What a resolution tier actually changes
Resolution is the pixel budget of your output. 1K is decision resolution: sharp enough to judge composition, background, angle and styling on any screen. 2K adds the detail you need for zoom-ins and larger storefront placements. 4K is finishing resolution — print, hero banners, and anywhere a customer can pixel-peep.
What resolution does not change is the idea. A weak prompt at 4K is a sharper weak image. Pick the direction first, then spend pixels on it.
The cost table, straight from the ledger
Nano Banana bills in credits, and resolution is the multiplier: 1K costs 1 credit per image, 2K costs 3 credits, and 4K costs 8 credits. A batch reserves prompts × outputs × the per-image cost of your chosen tier, and the workbench always shows the live total before you submit.
That means a twenty-prompt, four-output batch costs 80 credits at 1K but 640 at 4K. Same contact sheet, eight times the budget — so resolution is a decision to make per batch, not a habit.
- 1K = 1 credit/image — fast previews, direction comparison.
- 2K = 3 credits/image — the recommended default for finals.
- 4K = 8 credits/image — maximum detail, subscription-only.
Choosing by placement
Match the tier to where the image will live, not to how it feels in the picker:
- Marketplace thumbnails, feed posts, internal reviews → 1K is enough; screens downscale anyway.
- Storefront main images, detail-page crops, deck illustrations → 2K.
- Print, outdoor, hero banners, zoom-on-hover product viewers → 4K.
Why 4K sits behind a subscription
4K is the one tier gated by plan: any active subscription (Starter $9.90/mo, Pro $19.90/mo, or Premium $49.90/mo) unlocks it, while 1K and 2K are open to everyone, including free accounts.
The reason is cost shape: at 8 credits per image, 4K is a finishing tool, and subscriptions are how heavy users get the lowest per-credit price. If you only need 4K occasionally, a monthly tier plus the included credits still beats burning permanent pack credits at the 4K rate.
The workflow we recommend: proof low, finish high
Run the expensive tier last. Explore directions at 1K until the contact sheet shows a clear winner, then re-render just that prompt at 2K or 4K. You pay the 8-credit rate for one image instead of eighty, and the 1K proofs cost almost nothing in comparison.
- Step 1 — batch at 1K, up to 80 variants, 1 credit each.
- Step 2 — pick winners on the contact sheet.
- Step 3 — re-render winners at 2K or 4K, download, ship.