Seedream 5.0 Lite API Launched: A More Affordable AI image generation Choice Than 4.5 ($0.035/image)

Author's Note: Seedream 5.0 Lite (seedream-5-0-260128) is now live on the APIYI platform. At $0.035/image, it's cheaper than Seedream 4.5 and adds web search and deep reasoning capabilities. Full integration tutorial included.

ByteDance's Seed team has released the Seedream 5.0 Lite image generation model, with the Model ID seedream-5-0-260128. This is the latest version in the Seedream series and the first image generation model to feature web search and deep reasoning capabilities. More importantly—it's even cheaper than the previous generation Seedream 4.5, costing only $0.035 per image.

Currently, this model is available on the APIYI platform. Both text-to-image and image editing share the /v1/images/generations endpoint. It's billed per request, and you can start using it immediately with your API key.

Core Value: Spend 5 minutes to learn about Seedream 5.0 Lite's core upgrades, pricing advantages, and API integration methods to quickly integrate the latest image generation capabilities into your projects.

Seedream 5.0 Lite API Core Information

Seedream 5.0 Lite Pricing Advantages

The pricing strategy for Seedream 5.0 Lite is a pleasant surprise—the new version isn't just more powerful; it's actually cheaper:

APIYI's top-up bonus events lower the cost even further: top-ups starting from $100 receive a 10% bonus, which means you can use Seedream 5.0 Lite at effectively 80% of the official price. For scenarios with high model invocation volumes, the cost advantage is significant.

🎯 Cost Calculation: For example, if you generate 10,000 images a month, using Seedream 5.0 Lite will only cost $350. With the top-up bonus, that can drop to around $280—saving you 38% compared to Seedream 4.5's $450.

Seedream 5.0 Lite's 4 Core Upgrades

ByteDance defines Seedream 5.0 Lite as a "unified multimodal image generation model with deep thinking and web search capabilities." Compared to Seedream 4.5, it represents a fundamental shift in architectural philosophy—moving from a pursuit of pure aesthetics to a focus on understanding, reasoning, and control.

Seedream 5.0 Lite Web Search Capability

This is Seedream 5.0 Lite's most groundbreaking feature. The model can search the internet in real-time to gather the latest information before generating an image.

Typical Scenarios:

• Current Events: Enter "2026 Oscar Best Picture poster style," and the model will first search for the latest awards results.
• Product Marketing: Enter "A creative ad for the latest iPhone," and the model generates it after fetching the most recent product details.
• Trend Creation: Enter "An infographic of the most popular AI tools right now," and the model searches for current trends before creating the visual.

The model intelligently decides whether it needs to search the web—automatically triggering a search when the prompt involves time-sensitive information, while directly generating for standard creative requests.

Seedream 5.0 Lite Deep Reasoning Capability

Seedream 5.0 Lite introduces multi-step logical reasoning, allowing it to understand complex semantic relationships and physical laws:

• Spatial Reasoning: Accurately understands spatial descriptions like "A is to the top-left of B, and C is behind D."
• Physical Laws: Correctely represents physical phenomena such as light reflection, water shadows, and perspective relationships.
• Information Visualization: Generates professional charts like educational infographics, ecosystem diagrams, and geological cross-sections.
• Multi-Subject Scenes: Accurately maintains text, number, and color attributes in complex scenes containing up to 9 subjects.

Seedream 5.0 Lite Smart Image Editing

Unlike the precise command-based editing in Seedream 4.5, Seedream 5.0 Lite supports "vague" editing instructions—it can actually infer the designer's intent:

• Enter "Make this photo feel more atmospheric," and the model automatically adjusts lighting and tones.
• Enter "Put this product in a more high-end setting," and the model intelligently selects a suitable environment.
• It still supports precise editing: local modifications, style transfer, and adding/removing elements.

Seedream 5.0 Lite Text Rendering and Layout

Inheriting the excellent text rendering DNA of Seedream 4.5, it supports generating clear, readable text within images. However, the official team honestly points out that as a Lite version, there's still room for improvement in text structural stability.

💡 Version Note: Seedream 5.0 Lite is a lightweight version, so there's still some optimization to be done regarding structural stability and extreme realism. However, its web search and reasoning capabilities are a breakthrough in a whole new dimension, making it perfect for creative scenarios that require "intelligent understanding."

Seedream 5.0 Lite vs. Seedream 4.5: A Deep Comparison

Seedream 5.0 Lite Selection Advice

When to choose Seedream 5.0 Lite:

• You need to generate images based on the latest information (news visuals, product marketing).
• You need intelligent understanding and reasoning for complex scenes.
• You're budget-conscious and looking for a lower cost per image.
• You're creating professional visual content like infographics or educational charts.

When to stick with Seedream 4.5:

• You have extremely high requirements for text rendering quality (poster design, brand VI).
• You need extreme realism for product photography.
• You already have a mature 4.5 workflow that delivers satisfactory results.

🎯 Pro Tip: Both versions are available for model invocation on the APIYI (apiyi.com) platform. We recommend testing both models with the same set of prompts to see which output best fits your specific needs.

Seedream 5.0 Lite API Quick Integration

Minimalist Example (curl)

Both text-to-image and image-to-image use the same endpoint: /v1/images/generations. To call it via the APIYI platform, you just need to swap out the request URL and API key:

curl https://api.apiyi.com/v1/images/generations \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sk-YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -d '{
    "model": "seedream-5-0-260128",
    "prompt": "A Corgi wearing a spacesuit walking on the lunar surface, Earth in the background, cinematic lighting",
    "size": "3K",
    "watermark": false
}'

Endpoint Details: Text-to-image and image editing share the /v1/images/generations endpoint. For image editing, just add the image_urls parameter to the request body to pass in your reference image—no need to switch endpoints. APIYI uses pay-per-use billing, so you can start calling the model with a standard pay-per-use token (API key).

Python Example

import requests

url = "https://api.apiyi.com/v1/images/generations"
headers = {
    "Content-Type": "application/json",
    "Authorization": "Bearer sk-YOUR_API_KEY"
}

# Text-to-image
payload = {
    "model": "seedream-5-0-260128",
    "prompt": "A Corgi wearing a spacesuit walking on the lunar surface, Earth in the background, cinematic lighting",
    "size": "3K",
    "watermark": False
}

response = requests.post(url, headers=headers, json=payload)
result = response.json()
print(result["data"][0]["url"])

import requests

url = "https://api.apiyi.com/v1/images/generations"
headers = {
    "Content-Type": "application/json",
    "Authorization": "Bearer sk-YOUR_API_KEY"
}

# Image-to-image editing - uses the same endpoint, just add the image_urls parameter
payload = {
    "model": "seedream-5-0-260128",
    "prompt": "Place this product in a high-end showroom with marble floors and soft spotlights",
    "image_urls": [
        "https://example.com/your-product-image.png"
    ],
    "size": "3K",
    "watermark": False
}

response = requests.post(url, headers=headers, json=payload)
result = response.json()
print(result["data"][0]["url"])

# Multi-image reference editing - also uses image_urls, supports up to 14 images
payload_multi = {
    "model": "seedream-5-0-260128",
    "prompt": "Use the person from image 1, the clothing style from image 2, and the background from image 3 to generate a fashion magazine cover",
    "image_urls": [
        "https://example.com/person.png",
        "https://example.com/fashion-style.png",
        "https://example.com/background.png"
    ],
    "size": "3K",
    "watermark": False
}

response = requests.post(url, headers=headers, json=payload_multi)

Pro-tip: Head over to APIYI (apiyi.com) to grab some free test credits and quickly verify Seedream 5.0 Lite's performance. If you top up $100 or more, you'll get a 10% bonus—it's much more cost-effective for high-volume model invocations.

Seedream 5.0 Lite vs. Competitor Image Models

{AI image generation model competitive comparison} {The differentiated advantages of Seedream 5.0 Lite are clear at a glance.}

{Dimension} {Seedream 5.0 Lite} {GPT-Image-1} {FLUX 1.1 Pro} {Ideogram 3}

{Pricing per image} {$0.035 ⭐} {$0.04-0.08} {$0.04} {$0.08}

{Web search} {✅ The only one} {✕} {✕} {✕}

{Multi-image input} {14 images ⭐} {✕} {✕} {✕}

{Deep Reasoning} {✅ Multi-step reasoning} {✅} {✕} {Limited}

{Text rendering} {★★★★} {★★★★★} {★★★} {★★★★★}

{Image editing} {Exact + Fuzzy} {✅} {Limited} {Limited}

{Open Source} {Closed source} {Closed source} {Partially open source} {Closed source}

{Seedream 5.0 Lite Differentiated Advantages} {Lowest pricing + Unique web search + Up to 14 multi-image inputs + Deep reasoning} {Suitable for creative scenarios requiring intelligent understanding and real-time information}

{Recommend APIYI: a stable and reliable AI Large Language Model API proxy service, affordable prices, free trial.}

Comparison Summary: The standout advantage of Seedream 5.0 Lite is its unique combo of web search + multi-image input + rock-bottom pricing. If you need to generate images based on real-time information, it's currently your only real choice.

Seedream 5.0 Lite Migration Guide from 4.5

For developers already using the Seedream 4.5 API, migrating to Seedream 5.0 Lite is a breeze:

Core Change: Just update the model parameter from seedream-4-5-251128 to seedream-5-0-260128. The endpoint and all other parameters remain exactly the same.

# Before: Seedream 4.5 ($0.045/image)
curl https://api.apiyi.com/v1/images/generations \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sk-YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"model": "seedream-4-5-251128", "prompt": "Your prompt", "size": "3K"}'

# Now: Seedream 5.0 Lite ($0.035/image) — only the model parameter changes
curl https://api.apiyi.com/v1/images/generations \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sk-YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"model": "seedream-5-0-260128", "prompt": "Your prompt", "size": "3K"}'

The API interface is fully compatible, so you won't need to modify any other code logic. After migrating, you'll get:

• Lower costs: Dropping from $0.045 to $0.035 per image, a 22% saving.
• Enhanced capabilities: Automatically gain web search and deep reasoning features.
• Maintained compatibility: All existing text-to-image, image-to-image, and multi-image editing features are preserved.

💰 Migration Tip: We recommend testing both versions with the same prompt first to ensure the 5.0 Lite output meets your quality requirements before doing a full switch. You can easily compare the two versions using the APIYI (apiyi.com) platform.

FAQ

Summary

Key takeaways for Seedream 5.0 Lite API integration:

1. More Affordable: At $0.035/image, it's 22% cheaper than Seedream 4.5 ($0.045/image). You can snag even better rates with APIYI recharge promotions.
2. New Capabilities: Web search + Deep reasoning + Smart editing. It's the first image generation model equipped with real-time information retrieval capabilities.
3. Easy Migration: Just change the Model ID from seedream-4-5-251128 to seedream-5-0-260128. The API is fully compatible.

Seedream 5.0 Lite represents a paradigm shift in AI image generation—moving from just "chasing aesthetics" to "understanding, reasoning, and control." For developers who need to intelligently understand complex scenes or create content based on real-time info, this is currently the most cost-effective choice.

We recommend quickly integrating Seedream 5.0 Lite via APIYI (apiyi.com). The platform offers free testing credits and recharge bonuses (get an extra 10% starting from $100), helping you experience the latest AI image generation capabilities at the lowest cost.

📚 References

⚠️ Link Format Note: All external links use the Resource Name: domain.com format. This makes them easy to copy while avoiding SEO weight loss from clickable links.

1. ByteDance Seed Official – Seedream 5.0 Lite: Model introduction and technical specs

   • Link: seed.bytedance.com/en/seedream5_0_lite
   • Description: Learn about the full features and architecture of Seedream 5.0 Lite.

2. BytePlus ModelArk Pricing Page: Official pricing for the Seedream series API

   • Link: docs.byteplus.com/en/docs/ModelArk/1544106
   • Description: Confirm the latest pricing for all versions.

3. BytePlus ModelArk Tutorial: Seedream 4.0-5.0 API usage guide

   • Link: docs.byteplus.com/en/docs/ModelArk/1824121
   • Description: Official integration tutorials and code examples.

4. Seedream 5.0 Lite Release Blog: Deep thinking, precise generation

   • Link: seed.bytedance.com/en/blog/deeper-thinking-more-accurate-generation-introducing-seedream-5-0-lite
   • Description: Understand the design philosophy and core innovations behind 5.0 Lite.

Author: Technical Team
Tech Talk: Feel free to discuss your experience with Seedream 5.0 Lite in the comments. For more AI image generation API integration guides, visit the APIYI (apiyi.com) tech community.