Nano Banana 2.1 is out: better edits and text, half the API price per image

What happened

On October 6, Google added gemini-nano-banana-2.1 to the Gemini API and called it its "latest high-efficiency image generation and conversational editing model." Its model card lists the places it ships: the Gemini app, AI Mode in Search, Google AI Studio, the Gemini API, Flow, Stitch and Google Ads. Google describes the rollout as gradual, so it may not reach every Gemini account on the same day. The old API model, gemini-3.1-flash-image (Nano Banana 2), is now deprecated, with no shutdown date announced.

What changed

• Quality and editing. Google's changelog lists better visual quality, prompt adherence, character consistency over several turns, and text rendering. On the model card's preference tests, the thinking version rated 1050 for overall text-to-image against 990 for Nano Banana 2, and the biggest gain was keeping several characters consistent in edits (1106 against 978).
• New shapes. Aspect ratios now run to 1:4, 4:1, 1:8 and 8:1, at 1K, 2K or 4K. That covers banners, long infographics and phone wallpapers without cropping.
• Thinking levels. Developers pick minimal, medium (the default) or high.
• References. Up to 10 object images and up to 4 character images in one request. Image search can ground a request alongside web search.
• Same watermark. Every image still carries Google's invisible SynthID mark.

The price, for API users

Images got cheaper and everything around them got dearer. A plain prompt in, one image out, costs about half what it did. Long multi-turn edits with many reference images and high thinking cost more per call than the image price suggests. Batch requests are half price again. The 512-pixel size Nano Banana 2 offered is gone.

What it means for your prompts

There's no new prompt syntax to learn: you still describe the picture in plain language. Three habits get more out of 2.1:

• Ask for the format. Say "4:1 banner" or "1:8 vertical strip" in the prompt, or pick the ratio in AI Studio, rather than cropping a square afterwards.
• Edit in turns. Character consistency over several messages is the headline gain, so build a scene step by step: place the person, then change the setting, then the light.
• Keep lettering large. Google's own model card still lists small text as often blurry at 1K, and long paragraphs as weak. Short headlines in big type, or a 2K or 4K output, work best.

Our Nano Banana prompts cover edits that keep your face, product shots and multi-image blends; all of them run on 2.1.

Try it

Create a 4:1 horizontal banner for [brand or event] on a [color] background. On the left, the headline "[short headline, 5 words max]" in large bold sans-serif lettering, spelled exactly as written. On the right, [one simple object that represents the topic], photographed in soft studio light. Leave empty space in the middle. No other text, no logos.

Message 1: Here is a photo of [person or character]. Keep their face, hair and clothes exactly the same in every image I ask for next. First, place them at [location] in morning light, full body, looking at the camera.

Message 2: Same person, same clothes. Now move them to [second location] at sunset, sitting, three-quarter view.

Message 3: Same person and outfit. Close-up portrait in the rain at night, neon light from the left. Do not change their facial features.

Sources

• Google, Gemini API release notes, October 6, 2026: the release, the improvements, new aspect ratios, deprecation of gemini-3.1-flash-image
• Google DeepMind, Nano Banana 2.1 model card: base model, evaluation scores, limitations, where it ships
• Google, Gemini API pricing: per-image and per-token prices for both models
• Google, Image generation with the Gemini API: resolutions, thinking levels, reference image limits, SynthID
• Reddit, r/singularity launch thread, October 7, 2026