Nano Banana 2 vs Nano Banana Pro for Image Generation
Nano Banana Pro led on material and lighting, typography, counting, advertising composition, and scene relighting, while Nano Banana 2 led on anatomy, structured UI graphics, and product scene changes. Several editing and reference-based scenarios were ties, so the better choice depends on the task rather than one model winning across the board.
Side-by-side facts
| Feature | Nano Banana 2 | Nano Banana Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Developer | ||
| Availability on Banana Pie | Available now | Available now |
| Credits from | 40 credits | 80 credits |
| Max resolution | 4K | 4K |
| Reference images | Up to 8 | Up to 8 |
Scenario by scenario
Both models ran the identical prompt under our fixed suite - the images are the published runs, shown exactly as generated.
Product material and lighting
Better here: Nano Banana ProThe right image follows the requested material and lighting behavior more convincingly, especially in the alignment of the reflection and the consistency of the upper-left light and shadow.
- Exactly one transparent rectangular perfume bottle is visible, with no text, logo, or extra objects: Tie. Both show one upright rectangular glass bottle, and neither contains rendered text, a logo, plants, or a separate prop; the additional bottle-shaped forms are reflections.
- The bottle is visibly filled halfway with amber liquid: Right does slightly better. Both have a clear amber liquid line near the middle, but the right bottle reads more cleanly as half full, while the left bottle's thick inset glass structure makes the fill proportion less immediately clear.
- The glass refraction and the reflection on the wet black stone are physically coherent: Right does better. Its reflection is aligned directly beneath the bottle and its glass edges and liquid distortions are broadly consistent. The left has a detached ghost-like reflection to the right as well as a strong foreground reflection and oversized amber caustic, making the optics less coherent and less subtle.
- Upper-left lighting produces consistent highlights and a plausible contact shadow: Right does better. The bright upper-left illumination, highlights on the bottle's left and top surfaces, and long shadow extending down-right agree clearly. The left also suggests upper-left light, but its multiple bright caustics and reflections make the lighting direction less consistent.
Prompt & settings used
Prompt
A premium product photograph of exactly one transparent rectangular perfume bottle, half filled with amber liquid, standing upright on wet black stone. Light comes from the upper left, creating coherent refraction, a contact shadow, and one subtle reflection. No text, logo, plants, or extra objects.
Multilingual typography
Better here: Nano Banana ProBoth outputs follow the text, order, and color instructions exactly. The right poster wins on the final presentation criterion because its four-line block is spaced more evenly.
- Exactly four centered text lines and no additional text: Tie. Both posters visibly contain four centered lines and no other text.
- Exact wording and order: Tie. Both render "MOONLIGHT MARKET", "月光市集", "18 OCT", and "RIVER HALL" exactly in the requested order.
- Color assignment: Tie. In both posters, "月光市集" is red while "MOONLIGHT MARKET", "18 OCT", and "RIVER HALL" are black.
- Legibility, spacing, and alignment: Right does better. Both are sharp, legible, and centered, but the right poster has more consistent vertical spacing; the left has a noticeably larger gap between "MOONLIGHT MARKET" and "月光市集" than between the remaining lines.
Prompt & settings used
Prompt
Design a clean cream-colored vertical event poster. Show exactly four centered text lines and no other text: "MOONLIGHT MARKET", "月光市集", "18 OCT", and "RIVER HALL". Render "月光市集" in red and all other lines in black.
Human anatomy and contact
Better here: Nano Banana 2Left more reliably satisfies every anatomy and contact requirement, especially the visibility and separation of both five-fingered hands.
- Exactly two fully visible hands are present, with no extra hands or people: Left does better. It clearly shows one potter and two unobstructed hands; right crops out the person and shows two heavily overlapping hands whose full outlines are not visible.
- Each hand has exactly five distinct, naturally formed fingers: Left does better. Five fingers can be identified on each hand, while right obscures multiple fingers through overlap and does not clearly establish five distinct fingers per hand.
- The fingers, joints, and contact with the clay are anatomically plausible: Left does better. Its hands have coherent joints and believable inside-and-outside support of the bowl; right has an unclear, fused-looking overlap near the bowl rim and awkward finger contact.
- The clay bowl, spinning wheel, and shaping action are clearly recognizable: Left does better. The bowl and wheel are clear in both, but left more explicitly shows active two-handed shaping, while right's overlapping hands make the action less legible.
Prompt & settings used
Prompt
A photorealistic close-up of an adult potter shaping a clay bowl on a spinning wheel. Both hands are fully visible, each with five natural fingers touching the clay. No other people or hands. Soft window light.
Counting and attribute binding
Better here: Nano Banana ProRight wins because both images satisfy the requested counts, attributes, layout, and handle direction, but only the right image avoids visible additional objects.
- Object count and placement: Tie. Both images visibly show exactly three red cubes in a row on the left, two blue spheres on the right, and one yellow mug centered behind them.
- Attribute binding: Tie. Both images clearly depict red wooden cubes with visible grain, translucent blue glass spheres, and a glazed yellow ceramic mug.
- Handle direction: Tie. The mug handle is clearly visible on the right side in both images.
- No additional objects or text: Right does better. The right image contains only the requested objects against a plain background, while the left image also shows a blurred plant, plant pot, and other background furnishings. Neither image contains visible text.
Prompt & settings used
Prompt
On a matte gray table, exactly three red wooden cubes form a row on the left, exactly two blue glass spheres sit on the right, and one yellow ceramic mug stands centered behind them. The mug handle points right. No other objects or text.
Advertising composition
Better here: Nano Banana ProRight follows the prompt more precisely, especially by avoiding the extra "AERO" text and preserving a more distinct empty top area.
- Exactly one silver shoe and orange trail: Right does better. Both show one silver shoe in the lower-right, but Right's orange trail clearly enters from the bottom-left and curves through the composition; Left's trail crosses the lower edge and is less clearly established as beginning at the bottom-left.
- Visible text: Right does better. Right shows only "RUN LIGHT" and "42 KM", both spelled correctly. Left also shows "RUN LIGHT" and "42 KM" correctly, but includes the additional text "AERO" on the shoe.
- Top spacing and headline placement: Right does better. Right has a clearly empty pale-sky band across the top, with "RUN LIGHT" immediately below it in the upper-left. Left leaves some sky above the headline, but the empty band is less clearly the requested top 15 percent.
- Visibility and hierarchy: Right does better. The headline, badge, trail, and complete shoe are all clearly visible and separated, with a strong reading order from headline to badge to shoe. Left's required elements are also visible, but the large shoe and bottom-edge trail make the lower area more crowded.
Prompt & settings used
Prompt
Create a vertical social ad for a fictional running shoe named AERO. Keep the top 15 percent empty. Directly below it, place the headline "RUN LIGHT" in the upper-left. Show exactly one silver shoe in the lower-right, an orange trail curving from the bottom-left, and a round badge reading "42 KM". No other shoes or text.
Structured UI graphic
Better here: Nano Banana 2Left follows the requested structure exactly, while Right adds plan details that the prompt explicitly excludes.
- Title and columns: Both sides render the exact title "CHOOSE YOUR PLAN" and exactly three columns labeled "STARTER", "PRO", and "TEAM".
- Rows: Both sides place exactly three aligned labeled rows in each column: "PROJECTS", "STORAGE", and "SUPPORT".
- Buttons: Both sides show exactly one blue button labeled "SELECT" in each column.
- Alignment and no additional text: Left does better. Its three columns are evenly aligned and contain no extra text. Right adds "5 active projects", "10 GB", "Email support", "20 active projects", "50 GB", "Priority email & chat support", "Unlimited projects", "200 GB", and "24/7 phone, email & chat support", directly violating the instruction against additional text.
Prompt & settings used
Prompt
Create a clean horizontal pricing comparison graphic titled "CHOOSE YOUR PLAN". Use exactly three equal columns labeled "STARTER", "PRO", and "TEAM". Under each column, show exactly three aligned rows labeled "PROJECTS", "STORAGE", and "SUPPORT", followed by one blue button labeled "SELECT". White background, dark navy text, no additional columns or text.
Six-reference object binding and edit
Depends on the taskBoth outputs visibly satisfy the requested object count, colors, placement, and scene continuity to a nearly identical degree. Differences in napkin folding and object scale are marginal without the references available for direct comparison.
- Criterion 1: tie. Both show a dark navy-blue mug in the lower-left area and a folded green-and-white striped napkin in the upper-left area. The exact reference appearance and original positions cannot be fully assessed because the source references are not shown.
- Criterion 2: tie. Both show exactly one orange near the upper center and one mustard-yellow hardcover notebook on the right, with no visible red mug, white towel, green pear, or blue notebook remaining.
- Criterion 3: tie. Both show exactly two lemons to the right of the mug, with no visible extra or duplicated fruit or objects.
- Criterion 4: tie. Both retain the same visible wooden tabletop, framing, wood grain, lighting direction, and broadly matching spatial arrangement. Exact preservation against Reference 1 cannot be confirmed because Reference 1 is not shown separately.
Reference images
Prompt & settings used
Prompt
Use Reference 1 as the base tabletop scene. Replace the red mug with the exact dark navy-blue mug from Reference 2 in the same position and orientation. Replace the folded white towel with the exact green-and-white striped napkin from Reference 3 in the same folded area. Replace the green pear with exactly one orange from Reference 4 in the same position. Replace the blue notebook with the exact mustard-yellow hardcover notebook from Reference 5 in the same position. Add exactly the two lemons from Reference 6 to the right of the mug. Preserve the wooden table, camera, framing, wood grain, lighting, shadows, and all other spatial relationships from Reference 1. Do not copy the white product backgrounds from References 2–6, duplicate any asset, or add other objects.
In-image text replacement
Depends on the taskBoth outputs are visually near-identical and satisfy the requested replacement. Neither has a clear observable advantage.
- Exact text and removal: Tie. Both signs visibly read exactly "NIGHT OWL", and no old text is visible.
- Additional or malformed characters: Tie. Both signs contain only the clearly formed letters in "NIGHT OWL", with no extra or malformed characters.
- Font, spacing, and perspective: Tie. Both use widely spaced uppercase sans-serif lettering aligned consistently with the sign’s perspective; preservation relative to the original cannot be fully assessed because the original image is not shown.
- Material, lighting, and scene preservation: Tie. Both show the same dark green, wood-textured sign with consistent highlights and shadows, and the surrounding storefront scene appears unchanged; exact preservation relative to the original cannot be verified without the source image.
Reference images
Prompt & settings used
Prompt
Replace only the sign text with exactly "NIGHT OWL". Preserve the original font style, spacing, perspective, sign material, lighting, and everything else.
Multi-reference identity and garment transfer
Depends on the taskBoth outputs are extremely similar and satisfy the directly visible replacement and coherence requirements. Exact identity and jacket fidelity cannot be judged without the two source references, so there is no defensible overall winner.
- Identity preservation: Cannot be assessed against Reference 1 because the reference image is not shown here. The two outputs display nearly identical facial identity, neutral expression, hair, pose, body proportions, background, and framing, with no clear advantage.
- Jacket match: Cannot be assessed for exact fidelity because Reference 2 is not shown here. Both outputs visibly depict a light-blue denim jacket with a cream fleece collar, bronze-colored buttons, two flap chest pockets, and a red upper-sleeve patch; the left also has more visible distressed marks, but it is unclear which is more reference-accurate.
- Black suit replacement: Tie. Both fully show the person wearing the denim jacket, with no visible black suit jacket, ghost mannequin, or white product background.
- Physical coherence: Tie. Both have coherent hand placement, sleeve occlusion, garment folds, shadows, and scene lighting. The right jacket is slightly cleaner and more symmetrical around the collar and front opening, while the left has a more naturally irregular hem and wear pattern; neither has a decisive visible advantage.
Reference images
Prompt & settings used
Prompt
Use the portrait in Reference 1 for the person and the isolated jacket in Reference 2 for the garment. Dress the person from Reference 1 in the exact jacket shown in Reference 2. Preserve the person's identity, face, expression, skin, hair, hands, pose, body proportions, background, framing, and lighting from Reference 1. Preserve the jacket's material, color, collar, buttons, pockets, and sleeve patch from Reference 2. Do not copy the ghost mannequin or white product background.
Coherent scene relighting
Better here: Nano Banana ProRight more clearly achieves coherent relighting from the left, with stronger localized projections and consistently directional shadows while preserving the room contents.
- Warm golden-hour light clearly enters from the left window: Right does better; warm sunlight visibly projects from left to right across the wall, sofa, rug, and floor, making the source unmistakable. Left is also warm, but its overall amber cast makes the entry direction slightly less distinct.
- Highlights and shadow directions respond coherently to the new light source: Right does better; the plant shadow falls onto the wall to its right, the sofa receives directional bands of light and shade, and the coffee-table shadows extend consistently away from the window. Left has plausible table and sofa shadows, but the broad horizontal wall shading behind the lamp and sofa is less clearly tied to the window.
- The result is more than a uniform yellow color filter: Right does better; it includes distinct projected light rectangles, a detailed plant silhouette, and localized illumination across surfaces. Left also has directional shadows and highlights beyond a simple color cast, but appears more uniformly amber overall.
- No furniture or decor is moved, added, removed, or redesigned: Tie; both images visibly retain the same window, plant and pot, sofa, coffee table, rug, and floor lamp in matching positions and designs.
Reference images
Prompt & settings used
Prompt
Change the lighting to warm golden-hour sunlight entering from the left window. Do not move, add, remove, or redesign any object. Update highlights and shadows coherently.
Cross-ratio outpainting
Depends on the taskBoth outputs satisfy the visible outpainting requirements to a very similar degree. Any quality difference is too marginal to support a reliable winner.
- 16:9 landscape with natural side content: Tie. Both outputs are visibly wide landscapes with beach, ocean, and sky continuing naturally to both edges.
- Complete original centered without cropping or stretching: Tie. The cabin and horizon are centered and show no visible stretching in either output, but the complete-original requirement cannot be conclusively verified because the source image is not shown separately.
- Original cabin, shoreline, and internal composition unchanged: Tie. The central cabin, shoreline, waves, and horizon appear effectively identical between the two outputs, but whether either altered the source cannot be confirmed without the original image.
- No visible seams, mirrored filler, or repeated objects: Tie. Neither output has an obvious extension boundary, mirrored region, or conspicuously repeated object; differences in clouds and sand at the outer sides look plausible.
Reference images
Prompt & settings used
Prompt
Expand the canvas to a 16:9 landscape by naturally continuing the beach, ocean, and sky on both sides. Keep the complete original image centered without cropping, stretching, letterboxing, or modifying it.
Product preservation across scene change
Better here: Nano Banana 2LEFT more convincingly fulfills the scene-change request, primarily through its unmistakable basketball-court context and stronger wet-surface integration. Exact product preservation cannot be verified because the source sneaker is not shown.
- Scene placement: LEFT does better. The wet court, painted basketball lines, hoop, backboard, chain-link fence, and dusk sky are all clearly visible; RIGHT has a convincing wet paved surface and court markings, but the basketball setting is less immediately readable.
- Sneaker consistency: This cannot be fully assessed without the original sneaker image. Both outputs show plausible materials, stitching, silhouette, and sole construction, but LEFT presents the shoe more clearly in a clean side-oriented view, while RIGHT uses a more elevated front three-quarter angle.
- Geometric side mark: Whether the mark remains unchanged cannot be assessed without the original. Both marks are sharp and readable, though their visible geometry differs: LEFT shows a long descending diagonal branch and a short leftward arm, while RIGHT shows a long descending-left branch and a short rightward arm.
- Physical coherence: LEFT does better. It has a clear contact shadow, detailed puddle reflection directly beneath the sneaker, reflected sunset color, and lighting that matches the dusk background. RIGHT has coherent cool dusk lighting and a partial dark reflection, but the reflection is less complete and the shoe appears slightly less grounded at the sole.
Reference images
Prompt & settings used
Prompt
Place the sneaker on a wet outdoor basketball court at dusk. Preserve the exact sneaker shape, black geometric side mark, materials, stitching, sole geometry, and camera angle. Add physically coherent contact, reflections, and dusk lighting.
Cost & latency
Nano Banana 2 starts at 40 credits, while Nano Banana Pro starts at 80, so Pro carries the higher minimum cost per generation. In the small latency sample from this run, Pro usually returned sooner, but these observations are not general benchmark figures and actual wait times can vary.
How we compared & disclosure
We used one fixed prompt per scenario and ran it once with each model, then published the outputs as generated. This is a reproducible comparison run, not an independent benchmark; Banana Pie sells paid access to both models.
Banana Pie sells paid access to this model alongside other models in one studio. Our verdicts come from tests run through the same pipeline our users get.