Kie.ai vs Elyumfor Nano Banana 2
Elyum charges $0.03 only when you keep a 1K take; Kie.ai bills about $0.04 to $0.06 per successful image and has no kill refund.
Nano Banana 2 is Google's Gemini 3.1 Flash Image model, built to hold faces, logos, and product geometry across a prompt change or an edit pass. That is the job most catalog and ad work actually is: the same SKU, a new three-quarter, the label still readable. On Elyum the Nano Banana 2 page lists text-to-image and image editing, eleven aspect ratios, and 1K, 2K, or 4K output. Flash Image is also the one that puts real words on signs and diagrams instead of decorative letter-shapes.
The model does not change between Kie.ai and Elyum. The checkout does. Kie.ai is a reseller API with one prepaid wallet, about $0.04 per 1K image and about $0.06 per 2K, no listed monthly plans, and no published keep-or-kill. Failed tasks are unpaid. Elyum shows a free preview, then charges only on KEEP: 3 credits ($0.03) at 1K, 4.8 ($0.04) at 2K, 6.4 ($0.06) at 4K, as listed on the pricing page. Ultra ($69/mo) is fair-use unlimited on this model. Kie.ai top-ups start at $5 and credits do not expire.
Give Kie.ai the API-only case. One key, dozens of vendors, and a 1K price that reviews put at half of Google's official ~$0.08. Elyum is a studio first: web studio, the MCP docs, and REST, one balance across 50+ models, no watermark on kept files. We do not have a timeline editor, stock footage, talking-head avatars, a mobile app, team seats, or a community feed. If you need chat LLMs on the same key as Nano Banana 2, that is Kie.ai. If you need to kill six angles and pay for two, use Elyum.
Nano Banana 2 on Kie.ai
Kie.ai offers Google Nano Banana 2 on its aggregator API (async createTask plus a browser Playground) and prices it at about $0.04 per 1K image and about $0.06 per 2K, versus about $0.08 and $0.12 on the official Google card, per a Bitdoze review. There are no subscription plans listed. You fund a prepaid wallet from $5; larger top-ups may add bonus credits. Kie.ai's own pricing page returned 403 to automated fetch, so those dollar figures come from third-party write-ups, not a live rate table. 4K output is not published.
A failed task is not charged (Kie.ai FAQ, as cited in reviews). A finished image you dislike still spends the wallet; there is no published kill refund. Signup is reported at about 80 free test credits, then production use needs a top-up. Watermark, commercial-use terms, and resolution caps are not published. Kie.ai is the official site. For the catalog-level comparison see the Kie.ai alternative page. Reviews also cite a roughly 2.5/5 Trustpilot score and credits vanishing after glitches; that is wallet risk, not a Nano Banana 2 quality claim.
Nano Banana 2 on Elyum
Nano Banana 2 on Elyum is 3 credits per kept 1K render ($0.03), 4.5 credits at 2K ($0.04), and 6 credits at 4K ($0.06). Text-to-image and image editing sit in the same image studio, eleven aspect ratios. Every render comes back as a free preview. KEEP is the only charge. KILL is a full refund, automatic. Failed generations are never billed. Free includes up to 150 credits once (our algorithm may grant them), no card, and one kill a month; paid plans kill freely. Plus $9/mo, Pro $29/mo, Ultra $69/mo. Ultra is fair-use unlimited on this model.
Kept takes download full quality, no watermark, commercial use included. The same credit balance covers the rest of the model catalog. You can also call the studio from Claude, ChatGPT, or Cursor via the REST API docs. If you need the heavier Google stills tier, see the Nano Banana Pro page. There is a separate Kie.ai vs Elyum for Nano Banana Pro write-up.
What a Nano Banana 2 take costs
| Scenario | Kie.ai | Elyum |
|---|---|---|
| One 1K render you keep | ~$0.04 (Bitdoze; vs ~$0.08 official). 2K ~$0.06. 4K not published. | 3 credits ($0.03) at 1K; 4.5 credits ($0.04) at 2K; 6 credits ($0.06) at 4K |
| Ten 1K renders, keep three | 10 successful images x ~$0.04 = ~$0.40. No kill refund on the seven you drop. | 3 credits ($0.03). Seven kills refund in full (Free: 1 kill/mo). |
| A failed generation | Not charged (Kie.ai FAQ, cited by reviews). | Never charged. No KEEP step, so no credits leave the balance. |
| Monthly plan needed to access the model | None listed. Prepaid wallet, $5 minimum top-up. | No. Free plan: up to 150 credits once (our algorithm may grant them), no card. Previews stay free. |
| Watermark on the file | Not published. | None on kept downloads. Commercial use included. |
| Preview of a take you then drop | Not published. Successful images are billed; no keep-or-kill. | Preview $0. KILL refunds in full (Free: one kill a month). |
Elyum: 1 credit = $0.01, charged only when you keep a take. Kie.ai figures from its own pricing pages and independent reviews, verified 2026-09-07; sources at the end. Full rate card on the Nano Banana 2 page.
Where the two differ
Kie.ai is a prepaid credit wallet at a third-party-reported $0.005 per credit, with Nano Banana 2 sold as about $0.04 (1K) and $0.06 (2K). Elyum is 1 credit = $0.01; this model is 3.2 / 4.8 / 6 credits per kept take. Kie.ai has no listed monthly plans. Elyum has Free, Plus $9, Pro $29, Ultra $69.
Both skip the charge on a failed task. Kie.ai has no published keep-or-kill, so a successful but unusable still spends the wallet. Reviews also describe credits disappearing in glitches with slow support. On Elyum a KILL is a full automatic refund; Free meters kills at one per month, paid plans kill freely.
Elyum publishes 1K, 2K, and 4K for Nano Banana 2. Kie.ai reviews quote 1K and 2K prices; max resolution is not published. Do not assume 4K exists on Kie.ai.
Kie.ai's core product is API-first (createTask, query-task, webhooks) plus a Playground. Elyum is a web studio with MCP and REST. Elyum has no timeline editor, mobile app, or team seats.
Elyum kept files have no watermark and include commercial use. Kie.ai watermark and commercial-use terms are not published.
Kie.ai wraps many vendors (including chat LLMs) behind one key, and Midjourney was pulled after the rightsholder objected. Elyum is one studio and one balance across 50+ models we list, not a reseller of chat APIs. Video reliability complaints on Kie.ai (Sora 2) do not apply to this stills model, but they describe the host.
Pick Kie.ai when
- API-first: one createTask key and one wallet across image, video, music, and chat models, with webhooks.
- Prepaid from $5, credits do not expire, and failed tasks are not charged.
- 1K Nano Banana 2 is about $0.04 vs about $0.08 on Google's official card, per Bitdoze.
- No monthly plan required. Top up when you need it.
Pick Elyum when
- Free preview, then KEEP at 3 credits ($0.03) for 1K or KILL for a full refund.
- Cheaper kept 1K and 2K than Kie.ai's reviewed ~$0.04 and ~$0.06, plus a published 4K at $0.06.
- Ultra ($69/mo) is fair-use unlimited on this model; Free starts at up to 150 credits (our algorithm may grant them), no card.
- Kept files: no watermark, commercial use, studio plus MCP and REST on one balance.
Nano Banana 2 in three styles, rendered on Elyum
Getting the most out of Nano Banana 2
- Name the lock: same aluminum bottle, same logo kerning, camera orbits 30 degrees to the right, three-quarter, 85mm. Nano Banana 2 holds product geometry when you say what must not change.
- Put on-image copy in quotation marks (label text COLD BREW 12oz), not some words on the can. Flash Image reads literal strings; vague text here turns into letter-like noise.
- For edits, attach the still and split the prompt: KEEP identity, lighting, and crop; CHANGE only the background or the hand. One change per pass beats a rewrite of the whole frame.
- Set the aspect ratio before you chase style. A 1:1 SKU and a 9:16 story ad are different compositions; the model will squeeze a 4:5 product into 16:9 if you do not call the frame.
- Avoid stacking several art styles and two cameras in one prompt. Pick one lens, one light (softbox, noon, tungsten), one surface. Consistency is the model's strength; competing styles fight it.
- People: list the durable bits (glasses, scar, hair part) or attach a face reference. Same person, new wardrobe works. Make them look professional drifts the face.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a Nano Banana 2 image cost on Elyum vs Kie.ai?
Is Nano Banana 2 the same model on both?
What happens to a bad Nano Banana 2 take?
Do I need a subscription to use Nano Banana 2 on Elyum?
Does Kie.ai watermark Nano Banana 2 files?
Can I call Nano Banana 2 from an API on both?
- Kie.ai Review 2026: One Cheap API for Nano Banana, Veo & Suno (accessed 2026-09-07)
- Kie AI Review 2026: Is This Cheap Multi-Model API Actually Worth The Risk? - Aisofting (accessed 2026-09-07)
- Kie AI Review (2026): Cheap AI APIs Come With a Catch - Ai Insights News (accessed 2026-09-07)
- Kie.ai Video Generation Guide: Veo 3.1, Kling 3.0 & Seedance API (accessed 2026-09-07)
- Seedance 2.5 Pricing: What We Know (2026) (accessed 2026-09-07)
- Wan3.0 API product page (accessed 2026-09-07)
- Kling 3.0 docs (accessed 2026-09-07)
- The Most Affordable Veo 3 AI API by Kie.ai (accessed 2026-09-07)
- What Is Hailuo H3? MiniMax Video Model Guide (accessed 2026-09-07)
- SaaSHub comparison: Veo 3 Prompt vs Kie.ai Veo 3 AI API (accessed 2026-09-07)
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Create everything. Keep the best.
Nano Banana 2 is a AI image generator you can preview free on Elyum. Keep the takes you love, kill the rest for a full refund.