DALL-E
Stable Diffusion
Pricing
PricingPaid
PricingOpen Source
Free Plan
Free Plan
Free Plan
Side-by-side comparison based on pricing, features, and community data.
DALL-E and Stable Diffusion are both AI design tools. DALL-E is Paid; Stable Diffusion is Open Source. DALL-E suits teams prioritizing ease-of-use and conversational iteration without setup friction; Stable Diffusion targets developers and power users who need cost-free commercial deployment and technical control.
DALL-E suits teams prioritizing ease-of-use and conversational iteration without setup friction; Stable Diffusion targets developers and power users who need cost-free commercial deployment and technical control. DALL-E wins on prompt understanding and ChatGPT integration for non-technical creative professionals willing to pay per image. Stable Diffusion wins for studios building proprietary workflows, fine-tuning models, or operating at volume where per-image fees become prohibitive. Choose DALL-E for speed-to-first-result; choose Stable Diffusion for long-term cost savings and customization depth.
Pick DALL-E if you're a marketer or designer who values natural conversation-based refinement and wants to avoid technical setup.
Pick Stable Diffusion if you're a developer or studio needing unlimited free generations, commercial rights, and control over model fine-tuning.
| Feature | DALL-E | Stable Diffusion |
|---|---|---|
| Cost per image | $0.04 (pay-per-use) | Free (open-source) |
| Iterative refinement | Native via ChatGPT conversation | Manual re-prompting required |
| Deployment | Web/API only | Local + Web + API |
| Commercial rights | Requires Plus subscription | Included free |
| Technical setup required | None | Moderate-to-high |
| Model customization | — | LoRA, fine-tuning, embeddings |
| Prompt understanding | Excellent with nuance | Good, prompt-engineering dependent |
Synthesized by AI from verified tool data · cached per pair
$0.04 per standard resolution image, $0.08 for HD
50 generations per day, commercial usage rights, ChatGPT access
Unlimited local generations, no API fees
Pay-per-generation model; starting around $0.01-0.05 per image depending on resolution
