Qwen Image 2.1
Sep 2026
Qwen Image 2.1Compare inon
Qwen Image 2.1 measured on 5 of 9 Image Generation & Editing benchmarks5
BenchmarkByScoreRank
Multimodal4
Text rendering1
No benchmark matches
Rankingconfiguration unstated?
Full ranking →···
20Grok Imagine Image Quality1,04921Qwen Image 2.11,04222Krea 2 Large1,034Strong at
Alternatives?
ModelScoreCostPriceWhat changes
CheaperMuse Imageunstatedwins 62%-50%$0.01
OpenMing Image 0.1 Designwins 44%+50%$0.03Reference images: not verifiedCheaperQwen Image 2.1 Turbosame-20%$0.016
CheaperKrea 2 Medium TurboOpenwins 47%-25%$0.015Memory (4-bit): not verifiedPCheaperP Image Ideogramhighwins 43%-50%$0.01Edits photos: not verified+1ModelScoreCostPriceWhat changes
Muse Imageunstatedwins 62%-50%$0.01Qwen Image 2.1 Turbosame-20%$0.016Krea 2 Medium TurboOpenwins 47%-25%$0.015Memory (4-bit): not verifiedPP Image Ideogramhighwins 43%-50%$0.01Edits photos: not verified+1
FLUX.2 [dev] FlashOpenwins 43%-75%$0.005Reference images: not verified+1ModelScoreCostPriceWhat changes
Muse Imageunstatedwins 62%-50%$0.01
MAI Image 2.6 Flashwins 61%same$0.019Qwen Image 3.0wins 54%+50%$0.03
Nano Banana 2.1unstatedwins 68%+68%$0.034Nano Banana 2 Lite (Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Image)unstatedwins 59%+68%$0.034ModelScoreCostPriceWhat changes
Ming Image 0.1 DesignOpenwins 44%+50%$0.03Reference images: not verified
Ideogram 4.0 FastOpenwins 41%-48%$0.011Edits photos: not verified+2Ideogram 4.0 InstantOpenwins 41%-63%$0.007Edits photos: not verified+2FLUX.2 [klein] 9BunstatedOpenwins 34%-15%$0.017Memory (4-bit): 4.2 GB → 5.3 GB
ERNIE Image TurboOpenwins 32%-48%$0.011Edits photos: not verified+2ModelScoreCostPriceWhat changes
Qwen Image 3.0 Prounstatedwins 58%+100%$0.04Qwen Image 3.0wins 54%+50%$0.03Qwen Image 2.1 Prosame+76%$0.035Qwen Image 2.0 Pro (2026-04-22)unstatedsame+275%$0.075Qwen Image 2.1 Turbosame-20%$0.016Wan 2.6 Imagewins 48%+50%$0.03Wan2.6 Text to Imagewins 46%+50%$0.03Edits photos: not verified+1Qwen Image 2.0 (2026-03-03)wins 43%+75%$0.035All Alibaba (Qwen) models →Run it yourself
estimateFits on✓ 8 GB (phone, laptop) · 8-bit✓ 16 GB · full quality✓ 24 GB GPU · full quality✓ 48 GB GPU · full quality✓ 80 GB GPU · full quality
Licenceqwen-researchcommercial use with conditions
History
6 versionsBenchmarks
in Image Generation & EditingAA Image Arena · editing v2.11,083#19
Arena Image Editing · overall1,368.7#11
Arena Text-to-Image · overall1,222.9#11
FAQ
How much does Qwen Image 2.1 cost?›
$0.02 per image.
Is Qwen Image 2.1 free to use?›
There is no free API; it costs $0.02 per image. The weights are open, so you can run it yourself.
How good is Qwen Image 2.1, and what is it best at?›
#21 of 93 in Image Generation & Editing. Strongest at: Image Generation & Editing.
Is Qwen Image 2.1 better than Grok Imagine Image Quality?›
On AA Image Arena · text-to-image v2.1, Qwen Image 2.1 scores 1,042 vs 1,049 — about the same. It is 60% cheaper.
When was Qwen Image 2.1 released? Is there a newer version?›
Released 2026-09-20. It is the current version in its line.
Is Qwen Image 2.1 open source?›
Yes, the weights are open (qwen-research licence).
Can I run Qwen Image 2.1 locally?›
The weights are open and can be self-hosted; hardware needs are not confirmed yet.
What is Qwen Image 2.1?›
Qwen Image 2.1 is an open-weights image generation & editing model from Alibaba (Qwen), released Sep 2026.
What are the best alternatives to Qwen Image 2.1?›
Muse Image (cheaper), Ming Image 0.1 Design (open weights).