Compare · Last checked October 20, 2026
FLUX vs Krea: buying the model or buying the suite
Black Forest Labs makes the FLUX image models and sells them per image through a browser Playground, an API and licensed open weights, at $0.01 per credit with no subscription. Krea is a creative suite on monthly plans that runs its own Krea models and lists FLUX among many third party image and video models. Choose FLUX when you build on the models directly or pay only for what you generate. Choose Krea when you want one app with many models, a live canvas, upscaling and a daily free allowance.
We make ImageQuarry, which is not one of these two products. We compared FLUX and Krea using their own public pages, checked October 20, 2026.
Last updated October 20, 2026
At a glance
| FLUX | Krea | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | The maker of the FLUX models, with a browser Playground, an API and open weights | A creative suite running Krea models and many third party image and video models |
| How you pay | Per image, with credits at $0.01 each and no subscription plans | Monthly plans from Basic at $9 for 5,000 compute units, plus a Free plan with 100 units a day |
| Editing with words | FLUX 3 Image takes the change as an instruction and can target one element with a bounding box | "Edit by typing", plus an Agent that plans, creates and refines with you |
| References | Up to ten references with FLUX 3 Image | LoRA training on up to 50 images |
| Where it runs | Browser Playground, REST API, open weights and an MCP server | Web app, public API, plugins such as After Effects, and Claude and ChatGPT connectors |
FLUX and Krea: the differences that matter
One model family or a catalog of many
Black Forest Labs sells its own models: FLUX 3 Image, the smaller Klein, the FLUX.2 line and the earlier Kontext editing models. Krea runs its in-house Krea models and also lists Flux 2, Flux 3 Image and Flux Kontext among outside options such as GPT Image 2.5, Ideogram and Nano Banana, so a Krea plan reaches FLUX output too.
Paying per image or per month
FLUX pricing is usage based: one credit is $0.01, a 1K FLUX 3 Image picture costs $0.048 and the Klein model $0.009, as of October 2026 on bfl.ai. Krea charges monthly plans in compute units, from Basic at $9 for 5,000 units to Max at $70 for 40,000, and plan units do not roll over.
Building on an API
Black Forest Labs charges the same price in the API and the Playground and licenses open weights for self hosting, from a Builder tier upward. Krea also offers a public API, but its plans are organized around the web app.
Canvas, video and upscaling
Krea adds a real-time canvas that renders as you draw, a node editor, video models from several labs and paid upscalers that reach 22K output. Black Forest Labs lists FLUX 3 Video, and its hosted image tools cover fill, outpainting, erase, virtual try on and upscalers.
Commercial terms
The BFL developer terms say you own API output and may use it for personal or commercial purposes. Krea says its paid plans include a commercial license; its FAQ does not name the Free plan.
FLUX vs Krea, side by side
Checked against each vendor's public pages on October 20, 2026. "Not stated" means the pages we read do not say; it is not a claim that the feature is missing.
| Topic | FLUX | Krea |
|---|---|---|
| Text to image | Yes: FLUX 3 Image, FLUX.2 and Kontext models | Yes: Krea models plus outside models including Flux, GPT Image 2.5 and Nano Banana |
| Instruction editing | Yes: write the change as an instruction; bounding boxes for one element | Yes: "Edit by typing"; the Agent refines with you |
| Reference images | Up to ten references (FLUX 3 Image) | LoRA training with up to 50 images |
| Upscaling | Hosted upscalers listed | Up to 2K on Free; paid upscalers up to 22K |
| Video | FLUX 3 Video; BFL says clips up to 20 seconds with native audio | Video models from Seedance, Kling, Veo, Runway and others |
| Entry price | Pay per image at $0.01 per credit | Free plan with 100 units a day; Basic $9 a month |
| Platforms | Playground, API, open weights, MCP | Web app, API, plugins, Claude and ChatGPT connectors |
As of 2026-10-20
Sources: FLUX homepage; FLUX llms.txt; FLUX flux3_image_overview.md; FLUX kontext_overview.md; FLUX pricing.md; FLUX pricing; FLUX developer terms of service; Krea homepage; Krea pricing; Krea api
Pricing
Prices as of October 2026, from each vendor's own pages. Credits are not comparable across products, because each vendor defines its own credit. Check the vendor for current pricing.
| Product | Plan | Price | Includes |
|---|---|---|---|
| FLUX | API and Playground | 1 credit = $0.01 per pay per image | Same price for API and Playground; no subscriptions |
| FLUX | FLUX 3 Image | $0.048 at 1K, $0.10 at 2K, $0.607 at 4K per image | FLUX 3 Image Klein from $0.008 |
| FLUX | FLUX.2 [pro] | $0.03 first megapixel, $0.015 each additional per image | FLUX.1 Kontext [pro] $0.04 per image |
| FLUX | Self hosted licenses | Purchase or Contact Sales | Builder: 10K images a month |
| Krea | Free | $0 | 100 units a day |
| Krea | Basic | $9 per month, billed monthly | 5,000 compute units |
| Krea | Pro | $35 per month, billed monthly | 20,000 compute units |
| Krea | Max | $70 per month, billed monthly | 40,000 compute units |
| Krea | Business | $200 per month, billed monthly | 80,000 compute units, up to 50 members |
| Krea | Basic, Pro, Max (annual) | $5.25, $21, $63 per month, billed annually | Krea shows "Save 40% with annual" |
Prices as of 2026-10
About each product
FLUX
Black Forest Labs makes the FLUX image models. Its current lead model, FLUX 3, is described as one multimodal model for image, video, audio and action prediction, and the image line includes FLUX 3 Image, the smaller Klein, the FLUX.2 family and the earlier Kontext editing models. You can try them in a browser Playground, call them through a REST API or license open weights to host yourself. Pricing is per image at $0.01 per credit with no subscription, and the developer terms give you ownership of API output.
Krea
Krea is a creative suite for images and video. It runs its own Krea 3 model and a long list of outside image models, plus video, 3D and lip sync models, an Enhancer upscaler, a live canvas, a node editor and an Agent that plans and iterates across models. Plans run from a Free tier with 100 units a day to Basic at $9, Pro at $35, Max at $70 and Business at $200 a month, as of October 2026, with yearly billing up to 40% lower. Paid plans include a commercial license.
Which one fits your work
Choose FLUX when
- You build a product or workflow on an image API and want per image pricing
- You want to license open weights and host the model yourself
- You want instruction edits and up to ten references from one model family
- You prefer paying only for what you generate
Choose Krea when
- You want image and video models from many labs in one app
- You like a live canvas that updates as you draw
- You want a daily allowance to try models before paying
- You need upscaling far beyond 4K
Where ImageQuarry fits
Next to these two, ImageQuarry is a single conversational workspace: you describe an image or upload one, ask for a change in words, and every earlier version stays in your project. It offers four models by name, Nano Banana 2.1 as the default, Nano Banana Pro, GPT Image 2.5 Flare and GPT Image 2.5 Sunburst, on paid Starter and Pro plans.
Questions about FLUX vs Krea
Can I use FLUX models inside Krea?
Yes. Krea lists Flux 2, Flux 3 Image and Flux Kontext among the outside image models in its app, alongside its own Krea models, as of October 2026.
Is FLUX cheaper than a Krea plan?
It depends on volume. Black Forest Labs charges per image, for example $0.048 for a 1K FLUX 3 Image picture, while Krea charges a monthly plan in compute units. Compare your own monthly volume against both price lists.
Does Krea have an API like FLUX?
Yes. Krea offers a public API for generating images and video and enhancing media. Black Forest Labs offers a REST API, the browser Playground and open weights.
Which one edits images from a written instruction?
Both. FLUX 3 Image takes a written instruction and can limit the change to one element with a bounding box. Krea lets you edit by typing and through its Agent.
Sources
Every competitor fact on this page comes from the vendor's own pages, checked on the date shown. Recheck them before you buy.
Checked October 20, 2026
Create an image. Edit it with words. Keep refining.
Pick the model or the suite, then test both
Run the same prompt and the same edit in each, and keep the one whose pricing fits how often you create.
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