Recraft
Image model built for design output rather than art, with true SVG vector generation, locked brand styles and an API covering vectorize, upscale and background removal.
Overview
Most image models hand back pixels. This one hands back paths. That single difference decides whether the output belongs in a product workflow or a moodboard, and it explains why Recraft has held a position among working designers while general-purpose models improved at everything else. Vector generation covers logos, icons, flat illustration and the sort of diagram that ends up in a README or a spec document.
The model line moved quickly through 2026. V4 shipped in February, V4.1 on 14 May in standard 1MP and Pro 4MP variants, then a dedicated V4 Styles family in August that locks a visual language from between one and ten reference images. That last piece is the practical win for a technical team: define the illustration style once, then generate forty consistent assets for a documentation site without a designer redrawing each one. The API exposes 18 operations, works through the OpenAI Python client and includes vectorize as its own endpoint.
Pricing has two separate shapes and it is easy to conflate them. Subscriptions start at $12 a month for 1,000 credits and scale through Pro tiers to $160 a month for 16,000, with Teams from about $22 per seat adding SSO and shared styles. API usage is billed apart from that in prepaid units, at $0.035 for a standard V4.1 raster image or $0.08 for vector, rising to $0.30 for a 4MP Pro vector. One credit equals one raster image, two for SVG. The free tier is not viable for commercial work: those images are owned by Recraft and shown publicly.
Key Features
- ✓ V4.1 released 14 May 2026 in two lines, one tuned for design quality and one general-purpose utility line, each in 1MP standard and 4MP Pro versions
- ✓ Real SVG output with editable paths, not a raster traced after the fact, so assets open properly in Figma or Illustrator
- ✓ V4 Styles family shipped August 2026: define a style from one reference image or up to ten, and every later generation holds the rendering technique, colour and texture
- ✓ 18 API operations covering vectorize, inpainting and outpainting, crisp and creative upscale, background removal and replacement
- ✓ API is callable through the OpenAI Python library, with the caveat that not every parameter maps across
- ✓ Paid plans grant full ownership and commercial rights on everything generated while the subscription is active
Where it holds
- • The only serious model producing genuine vector files, which is the difference between an icon a frontend team can drop into a component library and a PNG that falls apart at 2x
- • Style locking is repeatable enough to build a documentation illustration set that looks like one hand drew all of it
- • API prices came down during 2026 to $0.035 for a standard V4.1 raster image and $0.08 for vector, which makes batch asset generation cheap enough to script
- • Vectorize is exposed as a standalone call, so you can generate raster output on a better photorealism model elsewhere and convert here
Where it breaks
- • Free plan images are owned by Recraft and public. Anyone touching client work needs to read that clause before generating a single asset
- • Photorealism is competent but sits behind FLUX.2 and Nano Banana Pro. This is a flat illustration and structured design tool, not a product photography replacement
- • Pro vector generation at $0.30 an image gets expensive fast at any real volume, and monthly credits do not carry forward
My Take
Design and docs teams shipping icon sets, UI illustration and diagrams are the intended audience, and vector output is the whole reason to be here. Recraft generates actual SVG paths instead of tracing a bitmap afterwards, so an icon arrives editable rather than approximated. V4.1 landed on 14 May 2026 with a Pro tier at 4MP native, and the API rate dropped to $0.035 per raster image and $0.08 for vector. Two honest caveats: photorealistic product shots are not the strength, and the free plan making generations public and Recraft-owned is a term that catches people out.
Quick Info
- Pricing:
- freemium
- Openness:
- Proprietary
- Starting at:
- Free plan gives 50 daily credits, but generated images are owned by Recraft and publicly visible. Basic is $12/month billed monthly or $10/month annual for 1,000 credits. Pro scales in steps: $20/month for 2,000 credits, $40 for 4,000, $80 for 8,000, $160 for 16,000, with roughly 20 percent off on annual billing. Teams starts around $22/month per seat at 2,000 credits and adds shared custom styles, SSO and centralised account management. One credit equals one raster image, two for a vector. Credits do not roll over, though purchased top-ups never expire. API is billed separately in prepaid units: V4.1 at $0.035 per raster image and $0.08 for vector, V4.1 Pro at $0.21 raster and $0.30 vector, both reduced from higher rates during 2026.
- Added:
- Aug 2026
- Updated:
- Aug 2026
Use Cases
Judge it on your own work
The notes above say where Recraft holds and where it breaks. The fastest check is your own workload.
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