OPENAI DALL-E
PROS Collaborative workflow good text handling smart when interpreting feedback
CONS Limited free allowance reluctance to take inspiration from pop culture references
SCORE
PRICE
From free to $200 per month
from
chatgpt.com
D
ALL-E is accessed through the same interface as ChatGPT. The exact number of images you can generate is ambiguous, with ChatGPT explaining that free account users “typically get a limited number” of generations per month according to OpenAI’s policies. The number isn’t always fixed, and “may reset monthly or be subject to tiers. Paid users... often get more generation”.
We managed to generate three free images before we had to pay for an upgrade, which isn’t exactly generous. Moreover, it generated only a single image in response to each prompt, where Midjourney, Google ImageFX and Microsoft Designer generated up to four (and on one occasion, with Designer, seven). ChatGPT Plus, which is the cheapest paid tier, costs $20 a month plus VAT and offers “extended limits” on image generation, although again the cap isn’t revealed. There’s no option for annual billing. You can switch between ChatGPT’s various models, but it recommends using GPT-4o as it provides better image quality, sharper details and improved text rendering. Other models, such as GPT-4-turbo, are optimised for speed and cost.