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Nano Banana Pro at 4K: 24 credits, and when to spend them
What 4K costs against 1K and 2K, what the extra pixels actually resolve, how big it prints, and why a 4K generation gives you a different picture rather than a bigger one.
Nano Banana Pro generates at 4K for 24 credits on aikizi — about 11 cents on the $20 plan — against 8 at 1K and 16 at 2K. It is worth it for print, for crops and for pictures whose subject is a surface. It is worth nothing for screens, and it will not give you a bigger version of a picture you already like: each size is generated separately, so 4K comes back as a different picture.
The prices, and what 4K measures
| Size | Long edge | Credits · Pro | Credits · NB2 | At 300 dpi |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1K | 1024 px | 8 | 4 | 8.7 cm |
| 2K | 2048 px | 16 | 8 | 17.3 cm |
| 4K | 4096 px | 24 | 12 | 34.7 cm — about A3 |
Nano Banana 2 reaches 4K at half the price, 12 credits. Nano Banana 2 Lite does not reach it at all — it renders at 1K only, for 2 credits.
What the extra pixels actually resolve
Count what is actually resolved there: individual weft threads in the silk, the ribbing on each gold stitch, and four or five loose zari filaments lifting off the weave and catching the light. At 1K that whole border would be a gold smear on red. This is the subject type that justifies the price — and it is why the honest answer to "should I always use 4K" depends entirely on whether your picture has a surface in it.
Three things resolve at 4K that do not at 1K, and all three are material rather than compositional: the speckle in granite reads as individual grains instead of noise, marigolds separate into petals instead of orange masses, and brass shows patina and pitting rather than a smooth gradient. If your subject is a surface — fabric, skin, metal, stone, food — that is where the 24 credits go. If it is a shape against a sky, they go nowhere.
The thing nobody tells you before you spend
We ran one prompt at all three sizes with nothing changed but the setting. The garland was coiled at 1K, draped over the step edge at 2K and ringed at 4K. The lamp moved. The background rebuilt itself each time. Resolution is not a quality dial on a fixed image — each size is its own generation, with its own composition.
Part 3 of the generation series shows one prompt run at all three sizes so you can see that happen.
So the question "should I generate at 4K" is really two questions. If you are still finding the picture, no — work small and cheap. If you have found it, also no — upscale it for 15 credits, which keeps the composition you chose. 4K generation is for when you want a large picture and you are still happy to be surprised by it.
When to pay the 24
| Situation | Do this | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Still deciding the composition | Draft on Nano Banana 2 Lite at 1K | 2 each |
| Finishing for a screen, a post, a site | 2K on Nano Banana Pro | 16 |
| You love a picture and need it big | Upscale it | 15 |
| Print, or you will crop in hard | 4K on Nano Banana Pro | 24 |
| Print, and the budget is tight | 4K on Nano Banana 2 | 12 |
On a screen you are over-supplied long before 4K: a full-width image on a laptop is about 1400 pixels across and a phone is less. 2K already exceeds both.
FAQ
How much does Nano Banana Pro 4K cost?
24 credits on aikizi, against 16 at 2K and 8 at 1K. On the $20 plan that is about 11 cents a picture. Nano Banana 2 reaches 4K for 12 credits.
Is 4K worth it?
For print, for hard crops and for pictures whose subject is a surface — stone, metal, fabric, skin — yes. For screens, no: 2K already carries more pixels than a laptop or phone displays.
Will generating at 4K give me a bigger version of my picture?
No. Each size is a separate generation with its own composition. In our three runs of one prompt the garland was coiled, then draped, then ringed. To keep a picture you already have, upscale it for 15 credits instead.
Can Nano Banana 2 Lite do 4K?
No. Lite renders at 1K only, for 2 credits — it is the drafting tier. Nano Banana 2 does 4K at 12 credits and Nano Banana Pro at 24.
How big does a 4K image print?
About 34 cm on the long edge at 300 dpi, so roughly A3 framed. 2K gives about 17 cm and 1K under 9 cm.
Try one prompt at 1K first in the Studio — it is 8 credits and it tells you whether the composition is worth 24. The three sizes side by side are in part 3 of the generation series.