Seedream 4.0 AI Image Generator
Seedream 4.0 is the entry tier of ByteDance's Seedream family. It is the one that takes a resolution rather than a quality switch, and the one cheap enough to run several times while you are still deciding what you want.
The only Seedream tier here that exposes a resolution ladder directly.
Square through 21:9 landscape, chosen by name rather than by ratio.
The cheapest tier in the family, which is what makes it the one to iterate on.
Seedream 4.0 AI Image Generator
Two images Seedream 4.0 made here
Generated with Seedream 4.0 on this site on 2026-08-04, unretouched. Both are the kind of subject this tier handles well and the tiers above it are wasted on: a clean subject, a single light source, and nothing in frame that has to be read.
Animal and natural light
What is Seedream 4.0?
Seedream 4.0 is the oldest tier of ByteDance's Seedream family still worth offering, sitting below 4.5, 5.0 Lite and 5.0 Pro. It is also the odd one out in how you talk to it: where the later tiers take an aspect ratio and a quality setting, 4.0 takes a named framing preset — square, portrait_16_9, landscape_21_9 and so on — plus a resolution of 1K, 2K or 4K.
Only the prompt is actually required. What it is for is the part of the process before you know what you want. Most of the images anyone generates are thrown away, and they are thrown away for reasons that have nothing to do with model tier: the composition was wrong, the idea did not work, the subject was in the wrong place.
Finding that out at eight credits instead of twenty-one is the whole argument for this tier. Where it visibly gives up is text inside the image — 4.5 is the tier that fixed that — and faces under difficult light, which is what 5.0 Pro is for.
Creative engine
What an image costs
One flat rate, and the resolution you pick does not change it.
The entry tier
Below 4.5, 5.0 Lite and 5.0 Pro, and the cheapest way to run the same prompt.
Named presets, not ratios
square, portrait_4_3, landscape_16_9 and six more, plus a 1K/2K/4K resolution.
Prompt is the only requirement
Everything else has a default, which makes it the quickest tier to throw an idea at.
When 4.0 is the right pick
Pick 4.0 when you are still deciding. That covers the first several runs of almost every image anyone makes here: testing whether the composition works, whether the subject reads at a glance, whether the idea was any good. The prompt you arrive at transfers to 4.5 and 5.0 Pro unchanged, so nothing spent down here is wasted. Move up the moment either of the two known weaknesses matters — writing that has to be legible inside the frame, which is 4.5, or a human face doing something difficult, which is 5.0 Pro. And stay here permanently for decorative work: backgrounds, textures, and anything that will sit behind text at low opacity.
Cheapest run in the family
Roughly a fifth less than 4.5 and a third less than 5.0 Pro at its basic setting.
Direct 4K
The resolution is a request field here rather than something implied by a quality switch.
Prompts carry upward
Whatever wording works here works on 4.5 and 5.0 Pro without rewriting.
Feature overview
What the entry tier accepts, and where the tiers above it pick up.
Text to image
One prompt in, one image out, with no source material required.
Nine framing presets
square, square_hd, portrait_4_3, portrait_3_2, portrait_16_9, and four landscape equivalents up to 21:9.
1K, 2K and 4K
A real resolution field, which the 4.5 and 5.0 tiers replaced with a quality switch.
Seed
Reuse a seed to get closer to a previous run rather than starting over each time.
Seedream 4.0 specs
Taken from the published provider schema for this model, which is the API it runs on here.
- Model
- Seedream 4.0 (ByteDance), text-to-image
- Required inputs
- Prompt only
- Framing presets
- square / square_hd / portrait_4_3 / portrait_3_2 / portrait_16_9 / landscape_4_3 / landscape_3_2 / landscape_16_9 / landscape_21_9
- Resolution
- 1K / 2K / 4K
- Seed
- Supported, for staying near a previous result
- Credit cost
- About 20 credits per image
- Tiers above
- Seedream 4.5, Seedream 5.0 Lite and Seedream 5.0 Pro
From prompt to image
Four steps, and the last one is what this tier is actually for.
Pick the framing preset
Choose the shape by name before writing — it changes what belongs in the frame.
Describe the subject and the light
What the thing is, and where the light comes from. Both do more than any adjective.
Leave it at 1K while testing
Resolution does not change the composition, and 4K is only worth generating once you like it.
Run it several times
At eight credits, three attempts still cost less than one image on the top tier.
What the entry tier is for
Jobs where run count matters more than the last increment of fidelity.
Finding the composition
The first several attempts at any image, before the prompt has settled.
Backgrounds and textures
Images that will sit behind type at low opacity and never be inspected.
Simple product shots
One object, one light source, no writing on the label.
Volume work
Anywhere you need many images rather than one good one.
One credit balance for every image model
Every model on this page draws from the same balance, and the credit cost appears before you press generate. Failed jobs are never charged.
Free
What's included
- Generate before you sign up — the free engine runs in your browser
- 200 credits the moment you create an account
- 40 more every day you check in — about 1,400 a month, roughly 70 images
- Photo editing on Nano Banana 2 Lite
- Every model on this page stays visible — upgrade to unlock
Secure checkout by Stripe. Card details never touch our servers.
Plus
What's included
- Access to GPT Image 2, Nano Banana 2, Seedream and Qwen
- Up to 4K output
- Watermark-free downloads
- Commercial use rights
- Credits refresh every billing cycle
Secure checkout by Stripe. Card details never touch our servers.
Pro
What's included
- Everything in Plus
- Higher image concurrency — run several prompts at once
- No throttle on the generator queue
- Priority support
- Early access to new models as they land
Secure checkout by Stripe. Card details never touch our servers.
Max
What's included
- Everything in Pro
- The highest concurrency tier on the site
- Skip soft-rate limits entirely
- Private generation history
- Direct line to support for production work
Secure checkout by Stripe. Card details never touch our servers.
Credit packs
One-time top-ups — buy extra credits any time you run low.
8k Credit Pack
What's included
- Credits never expire
- Stacks on top of any plan
- Spent only after your plan credits run out
- Works on every model on this page
Secure checkout by Stripe. Card details never touch our servers.
18k Credit Pack
What's included
- Credits never expire
- Stacks on top of any plan
- Spent only after your plan credits run out
- Works on every model on this page
Secure checkout by Stripe. Card details never touch our servers.
50k Credit Pack
What's included
- Credits never expire
- Stacks on top of any plan
- Spent only after your plan credits run out
- Works on every model on this page
Secure checkout by Stripe. Card details never touch our servers.
110k Credit Pack
What's included
- Credits never expire
- Stacks on top of any plan
- Spent only after your plan credits run out
- Works on every model on this page
Secure checkout by Stripe. Card details never touch our servers.
Charges appear as “VEIDA AI” on your card statement. You can cancel any time from Settings → Billing; cancellation takes effect at the end of the period you already paid for. Operator details, the full model list, and the refund window are on the about page.
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One credit balance for every image model
Use one balance across every model listed below, and check the credit cost before each request. Nothing is charged for a job that fails.
Model credit guide
What each model costs in credits
You're only charged for successful generations. The exact estimate in the generator varies by model, length, resolution, audio, and number of images.
| Type | Model | Credit cost |
|---|---|---|
| GPT Image 2 | Text to image and description-based edits. 1K ≈ 20 credits, 2K ≈ 90, 4K ≈ 160. | |
| Nano Banana 2 | Generate or edit from up to 14 reference photos. Same 20 / 40 / 80 ladder by resolution. | |
| Nano Banana 2 Lite | The free tier's editor. Lightest cost per edit on the site. | |
| Seedream 5 Lite | Fast drafts. Priced at the 1K tier for iteration passes. | |
| Qwen Image 3 | Legible text and page layout rather than photoreal. Priced by resolution. |
Seedream 4.0 FAQ
Common questions about the entry tier of the Seedream family.
4.0 takes a named framing preset and a 1K/2K/4K resolution; 4.5 takes an aspect ratio and a basic/high quality switch. The practical difference is text — 4.5 renders writing inside an image far more reliably — and 4.5 costs a little more.
About 20 credits, and the resolution you pick does not change it. Seedream 4.5 is about 10 and Seedream 5.0 Pro about 11 at its basic setting.
Only once you like the image. Resolution does not change composition or subject, so generating your test runs at 1K and the keeper at 4K loses nothing.
That is this tier's known weakness. Legible text inside an image is what Seedream 4.5 improved; if the words matter, generate there instead.
Reusing a seed keeps a new run close to a previous one, so you can change one part of the prompt without the whole image rearranging itself.
Credits are returned automatically, unless the request broke the content policy.
For its price, no — 20 credits flat, any use. The 5.0 line renders finer detail, but 4.0's output is stable and its look is well understood, which matters when you are matching images made months ago.
Make an image with Seedream 4.0
Pick a framing preset, describe the subject and the light, and run it a few times.