Midjourney vs Seedream (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Midjourney grades higher than Seedream: 2.0 against 1.6 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Midjourney grades higher on value for money and features. They get the same grade on the free plan, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Midjourney
Image and short-video generator run on monthly GPU time
Seedream
ByteDance's image generation and editing model, sold by the image
Which one is for you
Pick Midjourney if
- Fits if you want stylized images and will put time into steering the prompt
- Works for heavy users on Standard, where slower Relax-mode image jobs are unlimited
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want to try before paying, as there's no free plan or trial
- Not for you if your images must stay private, since Stealth Mode needs Pro at $48 a month; Basic and Standard images go in the public gallery
- Tight if you're on Basic: about 200 fast minutes, no Relax mode, and unused time doesn't roll over
- Watch out: companies earning over $1 million a year must be on Pro or Mega to use images commercially
- Watch out: plan details come from a third-party summary, as Midjourney's own pages turned our reader away, and there's no phone app or API
Pick Seedream if
- Fits if you generate images in volume and want to pay per image
- Works for developers who want an image model behind their own app
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a finished app with a gallery and editor, as this is a model
- Tight if you buy packs and use them slowly: they expire after 30 days and unused images are lost
- Pricey if you read the discounted prices as the real ones, since $6.99, $24.99 and $49.99 are for a first purchase only
- Watch out: versions 4.0, 5.0 Lite and 5.5 all appear across ByteDance pages, and the packs are stated for 5.5
How we grade them
| 2.0GPAMidjourneyFair | 1.6GPASeedreamWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BBasic is $8 a month on yearly billing ($10 monthly), inside this category's cheaper quarter of $9.99. It buys about 200 minutes of fast GPU time and no slower Relax mode. The price is from a third-party summary, as Midjourney's own pages turned our reader away. | C$13.99 for 700 images, about 2 cents each, and $35.99 for 1,800. Those are pay-as-you-go packs the category's monthly figures can't be set against, so it sits in the middle. The cheaper first-purchase prices apply once. |
| Free plan and trial | FNo free plan and no trial on record, so the least you can pay is $8 a month. And Basic's fast minutes don't roll over if you have a quiet month. | FNo free plan or trial on the listing. A first pack is discounted to $6.99, which is still a purchase. |
| Features | BV8 text-to-image, an edit model that fills, swaps and extends with up to four reference images, image-to-video with loops and end frames, and style profiles and moodboards. Nothing in the listing shows a gap in making images. | CText-to-image and prompt-based editing in one model, transparent backgrounds and multi-turn edits. It's a model, not a full app, so there is no gallery, library or editor around it. |
| Ease of use | CNo app-store rating on record. It runs on the website or as a Discord bot, and it's sold in GPU hours rather than images, so it takes a while to know what a month buys. | CNo store rating on record. It's sold as API access and image packs, which suits people who are comfortable calling a model rather than opening an app. |
| Platforms and integrations | CThe midjourney.com website and a Discord bot, and that's it. No phone or desktop app of its own, and no API in the listing. | CWeb only, with an API through BytePlus. No phone or desktop apps and no integrations are named. |
| Best for | stylized images and short clips from a prompt | an image model bought by the pack or through an API |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Midjourney and Seedream. How we grade
Where they differ
- Midjourney also covers video generation.
At a glance
| Midjourney | Seedream | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Paid |
| Starts at | $8 per month, billed annually ($10 billed monthly) | $13.99 for 700 images, valid 30 days ($6.99 first purchase) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Midjourney | ByteDance |
| Price read from | eesel.ai (not the vendor's own page) | byteplus.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Midjourney
- Midjourney's own pricing and help pages turned away our reader, so plan details come from a third-party summary edited June 5, 2026.
- Basic has no Relax mode, so every job draws on its monthly fast time, and unused fast hours do not roll over.
- Private generation (Stealth Mode) starts at Pro; on Basic and Standard, images appear in the public gallery.
- Companies with more than $1 million in yearly gross revenue must be on Pro or Mega to use images commercially.
Seedream
- Seedream is a model, not an app of its own; the pages read here sell API access and image packs.
- Packs expire after 30 days and unused images are not carried over.
- The discounted prices apply to a first purchase only; the listed figure is the regular price.
- Versions 4.0, 5.0 Lite and 5.5 appear across ByteDance pages; the packs are stated for 5.5.
Key features
Midjourney
- Text-to-image with V8 models
- V8.1 became the default model in June 2026 and V8.2 followed in July, with an HD setting that renders at a higher resolution.
- Image editing
- The V8.2 edit model changes images from written instructions, fills or replaces chosen areas, extends the canvas and takes up to four reference images.
- Image-to-video
- Any image, including an uploaded one, can be animated into short clips that can be extended, looped or given a set end frame.
- Personalization and moodboards
- Rating images builds a personal style profile, and moodboards or style references steer new images toward a chosen look.
- Conversational mode
- A text and voice mode on the website takes requests in plain language and can use the reference images and settings already in place.
- Organize page
- Past jobs can be searched, filtered and sorted into folders on the website.
Seedream
- Generation and editing in one model
- Seedream 4.0 combined text-to-image and prompt-based editing in a single architecture, according to ByteDance Seed's page.
- Multi-turn editing
- Seedream 5.5 makes targeted changes across successive edits while keeping the unedited parts of the image as they were.
- Transparent backgrounds
- Seedream 5.5 can output images with transparent or semi-transparent backgrounds, including separate layers.
- Multi-image fusion and series
- BytePlus lists multi-image fusion, image series generation, style transfer and element deletion or modification.
- Per-image API pricing
- BytePlus advertises image generation and editing from $0.02 per image through its API.
Plans
Midjourney
Basic$8
per month, billed annually ($10 billed monthly)
About 3.3 hours (200 minutes) of fast GPU time a month and no Relax mode; SD video only.
Standard$24
per month, billed annually ($30 billed monthly)
15 fast GPU hours a month plus unlimited image jobs in the slower Relax mode.
Pro$48
per month, billed annually ($60 billed monthly)
30 fast GPU hours, Stealth Mode for private images, unlimited SD video in Relax mode and 12 fast jobs at once.
Mega$96
per month, billed annually ($120 billed monthly)
60 fast GPU hours a month, with everything in Pro and more video jobs at once.
Seedream
Starter$13.99
for 700 images, valid 30 days, paid once
Seedream 5.5 image pack. First purchase is $6.99 (50% off); unused images expire.
Professional$35.99
for 1,800 images, valid 30 days, paid once
Seedream 5.5 image pack. First purchase is $24.99 (31% off); unused images expire.
Team$69.99
for 3,500 images, valid 30 days, paid once
Seedream 5.5 image pack for heavy use. First purchase is $49.99 (29% off).
Ways to pay less
Midjourney
No public discounts listed.
Seedream
- Other savings
First-purchase pack discount
New BytePlus customers pay $6.99, $24.99 or $49.99 for the three packs, 29% to 50% below the listed prices.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Midjourney or Seedream?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Midjourney starts at $8 per month, billed annually ($10 billed monthly), and Seedream starts at $13.99 for 700 images, valid 30 days ($6.99 first purchase).
Which has a free plan, Midjourney or Seedream?
As of Nov 12, 2026, neither Midjourney nor Seedream has a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.