10 of the Best AI Art Generators to Try Out 🖼️

Some designers and developers may see these AI tools as potential rivals that could make human creatives obsolete. However, that perspective overlooks the major opportunities here.

These photorealistic art generators aren't replacements for skilled graphic designers and developers but rather assistants that can enhance workflow and boost creativity.

Let’s look at exactly how these AI tools craft such impressive graphics. We’ll also run through the highest-quality AI art generators available right now. For each one, you’ll see key details on features, capabilities, ease of use, output quality, and more so you can determine which engine fits your creative needs.

What is an AI art generator?

An AI art generator is a software tool that creates visual imagery based on text prompts entered by the user. Using the AI image generation process described above, it produces unique images dynamically tailored to the provided text.

Unlike traditional digital art tools, AI generators allow users with zero artistic ability or tech skills to produce elaborate graphics easily. All it takes is typing or speaking text!

These AI-powered image creation platforms offer a spectrum of functionalities:

• Varied output styles –  Mimic art movements (impressionism, art deco, etc.), specific artists, mediums (oil paint, pencil sketches, etc.), aesthetics, and more based on text cues.

• Flexible image control – Guide the art generator to modify aspects like colors, lighting, objects, scenery, and poses through descriptive text tuning.

• Iterative rebuilding – Quickly create art and reconstruct images by retaining parts you like and adding new text for the elements you want to be changed.

• Upscaling/enhancing – Increase the resolution of created images while preserving or enriching quality and details. Many even offer photo realistic image creation (cue the deepfakes).

• Matching content – Ensure important text concepts, relationships, contexts, etc. are accurately reflected visually.

• Diverse media options – Output not just digital paintings but also logos, book/album covers, posters, concept art, text overlay designs, and more niches.

As AI art tech continues advancing rapidly, so do the capabilities offered by these creative platforms. And there are plenty of options when it comes to ai generated image creators. From major companies like Open AI ChatGPT to smaller, lesser-known tools like fotor, wombo, and lensa, the world of AI generated art is just getting started.

How do AI art generators work their magic?

You might be wondering - how can a piece of software instantly generate entire images from text alone? It all comes down to the neural networks powering the AI.

Essentially, these AI art generators have been trained on massive datasets of images, artworks, photos, etc. By analyzing these visual libraries, the machine learning algorithms have learned to detect patterns relating text concepts to visual representations.

So, when you type a text prompt into an AI art generator, it identifies keywords and relationships in the text. It then generates a new image reflecting patterns it learned to represent those text concepts visually.

The key stages happening behind the scenes are:

1. Text analysis – The software extracts important keywords, relationships, meanings, context, etc from your text prompt using natural language processing.

2. Pattern recognition – Machine learning matches the textual concepts to learned visual patterns from its training data, selecting the relevant visual features.

3. Image generation – Finally, it applies those patterns to construct a new image matching the text prompt, blending aspects like composition, style, objects, colors, lighting, etc.

4. Reworking/revising – Should the user be unsatisfied with the generated image, they can make further tweaks to their text prompt and repeat the process until they are satisfied with the final result.

This (very) basic overview of how the software processes text into images highlights the complex algorithms and technologies at work. There’s way more to it than a blog can offer, but once you know a little about what goes into the process, it’s easier to appreciate the end result.

Choosing the right AI art generator for you

With so many impressive AI art generators now available, how do you pick the one best suited to your creative needs? Here are some key criteria to keep in mind as you experiment with different Ai generators on the market today:

Image Quality

Image is everything. Assess the visual output across factors like clarity, resolutions, colors, consistency of details – anything that impacts the quality of the final product.

Some AI art generators may specialize in creating certain types of images, so consider what type of style or aesthetic you are looking for. Remember, higher quality directly correlates with better training data.

Prompt Guidance

Many platforms provide auto-complete suggestions and examples while typing prompts to guide you in structuring effective text inputs. Trained models may vary in their capacity to provide accurate suggestions, so test different prompts and see which ones work best for you.

Consider the level of customization available for prompts – can you enter your own text, or are you limited to pre-made options? Does the tool use a discord server to create the content or a standalone solution?

Control Precision

Tuning images precisely can be tricky. Check how much direct manipulation is enabled for aspects like object placement, color picks, brushes, etc. These options can greatly affect the end result, and controlling them is key. Additionally, some platforms may offer advanced settings for more detailed adjustments.

Training Data Size

More training data produces better quality and diversity. Evaluate transparency around dataset sources and volumes. You’ll also want to take a peek at their privacy and data protection policies to ensure the safety and ethical use of any training data being used.

Output Resolution

If publishing or printing artwork, ensure your platform outputs files meeting minimum resolution benchmarks for your requirements. Many generator tools offer customization options for output resolution, so take advantage of this to achieve the best results.

Iteration Speed

Creating variations rapidly allows quicker fine-tuning. Faster rebuild speeds enhance workflows. You may find that you have to subscribe to access faster iterations, but it may be worth the investment if you plan on creating multiple versions of your artwork.

Sharing & Exporting

Need to shoot those ideas out to the masses (or the C-suite?) Assess supported file types for exporting your AI art. Check permissions and credits required for sharing publicly, and ensure you comply with all copyright laws. Consider watermarking your work to protect it from unauthorized use.

Pricing Model

Price is… well, price. You’ll find that many AI art generators offer a subscription-based model with tiered pricing based on features and usage. Some may also have one-time purchase options or even free versions with limited capabilities. Consider your budget and needs when selecting a pricing model.

The top 10 best AI art generators

After understanding how AI art generators work and their key capabilities, it’s time to highlight the 10 most powerful and highest-quality platforms available right now:

1. DALL-E 2

DALL-E 2 pioneered the AI art generator explosion with its ability to create intricately detailed images from text prompts. Built by Open AI, this DALL-E has been leading the AI image market for a while. When you see those pricey NFT art pieces out there, it's likely DALL-E was involved!

Pros:

• Gold standard for image quality and clarity

• Great consistency between prompts and outputs

• Simple and intuitive text inputs

Cons:

• No free tier

• Limited style and composition control

• Slow rebuild speeds

2. Midjourney

Midjourney yields some of the most realistic and impressive art generator results. While you can find Midjourney online, the real image creation is done in the Midjourney Discord.

Pros:

• Unmatched image quality and detail

• Extensive style mimicry

• Active community provides guidance

Cons:

• Steep learning curve due to Discord

• Confusing pricing model

• Limited control over compositions

3. Stable Diffusion (DreamStudio)

DreamStudio offers an official web interface for Stable Diffusion with added controls.

Pros:

• Adjust main algorithm parameters

• Tweak noise levels and random seeds

• Quickly iterate variations

Cons:

• Complex settings overwhelm beginners

• More artifacts than DALL-E 2

• Requires fine-tuning for best results

4. AI Art by Canva

This popular graphic design platform integrated an AI art generator powered by Stable Diffusion. You've probably used Canva for creating graphics for a variety of business or personal projects, and now the company is dipping its toes in the ai generated art world.

Pros:

• Complete creative suite integration

• Handy templates for images

• Established brand familiarity

Cons:

• Limited style and prompt options

• Lower resolution outputs

• Steeper learning curve

5. Adobe Creative Cloud (Firefly)

Firefly brings Adobe’s AI expertise to Creative Cloud tools like Photoshop. Firefly has a nifty generative AI tool that allows you to expand images and replace elements with a few clicks. If you already have a CC account, this is a great tool to take advantage of!

Pros:

• Natural language prompt guidance

• Creates custom text effects

• Tight integration across products

Cons:

• Limited free tier

• Geared heavily towards existing CC subscribers

• Small overall output scale

6. Nightcafe

Nightcafe adds its own special sauce to Stable Diffusion and DALL-E 2. It's a lesser-known ai generated art tool, but is still packed with potential.

Pros:

• Extra control sliders

• Customizable visual effects

• Vibrant creator community

Cons:

• Styles can seem gimmicky

• Visual effects impact image quality

• Needs guides to handle complexity

7. AI Art by Getty Images

Getty Images (yes, that Getty Images) generates art with a custom AI model promising full legal protections. Powered by Nvidia, you know you're getting a powerhouse of data behind this image generator.

Pros:

• Uses trove of stock image data

• Specialized niche output

• Guarantees against IP issues

Cons:

• Narrow niche appeal

• Requires Getty subscription

• Limited creative flexibility

8. Deep Dream Generator

This one's been around for a long time, and now this ai art generator leverages Stable Diffusion foundations to expand on it's art creation.

Pros:

• Pioneering legacy status

• Novel neural network manipulations

• Fun experimental sliders

Cons:

• Lesser mainstream appeal

• Challenging price model

• Results not as polished

9. Artbreeder

Artbreeder combines aspects of existing images to craft new pieces. A great tool to check out if you are interested in seeing how learning models and machine learning can enhance existing content.

Pros:

• Collaging capabilities stand out

• Blending and splicing options

• Engaged community & challenges

Cons:

• Dated interface and models

• Steep learning curve

• More glitches and artifacts

10. Runway

Runway offers custom model training for businesses - it has a bit of a higher learning curve but has interesting potential for in-house design firms and developers.

Pros:

• Train proprietary algorithms

• Team account options

• Integrates generated art

Cons:

• Geared heavily to developers

• Limited free tier

• Advanced pricing plans

Runner-Up AI Art Generators

Here are five runner up AI art generators worth mentioning:

1. Bing Image Creator

Microsoft's new offering leverages the upgraded DALL-E 3 model for free. You'll also find Bing's ai image creator within the Microsoft Copilot AI.

Pros:

• Latest generation model

• Completely free access

• Intuitive prompts

Cons:

• Limited styles and options

• Early incubation stage

• Slow rebuild speeds

2. OpenAI (DALL-E 3 via ChatGPT)

ChatGPT unlocks DALL-E 3 for subscribers to guide image generation. Simply ask ChatGPT to create an image for you based on a prompt, and it will generate the content in the ChatGPT experience. It's less customizable than others on the list, but still offers a quick AI fix.

Pros:

• Next-gen 3D model quality

• Conversational fine-tuning

• Tight ChatGPT integration

Cons:

• Requires ChatGPT subscription

• Follow-up questions often fail

• Limited free tier

3. StarryAI

A mobile-friendly generator using CLIP-Guided Diffusion foundations.

Pros:

• iOS and Android apps

• Handy auto-complete

• Daily free credits

Cons:

• Maximum output scale

• Heavy watermarks

• Older AI models

4. DeepAI

DeepAI offers developers an art generator API for apps and experiments.

Pros:

• Customizable backend

• Range of niche models

• Actively advancing R&D

Cons:

• Geared towards coders

• Limited free sampling

• Results not as polished

5. Pixray (by Replicate)

Pixray provides an open-source art generator to tweak algorithms. While not the most robust option, it can get the job done with text-to-image generation.

Pros:

• Open-source access

• Educational demos

• Full model experimentation

Cons:

• Only for developers

• Glitchy, unfinished feel

• Steep learning curve

Explore endless creative possibilities with AI art

And there you have it – our top picks for the leading AI-powered art and image generators available right now based on critical factors like output quality, capability breadth, ease of use, and overall value.

While results can vary across platforms and individual prompts, the current scope of imagery these tools can produce is frankly mind-blowing. They remove virtually all technical barriers, allowing complete beginners to effortlessly create elaborate, unique visuals straight from text prompts.

Yet, for all their advantages, even the most advanced generators can’t fully replace human creativity and judgment. This is why the Contra platform is so invaluable.

Contra allows clients to connect directly with talented human AI artists and AI content creators who can take your vision to the next level. They have a keen eye for finessing prompts and cherry-picking the best results to transform AI raw materials into production-ready assets. Contra also helps independents showcase and monetize in-demand AI, design, and content skills.

So whether you just want to explore basic AI art on your own or collaborate with proven experts to integrate next-gen imagery into business projects, Contra should be your go-to resource.