# Free tier API Image generation

**URL:** <https://discuss.ai.google.dev/t/free-tier-api-image-generation/177423>\
**Category:** Gemini API\
**Tags:** image-generation\
**Created:** [August 7, 2026, 6:39am UTC](https://discuss.ai.google.dev/t/free-tier-api-image-generation/177423 "2026-08-07T06:39:16Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Thomas\_Mayer1](https://d1dlmcr85iqnpo.cloudfront.net/user_avatar/discuss.ai.google.dev/thomas_mayer1/32/141018_2.png) [@Thomas\_Mayer1](https://discuss.ai.google.dev/u/Thomas_Mayer1)\
**Post date:** [August 7, 2026, 6:39am UTC](https://discuss.ai.google.dev/t/free-tier-api-image-generation/177423/1 "2026-08-07T06:39:16Z")

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Hi, I´ve an API token key created in Google Studio AI for my project. I will connect this API in a desktop app build with claude code. This app should create AI images. But I will also get a Quota exceeded … limit: 0, model: gemini-2.5-flash-preview-image response. Is it possible to create images over an API in free tier?

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**Author:** ![Matthew1](https://d1dlmcr85iqnpo.cloudfront.net/user_avatar/discuss.ai.google.dev/matthew1/32/139174_2.png) [@Matthew1](https://discuss.ai.google.dev/u/Matthew1)\
**Post date:** [August 7, 2026, 6:56am UTC](https://discuss.ai.google.dev/t/free-tier-api-image-generation/177423/2 "2026-08-07T06:56:37Z")

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I believe the free tier does support image generation, but it comes with fairly strict usage limits and quotas. If you’re seeing a “quota exceeded” message, it may simply mean you’ve reached the free allowance for your project or region. I’d also check whether the specific image model you’re using is currently available on the free tier, since availability can differ between models. Has anyone here successfully used the `gemini-2.5-flash-preview-image` model on the free tier, or is a paid billing account required for that model?

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Thomas\_Mayer1](https://d1dlmcr85iqnpo.cloudfront.net/user_avatar/discuss.ai.google.dev/thomas_mayer1/32/141018_2.png) [@Thomas\_Mayer1](https://discuss.ai.google.dev/u/Thomas_Mayer1)\
**Post date:** [August 7, 2026, 7:19am UTC](https://discuss.ai.google.dev/t/free-tier-api-image-generation/177423/3 "2026-08-07T07:19:32Z")

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this is a new project and a new day. The limit should reset every day to a minimum account. I didn´t found any documentation, which image generation modell is free with an API key. on the web site of google studio ai I can create a image with nano banana 2 lite (gemini-3.1-flash-lite-image)

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**Author:** ![Payal\_Sharma2](https://d1dlmcr85iqnpo.cloudfront.net/user_avatar/discuss.ai.google.dev/payal_sharma2/32/31911_2.png) [@Payal\_Sharma2](https://discuss.ai.google.dev/u/Payal_Sharma2)\
**Post date:** [August 11, 2026, 11:53am UTC](https://discuss.ai.google.dev/t/free-tier-api-image-generation/177423/4 "2026-08-11T11:53:54Z")

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Hello, as noted in our pricing documentation ([https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/pricing#gemini-2.5-flash-image](https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/pricing#gemini-2.5-flash-image)), the gemini-2.5-flash-image model is not available for use on the Free Tier. You will need to upgrade to a paid tier to access Imagen and image generation capabilities.