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Imagen 4

Google · Imagen

Google's Imagen 4 image generation tier, now scheduled for API endpoint shutdown.

Part of Imagen family · Other versions: Imagen 4 Fast
Type
image
Context
N/A
Max Output
N/A
Status
deprecated
API Access
Yes
License
proprietary
image-generation creative google api visual deprecated
Released June 2025 · Updated June 8, 2026

Overview

Freshness note: Model capabilities, limits, lifecycle dates, and pricing can change quickly. This profile is a point-in-time snapshot last verified on June 8, 2026.

Imagen 4 is Google’s dedicated text-to-image family for prompt-based visual creation in creative and product contexts. Google’s model and pricing pages still document Imagen 4 Standard, Ultra, and Fast, but the deprecation page lists the three current API endpoints with a June 24, 2026 shutdown date.

Capabilities

Imagen 4 supports high-quality text-to-image generation, style exploration, product mockups, campaign concepts, and visual iteration. The family splits into Fast, Standard, and Ultra tiers for different latency, quality, and cost envelopes, but it should now be treated as a migration target rather than a greenfield choice.

Technical Details

Imagen 4 is image-native; token context and output numbers are not the primary UI metrics in Signal Lens. contextWindow and maxOutput are stored as 0 and interpreted as N/A in listings.

Current Google API IDs:

  • imagen-4.0-generate-001
  • imagen-4.0-ultra-generate-001
  • imagen-4.0-fast-generate-001

Google’s model page lists text input, image output, a 480-token text input limit, and 1 to 4 output images for Ultra, Standard, and Fast.

Pricing & Access

Google’s current Gemini API pricing lists Imagen 4 Fast at 0.02perimage,Imagen4Standardat0.02 per image, Imagen 4 Standard at 0.04 per image, and Imagen 4 Ultra at $0.06 per image. Access is paid-tier only through Gemini API surfaces such as AI Studio and related Google developer tooling.

The important lifecycle constraint is that all three documented Imagen 4 API endpoints are scheduled to shut down on June 24, 2026.

Best Use Cases

Use Imagen 4 only for existing integrations, migration testing, or short-window compatibility checks. For new Google image work, start with Nano Banana 2 or Nano Banana Pro instead.

Comparisons

Compared with Nano Banana 2, Imagen 4 is the older dedicated Imagen lane while Nano Banana 2 is the stable Gemini-native default for image generation. Compared with Nano Banana Pro, Imagen 4 has simpler dedicated text-to-image positioning, while Pro adds reasoning, grounding, and professional image-editing capabilities. Compared with GPT Image 2, the decision is now mostly provider ecosystem fit plus migration timing.