Nano Banana 2.1 vs Nano Banana 2: what actually changed

By GetStepSnap · Tested and published October 7, 2026

Nano Banana 2.1 is the update to Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image). Google released it on October 6, 2026, and the same day marked Nano Banana 2 as deprecated in the Gemini API.

Below: what Google says changed, what it costs now, and what we saw when we ran the same eight prompts through both. The short version is better, cheaper, and just as fast. That combination doesn't come along often.

What Google says changed

According to Google's release notes, 2.1 keeps the speed and price class of a Flash model and improves:

better image quality
closer to what the prompt asks for
keeps the same character consistent over several edits
better text inside images
very wide and very tall images: 4:1, 1:4, 8:1 and 1:8, at 1K, 2K and 4K

Source: Gemini API changelog, October 6, 2026. Nano Banana 2's model ID is gemini-3.1-flash-image; 2.1's is gemini-nano-banana-2.1.

It also costs less: about half at 1K and 2K

Price	Nano Banana 2.1	Nano Banana 2
1K image output, Google Standard	$0.0336	$0.067
2K image output, Google Standard	$0.0504	$0.101
4K image output, Google Standard	$0.113	$0.151
1K image, fal.ai†	about $0.04, by usage	$0.08 flat

Google's prices are for the image itself on the Standard tier; the slower Batch tier is half. The prompt, attached photos and thinking are billed on top: 2.1 charges more per token for those ($1.50 and $7.50 per million, against $0.50 and $3 for Nano Banana 2), but in our own bills they added less than a cent per image. †fal.ai charges Nano Banana 2 a flat price per image. It bills 2.1 on the tokens each request uses: $0.04 is fal's estimate for a short prompt with thinking, and a long prompt or attached photos add a little. Sources: Google's Gemini API price page and fal.ai's model pages, October 7, 2026. More in our Nano Banana 2.1 pricing guide.

Side by side: 8 prompts

Same prompt, same shape, 1K, one try each, through fal.ai on October 7, 2026. For 2.1 we used exactly the settings our own tool uses. One try per prompt is a small sample: treat these as examples, not a benchmark.

1. Words on a chalkboard

Prompt: "A bakery chalkboard menu, hand-lettered in white chalk, that reads exactly: TODAY — Cinnamon Roll $4 — Sourdough Loaf $7 — Oat Latte $5. Warm cafe light, a few croissants on the counter in front." · 4:3, 1K

Nano Banana 2.1: a bakery chalkboard menu reading Today, Cinnamon Roll $4, Sourdough Loaf $7, Oat Latte $5 — Nano Banana 2.1 · 13.3 s

Nano Banana 2: a bakery chalkboard menu reading Today, Cinnamon Roll $4, Sourdough Loaf $7, Oat Latte $5 — Nano Banana 2 · 13.2 s

Both spelled every line right. Nano Banana 2 dropped the dashes and added a little heart doodle nobody asked for.

2. An infographic with four steps

Prompt: "A clean flat infographic titled 'How Coffee Gets to Your Cup' with four numbered steps in a vertical column: 1 Harvest, 2 Dry, 3 Roast, 4 Brew. Each step has a simple icon and a one-line caption. Cream background, brown and green accents." · 3:4, 1K

Nano Banana 2.1: an infographic titled How Coffee Gets to Your Cup with four numbered steps — Nano Banana 2.1 · 12.4 s

Nano Banana 2: an infographic titled How Coffee Gets to Your Cup with four numbered steps — Nano Banana 2 · 12.4 s

Both correct and readable. The differences are style, not accuracy.

3. A realistic portrait

Prompt: "Candid 35mm film photo of an elderly fisherman mending a net on a wooden dock at dawn, weathered hands, soft natural light, shallow depth of field." · 4:5, 1K

Nano Banana 2.1: a photo of an elderly fisherman mending a net on a wooden dock at dawn — Nano Banana 2.1 · 12.3 s

Nano Banana 2: a photo of an elderly fisherman mending a net on a wooden dock at dawn — Nano Banana 2 · 12.4 s

Very close. Both pass for a real film photo.

4. Counting objects

Prompt: "Exactly five red apples and three green pears in one straight row on a wooden table, studio lighting, white background." · 16:9, 1K

Nano Banana 2.1: red apples and green pears in a row on a wooden table — Nano Banana 2.1 · 10.6 s

Nano Banana 2: red apples and green pears in a row on a wooden table — Nano Banana 2 · 12.4 s

Both got five apples and three pears, in the order we asked for.

5. A product ad

Prompt: "Commercial ad photo: a pair of white running shoes floating above a puddle on a city street at night, pink and blue neon reflections in the water." · 1:1, 1K

Nano Banana 2.1: white running shoes floating above a puddle on a neon-lit city street at night — Nano Banana 2.1 · 12.4 s

Nano Banana 2: white running shoes floating above a puddle on a neon-lit city street at night — Nano Banana 2 · 12.4 s

Both good. Nano Banana 2 also filled the street with made-up neon words.

6. Restoring an old photo

Edit prompt: "Restore this old photo: remove the scratches, creases, dust and the torn corner, sharpen the faces and colorize it naturally. Keep the people, their poses and the composition exactly the same." · 4:3, 1K

A scratched black-and-white 1950s photo of a couple in front of a diner — The photo we started from (also AI-made)

Nano Banana 2.1: the old photo restored and colorized: a couple in front of Rose's Diner — Nano Banana 2.1 · 16.5 s

Nano Banana 2: the old photo restored and colorized: a couple in front of Rose's Diner — Nano Banana 2 · 14.3 s

Nano Banana 2 colorized it but kept the old print's white border, so it still looks like a photo of a photo. 2.1 gave a clean, full-frame result.

7. A phone snapshot into a product photo

Edit prompt: "Turn this into a professional product photo: the same candle on a travertine stone pedestal, soft warm light from the side, a gentle shadow, a clean beige background and a few dried flowers. Keep the jar and its label exactly the same." · 4:5, 1K

A phone photo of an amber jar candle on a messy kitchen counter — The photo we started from (also AI-made)

Nano Banana 2.1: the candle as a studio product photo on a stone pedestal — Nano Banana 2.1 · 15.2 s

Nano Banana 2: the candle as a studio product photo on a stone pedestal — Nano Banana 2 · 12.4 s

Both kept the label. Nano Banana 2 added a cut fig as a prop, which is a nice touch.

8. A pet photo into a collectible figure

Edit prompt: "Create a 1/7 scale commercialized figurine of the cat in the picture, in a realistic style, in a real environment. The figurine stands on a round transparent acrylic base with no text, on a computer desk. The computer screen shows the 3D modeling of this figurine. Next to the screen is a premium collectible toy box printed with artwork of the same cat." · 1:1, 1K

A phone photo of an orange tabby cat on a windowsill — The photo we started from (also AI-made)

Nano Banana 2.1: the cat as a collectible figure on a desk with its toy box — Nano Banana 2.1 · 15.7 s

Nano Banana 2: the cat as a collectible figure on a desk with its toy box — Nano Banana 2 · 17.0 s

Nano Banana 2 changed the pose: our cat was sitting, its figure is standing. 2.1 kept the pose.

New in 2.1: very wide images

A 4:1 panorama of a misty mountain lake at sunrise with a red canoe, made with Nano Banana 2.1 — "A wide panoramic photo of a mountain lake at sunrise, mist on the water, pine forest on both shores, a small red canoe near the middle." · 4:1, 1K, which came out 2064 × 512 pixels. Google lists 4:1, 1:4, 8:1 and 1:8 as new in 2.1. Handy for website banners and phone wallpapers.

What we noticed

Text: no difference in our two tests. Both spelled everything right.
Edits: 2.1 stuck closer to the original twice. It removed the old print's border when restoring the photo, and it kept the cat sitting when we turned it into a figure.
Speed: the same in practice, about 11 to 17 seconds for a 1K image.
Price: about half at 1K and 2K, about a quarter less at 4K.

If you're still on Nano Banana 2, switch. We didn't find a single case where it was the better pick. Curious how 2.1 holds up against the expensive one? Read Nano Banana 2.1 vs Nano Banana Pro.

Questions

What is Nano Banana 2.1?

Google's image generation and editing model released on October 6, 2026, the successor to Nano Banana 2 (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image). Its model ID in the Gemini API is gemini-nano-banana-2.1.

Is Nano Banana 2 being shut down?

Google marked gemini-3.1-flash-image (Nano Banana 2) as deprecated on October 6, 2026, and told developers to move to 2.1. No shutdown date had been announced when we checked.

Is Nano Banana 2.1 cheaper than Nano Banana 2?

Yes. Google's Standard-tier price for the image itself is about half at 1K ($0.0336 against $0.067) and 2K ($0.0504 against $0.101), and about 25% lower at 4K ($0.113 against $0.151). On fal.ai, Nano Banana 2 is a flat $0.08 per 1K image, while 2.1 is billed on the tokens each request uses: about $0.04 for a 1K image from a short prompt.

Is Nano Banana 2.1 faster?

About the same. In our runs 2.1 took 10.6 to 16.5 seconds and Nano Banana 2 took 12.4 to 17 seconds, edits included.

Should I switch to Nano Banana 2.1?

Yes. Nothing we tried came out worse on 2.1, two edits came out better, it costs about half as much at 1K and 2K, and Nano Banana 2 is on its way out.

GetStepSnap is an independent product and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Google LLC. Nano Banana and Gemini are Google's names for its AI models.