from $28 per user per month.
- Enterprise plan for a custom price.
Features
- AI text-to-video and video-to-video generation.
- Generation of images and 3D textures from text prompts.
- Image resolution upscaling.
- AI video editing.
- Custom model training.
- Shared assets and multiple seats.
Pros
- The program provides many video editing features for purposes like eliminating the background in videos without the need for green screen technology.
- High-definition models trained through RunwayAI are provided 100 free HD images upfront.
- Buyers can curate a customized solution plan by contacting the Runway sales department.
Cons
- Free and lower-cost subscription plans provide a limited amount of generation capabilities.
- The free version of the solution comes with 125 credits, and users can’t buy more unless they sign up for a paid plan.
What are the key features of AI art generators?
Generative algorithms
AI art generators make use of advanced generative AI algorithms to produce one-of-a-kind artwork based on input data, such as images, texts or random noise. These algorithms learn from existing art styles and patterns, resulting in the creation of fresh and visually captivating pieces.
Style transfer
AI art generators often come equipped with the capability to transfer styles, allowing users to apply the characteristics and aesthetics of well-known artworks or specific styles to their own images. This functionality empowers users to produce artwork that emulates the distinctive look and atmosphere of renowned artists or artistic movements.
Creative exploration
AI art generators foster a spirit of creative exploration by offering users an extensive range of options and possibilities. Through adjustable parameters and settings, artists can modify the generated art, enabling them to experiment, iterate and achieve the desired artistic outcomes.
Realistic rendering
Sophisticated rendering techniques are employed by advanced AI art generators to create artwork that closely resembles traditional artistic mediums or even photographic images. These algorithms can replicate brush strokes, textures and lighting effects, resulting in visually convincing and lifelike graphics.
Interactive and inclusive interfaces
AI art generators often offer interfaces that are intuitive and user-friendly, enabling artists to engage with the generated art in real time. Users can easily make adjustments, apply filters or effects and instantly preview changes, fostering a dynamic and interactive creative process. Moreover, these interfaces should be designed to be inclusive, providing opportunities for individuals with diverse levels of artistic skills to participate in creative expression, irrespective of their experience or training.
Benefits of working with AI art generators
Working with AI art generators offers a range of benefits for artists, businesses and creative individuals. These tools provide a limitless source of inspiration, allowing users to explore and experiment with various artistic styles and parameters so that they may push the boundaries of their creativity.
Perhaps most importantly, these tools offer accessibility, allowing individuals to engage in the creative process and produce visually stunning artwork, regardless of their artistic skills or training. AI art generators may also provide a platform for artists to collaborate and share their creations, fostering a sense of community and support.
Finally, AI art generators save users time and effort by automating certain aspects of the artistic process, such as generating or editing images. This can enable businesses to reduce overhead costs when designing their professional content.
How do I choose the best AI art generator?
Working with AI art generators opens new avenues for artistic exploration, facilitates collaboration and empowers users to unleash their creativity in innovative and exciting ways! However, not all products will provide the same capabilities — or benefits — to your organization.
Evaluating the features of AI art generators is essential to select the best option for your needs. Look for generators offering various artistic styles, adjustable parameters and advanced rendering techniques. Additionally, consider your specific goals so you can choose one that provides the tools and resources necessary to bring your creative ideas to life.
Additionally, consider an AI art generator’s ease of use and interface. Remember that a user-friendly interface with intuitive controls and clear instructions can enhance the creative experience, regardless of the user’s skill level. Exploring the generator’s user feedback and testimonials can also provide helpful insights into its reliability, performance and ease of use. By carefully evaluating these factors, you can choose the AI art generator that best suits your artistic style, preferences and creative aspirations.
Review methodology
This is a technical review using compiled literature researched from relevant databases. The information provided within this article is gathered from vendor websites or based on an aggregate of user feedback to ensure a high-quality review.
