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Overview

Nano Banana 2.1 is an image generation model Google released on October 6, 2026. Its model ID is gemini-nano-banana-2.1, and it launched as generally available (GA). It is an upgrade to Nano Banana 2 (gemini-3.1-flash-image): it keeps Flash-level speed while improving image quality, in-image text rendering and multi-turn editing consistency, and it fixes the tiling artifacts of the previous version. Google recommends 2.1 for all new projects.
🆕 Released October 6, 2026: Available on APIYI now, with both per-request billing ($0.05 per request, same price for 1K / 2K / 4K) and token-based billing ($0.66 input / $13.2 output per 1M tokens). Nano Banana 2 remains available at the same price, and Google has not announced a shutdown date for it.
All image APIs are synchronous — there is no task ID to poll, and if your client disconnects the result is lost while the request is still billed. Set a generous timeout for this model; see Image API Essentials & Best Practices.

Text-to-Image API

Generate images from a text prompt, with an interactive Playground.

Image Editing API

Upload images plus an instruction to get an edited result, with an interactive Playground.

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Let an AI Agent Integrate It for You

If you build with Codex, Claude Code or Cursor, copy the prompt below into it. It first fetches the plain-text version of this page (append .md to any docs URL) and then writes code for your stack. The most common pitfalls — timeouts, defensive parts parsing, upload compression and resolution parameters — are already spelled out as requirements.

Have a coding agent integrate or debug Nano Banana 2.1 text-to-image and image editing. Copy and paste it into Codex, Claude Code, Cursor, etc.

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Key Features

Better image quality

Higher visual quality than Nano Banana 2, with the previous version’s tiling artifacts fixed

More accurate text

Clearer in-image text with fewer typos — good for posters, marketing assets and infographics

Steadier multi-turn edits

Characters and scenes stay more consistent across conversational edits

Three thinking levels

minimal / medium / high, default medium — one more level than the previous version

Up to 4K output

1K / 2K / 4K; with per-request billing, 4K costs the same as 1K

14 aspect ratios

Includes the extra-tall and extra-wide 1:4, 4:1, 1:8 and 8:1; Google says wide formats look better at higher resolutions

Multi-reference fusion

Up to 10 object references + 4 character references + 3 style references

Google Search grounding

Attach the googleSearch tool for images that need live information, such as weather cards or market charts

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How It Differs from Nano Banana 2

Which one to use:
  • New projects → Nano Banana 2.1: better quality, and cheaper per request
  • Already on Nano Banana 2 → switch by changing the model name; if your code uses the 512 tier, change it to 1K first
  • Need 512px thumbnails → stay on Nano Banana 2, or use Nano Banana 2 Lite
  • Want the highest quality → Nano Banana Pro ($0.09 per request)

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Pricing

Choosing a billing mode: Nano Banana 2.1 supports two billing modes, chosen with the “Billing model” setting when you create a token:
  • Pay-as-you-go or Pay-as-you-go Priority → token-based billing
  • Pay-per-request or Pay-per-request Priority → per-request billing
  • ⚠️ Do not choose Hybrid billing

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Per-request billing

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Token-based billing

Model prices are aligned with the official website and may change with it; the table above is for reference only — the Model Pricing tab in the top navigation is authoritative: Model Pricing.

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Token-based billing: real charges from production

Nano Banana 2.1 thinks before generating by default (default level: medium). Besides the image tokens, each image produces roughly 400–1300 thinking and other output tokens, billed together with the image at $13.2 / 1M. So the cost per image with token-based billing is not fixed — it varies. The table below is taken from real token-billed requests on 2026-10-07; amounts are the actual charges in the console (resolution inferred from output tokens): Distribution of that day’s 60 token-billed requests:
Which billing mode to choose:
  • 1K / 2K → token-based: usually $0.02–$0.04 per image, below the $0.05 per-request price
  • 4K → per-request: a fixed $0.05, while token-based costs $0.06 or more
  • Many reference images in one request (say 10+): input tokens push the token-based cost close to or above $0.05, so use per-request for these too
Combined with our top-up bonus, your actual cost is lower still.
Why image tokens alone underestimate the cost: thoughtsTokenCount in usageMetadata is not included in candidatesTokenCount, but it is counted as output tokens in your APIYI logs and billed. Estimating from 1120 / 1680 / 3780 tokens underestimates the cost by 20%–40%. Reconcile against the charges in your console logs.

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Parameters That Affect Your Bill

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thinkingLevel: default is medium, and high costs only a little more

Unlike Nano Banana 2 (default minimal, where high costs 54% more), 2.1 already thinks by default, and high just thinks a bit longer. Turn it on freely when in-image text layout or chart proportions must be exact.

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Google Search grounding: billed per search query

For images that need live information (weather cards, market charts, posters for recent events), attach the googleSearch tool:
In our tests grounding triggered 3 out of 3 times, and the model ran 2 search queries per request on its own. Each query costs $0.014 ($14 per 1,000). The model decides how many queries to run, and you can’t cap it in advance, so budget for 2–3 queries per request.
Search fees apply on top of per-request billing too: $0.05 per request covers the image only; with googleSearch attached, each search query is added on top.

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Groups

Nano Banana 2.1 is available in two groups on APIYI; switch between them in your token settings: Recommended token billing mode: choose Pay-as-you-go Priority — it works with token-based billing for Nano Banana 2 / 2.1 and per-request billing for Nano Banana Pro, so one token covers the whole family. Put Default as the primary group and NB-Enterprise as the fallback; if the primary group returns 429, requests automatically fall back and keep generating.

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Resolutions and Aspect Ratios

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Output resolution

512 is not supported: "imageSize": "512" returns 400 Image size 512 is not supported for this model (not billed). Change it when migrating from Nano Banana 2.

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Supported aspect ratios (14)

1:1, 1:4, 4:1, 1:8, 8:1, 2:3, 3:2, 3:4, 4:3, 4:5, 5:4, 9:16, 16:9, 21:9 If you omit aspectRatio, the model picks a ratio based on the content: in our tests, scene prompts mostly came out 16:9 and poster prompts 2:3 or 3:4. Pass it explicitly if you need a fixed ratio.

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Measured output sizes (pixels)

Measured on 2026-10-07; ”—” means not yet measured. Note that 8:1 at 1K is 2928×352, different from Nano Banana 2’s 3072×384, so don’t reuse Nano Banana 2’s size table for front-end layout.

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FAQ

No. 2.1 is a separate model ID, gemini-nano-banana-2.1, with better quality, text rendering and multi-turn consistency, and a different pricing structure (more expensive input, cheaper image output, more tokens per 4K image). Both models are available on APIYI and don’t affect each other.
  1. Change the model name from gemini-3.1-flash-image (or -preview) to gemini-nano-banana-2.1
  2. If you use "imageSize": "512", change it to 1K
  3. If you estimate cost from tokens, re-check it against the “what one image actually costs” table above
The request format, response structure, and multi-image and multi-turn editing all stay the same.
As of October 7, 2026, Google has not announced a shutdown date for gemini-3.1-flash-image; it only lists 2.1 as the recommended replacement. Nano Banana 2 on APIYI remains available at the same price. We will notify you in advance if that changes.
Because 2.1 thinks by default, each image adds roughly 400–1300 thinking and other output tokens, billed at the output rate together with the image. You can see them in thoughtsTokenCount. If you mostly generate 4K, per-request billing ($0.05) is the better deal.
There is no concurrency limit — send concurrent requests freely; they don’t queue or block each other. What matters is the timeout: 4K or peak-time requests can take a while (most 4K requests in our tests took 30–50 seconds, a few over 2 minutes), so set the client timeout to 360 seconds. If you hit occasional 429s, add NB-Enterprise as your token’s fallback group.
Every output image carries an invisible SynthID watermark (Google’s marker for AI-generated content). It isn’t visible and doesn’t affect use.