Nano Banana 2 Lite
Nano Banana 2 Lite is the consumer name for Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Image, the efficiency tier of Google DeepMind's image family, released on 30 June 2026. Google positions it for high-volume pipelines and rapid drafting: about $0.034 per image, text-to-image in around four seconds, output fixed at 1K.
Anvisha Pai, Co-founder & CEO, ModaTested Google DeepMind · released
›What we asked for
A self-portrait of Nano Banana 2 Lite, Google's fastest and cheapest AI image model, as a quick loose ink and marker sketch on cream paper: a small banana character on a skateboard, a few confident brush strokes, splashes of yellow marker, lots of white space, sketchbook energy.
google/nano-banana-2-lite
aspect_ratio: 4:3, output_format: png, num_images: 1
returned 1200 by 896 pixels
At a glance
- One size
- Output is 1K only, in fifteen fixed shapes. No 2K or 4K.
- Speed
- Google quotes about four seconds for a text-to-image request, and our run agrees.
- Thinking
- Off unless you ask. The high setting is available; the ladder below shows what it changes.
- Reference photos
- Up to 14 object reference images, more than either sibling, but no separate character or style budgets.
- No transparent backgrounds
- Output is always opaque.
Other Nano Banana models: Nano Banana 2, Nano Banana Pro. Compare all 3.
Anvisha's take
I expected a draft-quality model and got something I would ship for social. Three seconds a picture, correct poster text, a decent face. Where it gave itself away was the edit: it redrew the dripper smaller with fluting it never had, so before and after do not line up. For volume, thumbnails and first passes it is the obvious choice; for a true overlay edit, step up a tier.
Nano Banana 2 Lite real output: the same 12 prompts every model gets
Every model on this site gets the same 12 prompts, so you can compare like with like. These are the pictures Nano Banana 2 Lite returned, one try each, nothing re-rolled or retouched. Generated on . The 12 pictures took 3 to 4 seconds each and cost $0.408 in total.
Spelling, kerning and hierarchy of three lines of set text.
›What we asked for
A concert poster that reads 'MODA SUMMER SESSIONS' in large bold type, with the subtitle 'Friday 12 June, 8pm, Roundhouse' and a smaller line 'Tickets at the door'. Risograph style, two colours, tangerine and navy, grainy ink texture.
google/nano-banana-2-lite
aspect_ratio: 3:4, output_format: png, num_images: 1
returned 896 by 1200 pixels
Catalogue lighting, a clean seamless background and a believable contact shadow.
›What we asked for
Studio product photograph of a matte black ceramic pour-over coffee dripper on a seamless white background, soft top light, subtle contact shadow, centred, catalogue style.
google/nano-banana-2-lite
aspect_ratio: 1:1, output_format: png, num_images: 1
returned 1024 by 1024 pixels
A natural face, correct finger count and hands holding an object.
›What we asked for
Close-up portrait of a woman in her 40s with short grey hair, laughing, holding a red ceramic mug with both hands, natural window light, 85mm lens, shallow depth of field.
google/nano-banana-2-lite
aspect_ratio: 3:4, output_format: png, num_images: 1
returned 896 by 1200 pixels
A flat single-colour mark with a legible wordmark and no gradients or photo texture.
›What we asked for
A flat vector logo mark for a bicycle repair shop called 'Spoke & Chain': a single-colour icon combining a chain link and a wheel spoke, with the wordmark below in a geometric sans-serif, black on white.
google/nano-banana-2-lite
aspect_ratio: 1:1, output_format: png, num_images: 1
returned 1024 by 1024 pixels
Many distinct objects and people in one frame without merging or duplicating them.
›What we asked for
A crowded Saturday farmers market seen from slightly above: at least twelve stalls with striped awnings, shoppers carrying tote bags, a dog on a leash, crates of oranges, a musician with a guitar, bunting overhead, late morning light.
google/nano-banana-2-lite
aspect_ratio: 4:3, output_format: png, num_images: 1
returned 1200 by 896 pixels
A named historical style applied faithfully rather than a generic painterly look.
›What we asked for
A lighthouse on a rocky cliff during a storm, in the style of a Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock print, with visible wood grain texture, flat colour areas and a bokashi gradient sky.
google/nano-banana-2-lite
aspect_ratio: 3:4, output_format: png, num_images: 1
returned 896 by 1200 pixels
Six labelled bars at the stated heights, in order, with readable axes.
›What we asked for
A clean bar chart titled 'Monthly active users' showing six months, January through June, with the values 120, 150, 180, 170, 220 and 260, labelled axes, white background, one accent colour, no 3D effects.
google/nano-banana-2-lite
aspect_ratio: 4:3, output_format: png, num_images: 1
returned 1200 by 896 pixels
A 21:9 composition that leaves the left third clear for headline text.
›What we asked for
Website hero banner: a wide panorama of a sunlit modern co-working space with plants, the left third of the frame kept as clear wall space for text, warm neutral palette.
google/nano-banana-2-lite
aspect_ratio: 21:9, output_format: png, num_images: 1
returned 1584 by 672 pixels
Four numbered steps in the given order with their exact wording, plus an icon each.
›What we asked for
An infographic card titled 'How to brew pour-over' with four numbered steps in this order: 1. Rinse the filter, 2. Bloom for 30 seconds, 3. Pour in slow circles, 4. Wait 3 minutes. A simple icon beside each step, muted palette, clean sans-serif type.
google/nano-banana-2-lite
aspect_ratio: 3:4, output_format: png, num_images: 1
returned 896 by 1200 pixels
Appetising, menu-grade food with correct textures and no melted anatomy.
›What we asked for
Overhead photograph of a margherita pizza on a wooden board, fresh basil leaves, one slice pulled out with the cheese stretching, restaurant menu photography, natural light.
google/nano-banana-2-lite
aspect_ratio: 1:1, output_format: png, num_images: 1
returned 1024 by 1024 pixels
Exact counts and left-right placement of five named objects.
›What we asked for
A glass of water on a wooden table with exactly three ice cubes in it, a yellow pencil resting across the rim of the glass, a blue book to the left of the glass and a red apple to the right, photographed from table height.
google/nano-banana-2-lite
aspect_ratio: 4:3, output_format: png, num_images: 1
returned 1200 by 896 pixels
Change one object's colour and add a part while leaving background, light and framing untouched.
›What we asked for
Change the coffee dripper to a deep forest green and add a small brass handle on its right side. Keep the background, lighting and composition exactly as they are. (applied to the product on white result above)
google/nano-banana-2-lite/edit
aspect_ratio: 1:1, output_format: png, num_images: 1
returned 1024 by 1024 pixels
How the cost under each picture was worked out: Google's published $0.034 per 1K image for gemini-3.1-flash-lite-image (blog.google, read 2026-09-09); fal bills this endpoint by tokens and does not return the charge.
Nano Banana 2 Lite settings that matter
Thinking level
Thinking on high triples the wait, from about 3 seconds to 9 or 11, for the same price. On the poster it planned a cleaner layout with bigger type and a band on stage; on the pizza it changed little beyond the props. Leave it off for photos and turn it on for layouts with text.
Text in an image
›What we asked for
A concert poster that reads 'MODA SUMMER SESSIONS' in large bold type, with the subtitle 'Friday 12 June, 8pm, Roundhouse' and a smaller line 'Tickets at the door'. Risograph style, two colours, tangerine and navy, grainy ink texture.
google/nano-banana-2-lite
aspect_ratio: 3:4, thinking_level: minimal, output_format: png, num_images: 1
returned 896 by 1200 pixels
Food photography
›What we asked for
Overhead photograph of a margherita pizza on a wooden board, fresh basil leaves, one slice pulled out with the cheese stretching, restaurant menu photography, natural light.
google/nano-banana-2-lite
aspect_ratio: 1:1, thinking_level: minimal, output_format: png, num_images: 1
returned 1024 by 1024 pixels
Nano Banana 2 Lite pricing
| Where | Unit | Price | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gemini API | 1K image $30 per million image output tokens. Google rounds this to $0.034 per image in its announcement. | $0.034 | Gemini API pricing, read |
| Gemini API, Batch | 1K image | $0.017 | Gemini API pricing, read |
| fal | 1K image fal bills this endpoint by tokens rather than a flat per-image price ($37.50 per million image output tokens), which works out close to Google's figure. Our cost column uses Google's. | $0.034 | fal model page, read |
Is Nano Banana 2 Lite free?
Free Gemini accounts may generate with Nano Banana 2 Lite depending on the model setting, at 1K. The Gemini API has no free tier for it.
- •Gemini app, free: images generate with Nano Banana 2 or Nano Banana 2 Lite depending on the model setting and download at 1K. No published daily number.
- •Gemini API: the free tier is listed as not available for gemini-3.1-flash-lite-image.
- •Every image carries an invisible SynthID watermark.
Where to use Nano Banana 2 Lite
- Gemini app · Used for free accounts on the fastest model setting.
- Google AI Studio and Gemini API · Model id gemini-3.1-flash-lite-image. Pay per token.
- fal · Token-billed under google/nano-banana-2-lite, generate and edit endpoints.
- Moda · Available as the NanoBanana 2 Lite image model inside the Moda design agent, the default for everyday generation.
Generate with Nano Banana 2 Lite in Moda
Pick Nano Banana 2 Lite in the Moda design agent, then edit the result as vectors, text and layers rather than a flat image.
Open Moda →What we noticed running Nano Banana 2 Lite
- •For the cheapest model in the family, set text is startlingly good. All three poster lines came back correct, with a full two-colour crowd illustration nobody asked for. See the text in an image picture.
- •It elaborates like its siblings. The four step headings are word-perfect and in order, and each has a paragraph of invented instructions underneath. Say 'no other text' if you mean it. See the infographic with steps picture.
- •Placement right, count wrong. Book left, apple right, pencil across the rim, but four ice cubes where three were asked for. See the hard composition picture.
- •Edits reframe. The recolour and brass handle arrived, but the dripper was re-drawn smaller with fluting it never had, so the before and after do not line up. Use Nano Banana 2 or Pro when the edit must be a true overlay. See the edit an existing image picture.
- •Crowds are fine, small signs are not. The market has its dog, oranges, musician and bunting, and most stall signs are legible; a few lines of chalkboard text are near-misses. See the busy scene picture.
- •It is as fast as Google says. Every one of the twelve pictures came back in 2.7 to 4.1 seconds, against 9 to 14 for Nano Banana 2 and 15 to 87 for Pro.
- •1K only, and 1K means roughly a megapixel: 1024 by 1024 square, 896 by 1200 at 3:4, 1584 by 672 at 21:9. Nothing larger is available on this tier.
Nano Banana 2 Lite limits and API parameters
| Limit | Value |
|---|---|
| Output size | 1K only, in fifteen fixed shapes. fal model page, read |
| Reference images | Up to 14 object references in one request. |
| Transparent background | Not supported. fal API reference, read |
›Every setting, for developers
fal (google/nano-banana-2-lite)
fal API reference, read
| Parameter | Type | Values | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| prompt | string | Any text Required. | |
| aspect_ratio | enum | auto, 21:9, 16:9, 3:2, 4:3, 5:4, 1:1, 4:5, 3:4, 2:3, 9:16, 4:1, 1:4, 8:1, 1:8 | auto |
| num_images | integer | 1 or more | 1 |
| seed | integer | Any integer Omit for a random seed. | |
| output_format | enum | jpeg, png, webp | png |
| safety_tolerance | enum | 1 to 6, 1 is strictest | 4 |
| system_prompt | string | Any text | empty |
| thinking_level | enum | minimal, high Unset means no thinking. | |
| image_urls | list of URLs | Reference images Edit endpoint only, where it is required. |
Gemini API (gemini-3.1-flash-lite-image)
Gemini API image generation guide, read
| Parameter | Type | Values | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| aspectRatio | enum | 1:1, 3:2, 2:3, 3:4, 4:3, 4:5, 5:4, 9:16, 16:9, 21:9 | |
| imageSize | fixed | 1K | |
| reference images | inline images | Up to 14 object references | |
| thinkingLevel | enum | minimal, high |
What Nano Banana 2 Lite will not draw
Google's Generative AI Prohibited Use Policy applies on every surface. It bars child sexual abuse material, non-consensual intimate imagery, content that facilitates violent extremism, self-harm or illegal activity, hate speech and harassment, and impersonating a real person without disclosure in order to deceive. There is no adult content mode. fal exposes a safety_tolerance dial from 1 to 6 but it operates inside the same policy. Every image is watermarked with SynthID.
Alternatives to Nano Banana 2 Lite
Frequently asked questions
What is Nano Banana 2 Lite?
Nano Banana 2 Lite is Google's name for Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Image, released on 30 June 2026 as the fastest and cheapest tier of the Nano Banana family, built for volume and drafts at a fixed 1K.
How much does Nano Banana 2 Lite cost?
About $0.034 per 1K image on the Gemini API, and half that in batch, read on 9 September 2026. fal bills it by tokens at a similar rate.
Can Nano Banana 2 Lite make 4K images?
No. Output is 1K only. Nano Banana 2 does 2K and 4K for about double the price.
Is Nano Banana 2 Lite good enough for final work?
For social posts and thumbnails, usually. Look at the fixed prompt set above and compare the same prompts on Nano Banana 2; the difference shows most on faces, fine text and busy scenes.
How this page is made
Prices, limits and settings are read from the linked vendor and host pages on the dates shown. Every picture was generated by us through fal with the request shown under it, and the original files are kept unedited. A generation that failed is shown as a failure. Model and vendor names are used to identify the products; no vendor imagery appears on this page.
