Updated 2 November 2026. Google changes these models every few weeks. I re-check this page monthly.
Short answer: for brand work, make Nano Banana 2.1 your default. Switch to Nano Banana Pro for a single hero image where realism is the whole job. Keep Nano Banana 2, the free model in the Gemini app, for ideas and rough boards. 2.1 arrived on 6 October, beats both older models on every task Google measures, and costs half as much per image as Nano Banana 2 through the API. Pro still looks more natural in independent side-by-sides. That is the whole trade.
Nano Banana 2.1, 2 and Pro in one table
| Model | Built on | In the Gemini app | API price per image (standard) | Best at |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nano Banana 2.1 | Gemini 3.6 Flash | Google AI Pro, Plus, Ultra | $0.0336 (1K) · $0.0504 (2K) · $0.113 (4K) | edits with masks, matching characters and products across a set, infographics |
| Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image) | Gemini 3.1 Flash | Free, with limits | $0.067 (1K) · $0.101 (2K) · $0.151 (4K) | fast drafts |
| Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image) | Gemini 3 Pro | “Redo with Pro” on paid plans | $0.134 (1K or 2K) · $0.24 (4K) | realism: colour, proportion, texture |
Prices are from Google’s Gemini API pricing page, read on 2 November 2026. The batch tier costs half. App access is from Google’s Gemini image page. The model details are from the 2.1 model card (6 October 2026).
What 2.1 improved, and how to read Google’s numbers
Google’s model card scores 2.1 ahead on all nine tasks it lists. Three of them matter for a brand team. Product consistency: 1024, against 965 for Pro and 955 for Nano Banana 2. Multi-character consistency: 1106, against 1011 and 978. Mask-based editing, where you paint over the part you want changed: 1049, against 927 and 965. These are Elo-style preference scores from Google’s own evaluations. Nobody independent has reproduced them yet (model card, 6 Oct).
The same card lists where 2.1 still fails. Small text is often blurry at 1K. Long paragraphs break. Consistency between your reference image and the output “is not always perfect”. It sometimes mixes up left and right. On launch day The Decoder put 2.1 next to Pro and found Pro’s image still more realistic in colour and proportion. In that test, the horse from 2.1 looked more like a pony (The Decoder, 6 Oct).
My read: pick by the job, not by the leaderboard
The cover image on every AI Daily on this site is made in the Gemini app, from a prompt built around one idea, never a logo or a real face. On client films I reject 60 to 70 percent of my takes before anyone else sees them. That number is why I care less about which model wins a chart, and more about which one fails in ways I can catch quickly.
The fear every FMCG team brings to the first meeting is the pack: wrong letters, a logo that melts. 2.1’s lead on product consistency is the most useful thing in this release for that problem. Its own model card tells you where to look first, though: the small print. On the Festival Toffee 3D ad my job included the product sheet, the reference every shot was checked against. Do the same here. Give the model the real pack shot, then check every frame against the sheet, not against your memory of it.
The rule I would hand a team:
- A set that must match (a campaign, a carousel, one character across ten frames): Nano Banana 2.1.
- One hero image where texture sells (food, liquid, skin): make it in 2.1, then use “Redo with Pro” and compare.
- Ideas and rough boards: Nano Banana 2 in the free app is enough.
- Text a customer must read (price, claims, legal lines): none of them. Set the type in design software after the image is done.
Pick the image model by how it fails, not by where it ranks. Nano Banana 2.1 keeps a product consistent across a set better than Pro, but Pro still renders texture more naturally, and none of them can be trusted with small print.
Questions people are searching this week
Is Nano Banana 2.1 better than Nano Banana Pro?
On Google’s own tests, yes, on every task listed. In independent side-by-sides, Pro still looks more natural. Use 2.1 for sets and edits. For a single realistic hero, try both.
How much does Nano Banana 2.1 cost?
Through the Gemini API: $0.0336 per 1K image, $0.0504 per 2K and $0.113 per 4K on the standard tier; the batch tier is half that (Google, read 2 Nov). In the Gemini app it comes with a Google AI Pro, Plus or Ultra plan.
Can I use Nano Banana for free?
Nano Banana 2 is free in the Gemini app, with usage limits. 2.1 and “Redo with Pro” need a paid plan. Google AI Studio is free to use in the regions it serves, but the API has no free tier for image output (pricing page). Every image carries an invisible SynthID watermark, and the app adds a visible one (Google).
How do I write a good Nano Banana prompt?
Decide the shot before you type: subject, framing, light, palette and what must not appear. My free AI image prompt generator walks through those decisions and writes a Gemini-ready prompt.
What I’d do this week
Take a brief you have already shipped. Make the same six-image set in 2.1 and in Pro, from the same real pack shot. Count the frames you would reject in each. That count, not a benchmark, is what should pick your default model. If you would rather have the set directed for you, this is what I do.
Sources
- Google DeepMind — Nano Banana 2.1 model card, 6 Oct 2026 — https://deepmind.google/models/model-cards/nano-banana-2-1/
- Google — Gemini API pricing (standard and batch tiers), read 2 Nov 2026 — https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/pricing
- Google — Gemini app, image generation overview (free vs Google AI plans, SynthID), read 2 Nov 2026 — https://gemini.google/overview/image-generation/
- Google — Nano Banana 2 announcement — https://blog.google/innovation-and-ai/technology/ai/nano-banana-2/
- The Decoder — Google’s new image model Nano Banana 2.1…, 6 Oct 2026 — https://the-decoder.com/googles-new-image-model-nano-banana-2-1-generates-better-images-for-less-money/