Recraft image generator
By Yuvraj Singh·Founder, Leaxor·Reviewed
Recraft v4 is the design model. It is built for marketing and brand work rather than photorealism, and it makes composition decisions that look deliberate rather than generated.
The thing that makes it genuinely different is vector output — real SVG files with actual paths and layers, not a raster image saved with the wrong extension. No other model in this lineup does that.
At two credits an image it is one of the cheaper options here, which makes it a reasonable default for anything design-shaped.
Press Enter and we’ll carry your idea straight into the studio after sign-up.
Recraft image generator at a glance
- Made by
- Recraft
- Best at
- Illustration & vector
- Price
- 2 credits per image
- Styles
- 6 presets — Cinematic, Photoreal, 3D render, Anime, Illustration, Digital art
- Aspect ratios
- 9:16 (768x1344) · 1:1 (1024x1024) · 16:9 (1344x768) · 3:2 (1216x832)
How it works
- 1
Select Recraft v4
One of seven models in the prompt box, marked for illustration and vector work.
- 2
Describe the design, not the photograph
Recraft responds to design language — flat, geometric, editorial, minimal — far better than to camera language. Asking for lens types and depth of field is asking the wrong model.
- 3
Choose the aspect ratio for its destination
1:1 for icons and social, 16:9 for headers and thumbnails, 9:16 for stories. Vector output scales without loss, but composition still has to suit the frame.
- 4
Use it for the pieces you will reuse
Logos, icons, repeating graphic elements, channel branding. This is the model whose output survives being resized six months from now, which is what makes it worth choosing over a cheaper raster render.
What you can make with Recraft
Logos and icons that must scale
Real SVG output means one file works at favicon size and on a banner. Nothing else here does that.
How to make your videos look recognisably yoursA brand kit for a new channel
Icon, avatar and header in one visual language, generated as vectors you can recolour later.
How to name a YouTube channelFlat editorial illustration
Diagrams, spot illustrations, anything where design intent matters more than photorealism.
How to make a YouTube channel bannerRecraft vs Flux 2 Pro
Flux 2 Pro: 1 credit ($0.10) per image. Credits are $0.10 each, minimum purchase 50 ($5.00).
Flux 2 Pro is half the price and genuinely better at photorealism, so anything meant to look like a photograph belongs there rather than here. Recraft is a design model: composition, brand, flat illustration, and the only vector output in the lineup. Asking Recraft for a photoreal portrait spends two credits to get a worse result than the cheaper model gives you. The split is clean enough to be a rule: if the finished thing would have been photographed, use Flux; if it would have been drawn or laid out by a designer, use this.
Recraft vs Canva
Canva is a subscription with a full editor, templates and a team workflow around it — if you need to lay out a document or hand a brand kit to colleagues, that is a different product and a better fit. Here you pay two credits an image with nothing recurring, and you get a vector file rather than a design surface. We have not compared output quality and this page will not claim to.
CanvaWhen this is the right page
The only model here that outputs true vectors. If you need something that scales cleanly to a billboard or a favicon from the same file, Recraft v4 is the answer and nothing else in this lineup is. For photoreal images, Flux 2 Pro at one credit is both cheaper and better suited, and for text-heavy design Ideogram v3 renders words more reliably.
Made with Leaxor
Real output from the product. These are finished frames rather than a showcase for one specific model — a rendered example made with Recraft is still in production. Watch full sample videos.
Questions
What does Recraft cost per image here?
Two credits, which is $0.20 per image. Credits are $0.10 each with a minimum purchase of 50 ($5.00), so that is the smallest real first spend. Credits never expire and there is no subscription. It sits at the cheaper end of the seven models available.
Does it really produce vector files?
Recraft is the only model in this lineup that generates native vector output — real SVG with paths and structured layers rather than a traced raster. That is what makes it the right choice for logos, icons and anything that has to scale.
When should I use Recraft over Flux 2 Pro?
When the output is a design rather than a picture. Flux 2 Pro is photoreal and costs one credit; Recraft is built for composition, brand and vector work at two. Choosing between them is a question about what the image is for, not which is better.
Can I use Recraft output for a client's branding?
Yes — images and vectors you generate are yours to use commercially, including client work. As with any generated asset, running a trademark search before committing a mark to a brand is the sensible step, and that is a legal question rather than a licensing one.
What does vector output actually let me do?
Resize without loss, and edit the shapes afterwards. An SVG logo works at favicon size and on a banner from the same file, and the paths can be recoloured or rearranged in any vector editor. A raster image blown up to banner size goes soft, and enlarging it later means regenerating and accepting a slightly different result — which is exactly the problem when the asset is meant to be consistent.
Is Recraft good at photorealism?
No, and it is not trying to be. Asking it for a photorealistic portrait produces something competent and slightly stylised, because the model is tuned for design rather than photography. Flux 2 Pro costs one credit and does that job properly. Picking Recraft for photoreal work is spending two credits to get a worse result than the cheaper model gives you.
Sources
How to make one
- How to make your videos look recognisably yours
- How to make a YouTube channel banner
- How to name a YouTube channel
Ready to make one?
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