ByteDance's Seedream 5 comes in two versions that most hosts sell side by side, and both are among the cheapest image models you can buy. Seedream 5 Pro costs $0.045 per 1K image on Replicate, 5 Runway API credits ($0.05), about $0.058 on Krea's Pro plan at 1.5K, a tentative $0.0675 on fal, and 7 credits on 8frame (about $0.13 on the $19 Starter plan, $0.07 at the top-up rate). At 2K it roughly doubles everywhere. Seedream 5 Lite is $0.035 on Replicate and fal, 4 Runway credits, about $0.045 on Krea Pro, and 6 credits on 8frame (about $0.11 on Starter). Every number is from the vendor's own page, checked 2026-10-21.
Pro is priced by resolution, Lite is not
Every host that sells Seedream 5 Pro charges for output size. Replicate bills "1K" at $0.045 and "2K" at $0.09; Runway's API bills 5 credits at 1K and 9 at 2K; fal bills by pixel area, $0.0675 "for an area up to and including 1536 x 1536 pixels" and $0.135 above that "and up to 2048 x 2048". On 8frame Pro is 7 credits at 1K and 13 at 2K. So a 2K Pro image costs about twice a 1K one wherever you run it.
Lite is the opposite: a single price per image on every host. Replicate and fal both charge $0.035, Runway's API "4 credits per image, any resolution", and 8frame a flat 6 credits. Lite also generates larger by default: fal describes it as "up to 3072x3072 pixels" with a minimum of about 3.7 megapixels, and on 8frame its size options are 2K and 3K. If you need a large image and Lite's look suits the job, it is the cheaper way to get pixels.
A note on fal's Pro price. fal labels its Seedream 5 Pro rate "Tentative pricing" and adds "Final pricing is not yet confirmed." Treat the fal row as provisional.
The price table
| Host | Vendor's price, as written | Pro, 1K | Pro, 2K | Lite | What else the page says |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Replicate (bytedance/seedream-5-pro, bytedance/seedream-5-lite) |
Pro $0.045 (1K), $0.09 (2K) per output image; Lite $0.035 | $0.045 | $0.09 | $0.035 | Pro layer decomposition also listed, $0.0225 and $0.045 per output image |
fal (bytedance/seedream/v5/pro, .../v5/lite) |
Pro "$0.0675 per output image" up to 1536 x 1536, "$0.135" up to 2048 x 2048; Lite "$0.035 per image" | $0.0675 (tentative) | $0.135 (tentative) | $0.035 | Lite "up to 6 separate generations per API call" |
Runway API (seedream5_pro, seedream5_lite) |
Pro "5 credits per 1K image, 9 credits per 2K image"; Lite "4 credits per image, any resolution"; "$0.01 per credit" | $0.05 | $0.09 | $0.04 | Credits bought in the developer portal |
| Krea | Pro plan "$35" a month or "$21/month" yearly, 20,000 units; "771 images" of Seedream 5 Lite, "~600 images" of Seedream 5 Pro at 1.5K | About $0.058 monthly, $0.035 yearly (at 1.5K) | Not listed | About $0.045 monthly, $0.027 yearly | Basic, Pro and Max units "do not roll over" |
| 8frame | Pro 7 credits (1K), 13 (2K); Lite 6 credits | $0.13 Starter, $0.11 Creator, $0.07 top-up | $0.25, $0.21, $0.13 | $0.11, $0.10, $0.06 | Up to 14 reference images, no surcharge |
We have not compared outputs across hosts; this page compares prices and published options only.
How the dollar column was computed
- Replicate, fal: the per-image price is on the page.
- Runway API: credits x $0.01.
- Krea: Krea prints the image count per plan, not a unit price. Pro: $35 / 771 = $0.045 for Lite and $35 / 600 = $0.058 for Pro at 1.5K; billed yearly $21 / 771 = $0.027 and $21 / 600 = $0.035.
- 8frame: $19 / 1,000 credits = $0.019 per credit; x 7 = $0.13, x 13 = $0.25, x 6 = $0.11. Creator: $49 / 3,000 = $0.0163; x 7 = $0.11, x 13 = $0.21, x 6 = $0.10. Top-up packs are $0.01 a credit.
Where 8frame sits
8frame is the dearest row here: Seedream 5 Pro at 7 credits is $0.07 even at the top-up rate, against $0.045 on Replicate, which is also where 8frame runs it. The Seedream node opens on Seedream 5 Pro at 1K (7 credits); the picker calls Lite "5 Lite" (6 credits, 2K or 3K) and also keeps Seedream 4 (5 credits) and a Seedream 5 Pro Layerize mode that splits one image into editable layers (78 credits at 1K, charged as the provider's worst case). Up to 14 reference images go in without changing the price, the most of any image model on 8frame. A failed generation is refunded automatically.
What the credits buy is the board: a Seedream 5 Pro frame at 7 credits next to a Nano Banana 2 frame at 11 and a FLUX.2 [pro] frame at 5, from one balance, so you compare models on your own prompt instead of on a price list. For that comparison, start with Nano Banana 2 vs Seedream 5 and how to use Seedream 5; every image model's 8frame price is in AI image generator price per image.
Which host for which job
- Lowest price per image through an API: Replicate or fal for Lite at $0.035; Replicate for Pro at $0.045 (1K).
- Already paying for Runway's API: 5 credits for Pro at 1K, 4 for Lite.
- Already on a Krea plan: Lite works out to about $0.027 per image billed yearly.
- Many references or side-by-side tests against other models: 8frame, 14 references at no surcharge, 7 credits per Pro image.
FAQ
How much does Seedream 5 cost per image?
Seedream 5 Pro: $0.045 at 1K and $0.09 at 2K on Replicate, $0.05 and $0.09 on Runway's API, a tentative $0.0675 and $0.135 on fal, and 7 and 13 credits on 8frame. Seedream 5 Lite: $0.035 on Replicate and fal, $0.04 on Runway's API, 6 credits on 8frame.
What is the difference between Seedream 5 Pro and Lite in price?
Lite is one flat price per image at any size, Pro is priced by resolution. At 1K, Pro costs more than Lite on every host (Replicate $0.045 against $0.035, fal $0.0675 against $0.035); at 2K the gap widens (Replicate $0.09 against $0.035). On 8frame Pro is 7 or 13 credits and Lite 6.
Where is Seedream 5 cheapest?
Per image at list price, Replicate and fal for Lite ($0.035) and Replicate for Pro at 1K ($0.045). On a subscription, Krea's yearly Pro plan works out to about $0.027 per Lite image by Krea's own count. These are prices, not output comparisons.
Do reference images cost extra on Seedream 5?
On 8frame, no: up to 14 references at the same credit price. On other hosts, check the model page before a reference-heavy batch; the prices in the table are for the generated image.
Sources
- Replicate, bytedance/seedream-5-pro (billing tiers in the page's pricing data: 1K $0.045, 2K $0.09 per output image; layer-small $0.0225, layer-large $0.045): replicate.com/bytedance/seedream-5-pro, checked 2026-10-21
- Replicate, bytedance/seedream-5-lite ($0.035 per output image): replicate.com/bytedance/seedream-5-lite, checked 2026-10-21
- fal, Seedream 5.0 Pro text-to-image ("Tentative pricing is $0.0675 per output image for an area up to and including 1536 x 1536 pixels", "$0.135 per output image for an area above 1536 x 1536 and up to 2048 x 2048 pixels", "Final pricing is not yet confirmed"): fal.ai/models/bytedance/seedream/v5/pro/text-to-image, checked 2026-10-21
- fal, Seedream 5 Lite text-to-image ("Your request will cost $0.035 per image", "up to 3072x3072 pixels", "Total pixel count between 3.7MP and 9.43MP", "up to 6 separate generations per API call"): fal.ai/models/bytedance/seedream/v5/lite/text-to-image, checked 2026-10-21
- Runway API pricing (
seedream5_pro"5 credits per 1K image, 9 credits per 2K image",seedream5_lite"4 credits per image, any resolution", "$0.01 per credit"): docs.dev.runwayml.com/guides/pricing, checked 2026-10-21 - Krea pricing (Pro $35 a month or $21 a month yearly, 20,000 units a month; Seedream 5 Lite 192 / 771 / 1,542 images and Seedream 5 Pro "1.5K, no reference images" ~150 / ~600 / ~1,200 on Basic / Pro / Max; units do not roll over): krea.ai/pricing, checked 2026-10-21
- 8frame prices, defaults and limits: the 8frame app, checked 2026-10-21
On Seedream 5 the resolution decides more than the host: draft Pro at 1K, or use Lite when you need size at one flat price.
Try it without signing up: the 8frame canvas opens on a real board. The canvas is free and unlimited; generation is paid from $19/month.