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OpenAI

GPT Image 1.5 (high)

GPT Image 1.5 (high) is OpenAI's image generation model served at its high-quality rendering setting, billed and accessed through OpenAI's image API.

Input from
$5.00 / 1M tokens
on DigitalOcean · 1 provider
Output from
$10.00 / 1M tokens
on DigitalOcean
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API Pricing

ProviderInput / 1MOutput / 1MCached / 1M
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DigitalOcean
$5.00$10.00$1.00

Prices updated daily. Last check: Oct 29, 2026

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GPT Image 1.5 (high) pricing by provider

Input, output, and batch rates, plus alternatives, for one provider at a time.

Model Details

General

Creator
OpenAI
Modalities
Text

Capabilities

Strengths & Limitations

Strengths

  • Served at OpenAI's high quality setting, which allocates more generation compute per image than the lower settings of the same model
  • Available through OpenAI's standard image API, so it fits existing OpenAI SDK and authentication setups without a separate integration
  • Part of the GPT Image 1.5 family, allowing an application to switch quality tiers at request time without changing models
  • Per-image billing makes cost forecasting straightforward for creative pipelines with known output volumes
  • Suited to final-render work where visual fidelity matters more than generation speed
  • Quality setting is a request parameter, so draft and final renders can share one prompt and one code path

Limitations

  • Proprietary API model — weights are not distributed for self-hosting
  • The high quality setting generally costs more per image and takes longer to generate than lower settings of the same model
  • Available only from OpenAI (and resellers routing to it), so there is no multi-vendor price competition for the identical endpoint
  • Image generation models are not directly comparable to text models on tokens or context, making cross-category benchmarking awkward
  • We do not track detailed specifications such as maximum resolution, editing support, or safety filter behavior for this entry

Key Features

•Image generation from text prompts
•High quality rendering tier within the GPT Image 1.5 family
•Quality selectable per request across the model's tiers
•Per-image pricing model rather than per-token
•Accessible via OpenAI's image generation API endpoint
•Compatible with OpenAI client SDKs and API keys
•Positioned for final-render creative output rather than rapid ideation sweeps

About GPT Image 1.5 (high)

GPT Image 1.5 (high) is an image generation model from OpenAI, listed in our catalog as a distinct entry because OpenAI exposes image generation at selectable quality settings. The "high" designation refers to the rendering quality tier requested at generation time rather than a separate set of model weights — the same GPT Image 1.5 model family also appears at lower quality settings, which trade visual fidelity and detail for faster generation and lower per-image cost. Unlike chat models, this entry is judged on image output rather than token throughput or context window. The relevant dimensions are prompt adherence, text rendering inside images, output resolution and aspect ratio options, and generation latency. The high setting typically devotes more compute per image, which is the usual lever for cleaner detail, more stable composition, and better legibility of rendered text and fine structures. Billing for image models is generally per image (and varies with resolution and quality tier) rather than per million tokens, so comparisons against text models are not apples to apples. In practice, teams reach for the high setting when the generated image is the deliverable — marketing creative, product mockups, editorial illustration, or anything that will be viewed at full size — and drop to a lower quality setting for thumbnails, drafts, ideation sweeps, or any workflow where many candidates are generated and most are discarded. We do not track the full specification sheet for this entry; for authoritative details on supported sizes, input modalities, and editing endpoints, consult OpenAI's image API documentation.

Common Use Cases

GPT Image 1.5 at the high quality setting fits workloads where the generated image is the end product and will be inspected closely: marketing and ad creative, social and blog hero images, product concept mockups, editorial and book illustration, storyboard frames, and in-app asset generation where users see the result at full size. It is also the setting to choose when a prompt depends on fine detail or legible rendered text, since those are the elements that degrade first at lower quality settings. For high-volume exploration — generating dozens of candidate compositions, thumbnails, or moodboard options before a human picks a direction — a lower quality tier of the same model is usually the more economical choice, with a final pass at the high setting on the selected prompt.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does the "(high)" in GPT Image 1.5 (high) mean?

It refers to the quality setting requested from OpenAI's image API, not a different model. GPT Image 1.5 can be invoked at several quality tiers; the high tier allocates more generation compute per image and is intended for final renders, while lower tiers generate faster and cost less per image.

How much does GPT Image 1.5 (high) cost?

Pricing varies by provider and by pricing type, and image models are typically billed per image with the rate depending on resolution and quality setting rather than per million tokens. Check the pricing table on this page for current rates — it is the only place on the site with live numbers.

What is GPT Image 1.5 (high) best used for?

Final-quality image deliverables: marketing creative, hero images, product mockups, editorial illustration, and any output a user will view at full size. It is also the better choice when a prompt relies on fine detail or readable text inside the image.

Should I use the high setting or a lower quality tier?

Use a lower tier for ideation, thumbnails, and batch exploration where most outputs are discarded, then re-render the chosen prompt at the high setting. Because the quality tier is a request parameter on the same model, this two-pass workflow needs no change to your prompts or integration.

Can I run GPT Image 1.5 on my own hardware?

No. It is an API-served OpenAI model and the weights are not distributed, so it cannot be self-hosted on rented or owned GPUs. If self-hosting is a requirement, you would need to look at open-weight image generation models instead.

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