ByteDance's image generation model with built-in reasoning, example-based editing, and deep domain knowledge, supporting up to 3K resolution
Details
seedream-5-lite
Providers & Pricing (1)
Seedream 5.0 Lite is available exclusively through Replicate, starting at $0.035/image.
replicate/seedream-5-lite
Provider Performance
Fastest generation through replicate at 41,708ms median latency with 91.1% success rate.
Aggregated from real API requests over the last 30 days.
Generation Time
Success Rate
Time to First Byte
Provider Rankings
| # | Provider | p50 Gen Time | p95 Gen Time | Success Rate | TTFB (p50) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | replicate | 41,708ms | 69,545ms | 91.1% | 41,708ms |
Seedream 5.0 Lite API OpenAI-compatible
Lumenfall provides an OpenAI-compatible API to generate 3K resolution images and perform example-based image editing using Seedream 5.0 Lite. This unified integration allows developers to programmatically access ByteDance's text-to-image and image-to-image capabilities with a single endpoint.
https://api.lumenfall.ai/openai/v1
seedream-5-lite
Text to Image Generate
Create images from text descriptions
curl -X POST \
https://api.lumenfall.ai/openai/v1/images/generations \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $LUMENFALL_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"model": "seedream-5-lite",
"prompt": "A serene mountain landscape at sunset",
"size": "1024x1024"
}'
# Response:
# { "created": 1234567890, "data": [{ "url": "https://...", "revised_prompt": "..." }] }
import OpenAI from 'openai';
const client = new OpenAI({
apiKey: 'YOUR_API_KEY',
baseURL: 'https://api.lumenfall.ai/openai/v1'
});
const response = await client.images.generate({
model: 'seedream-5-lite',
prompt: 'A serene mountain landscape at sunset',
size: '1024x1024'
});
// { created: 1234567890, data: [{ url: "https://...", revised_prompt: "..." }] }
console.log(response.data[0].url);
from openai import OpenAI
client = OpenAI(
api_key="YOUR_API_KEY",
base_url="https://api.lumenfall.ai/openai/v1"
)
response = client.images.generate(
model="seedream-5-lite",
prompt="A serene mountain landscape at sunset",
size="1024x1024"
)
# { created: 1234567890, data: [{ url: "https://...", revised_prompt: "..." }] }
print(response.data[0].url)
Image Editing Edit
Transform existing images with text instructions
curl -X POST \
https://api.lumenfall.ai/openai/v1/images/edits \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $LUMENFALL_API_KEY" \
-F "model=seedream-5-lite" \
-F "[email protected]" \
-F "prompt=Add a starry night sky to this image" \
-F "size=1024x1024"
# Response:
# { "created": 1234567890, "data": [{ "url": "https://...", "revised_prompt": "..." }] }
import OpenAI from 'openai';
import fs from 'fs';
const client = new OpenAI({
apiKey: 'YOUR_API_KEY',
baseURL: 'https://api.lumenfall.ai/openai/v1'
});
const response = await client.images.edit({
model: 'seedream-5-lite',
image: fs.createReadStream('source.png'),
prompt: 'Add a starry night sky to this image',
size: '1024x1024'
});
// { created: 1234567890, data: [{ url: "https://...", revised_prompt: "..." }] }
console.log(response.data[0].url);
from openai import OpenAI
client = OpenAI(
api_key="YOUR_API_KEY",
base_url="https://api.lumenfall.ai/openai/v1"
)
response = client.images.edit(
model="seedream-5-lite",
image=open("source.png", "rb"),
prompt="Add a starry night sky to this image",
size="1024x1024"
)
# { created: 1234567890, data: [{ url: "https://...", revised_prompt: "..." }] }
print(response.data[0].url)
Benchmarks
Seedream 5.0 Lite holds the #8 rank for image editing with a 1215 Elo and the #15 rank for text-to-image generation with a 1239 Elo. These rankings reflect its strength in modifying existing visuals while maintaining competitive performance in general image creation.
Competition Results
Over-the-top cartoon caricature
Image Editing“Create a caricature of me and my job. Make it exaggerated and humorous, incorporating my profession as a tv show anchor and my love for dogs and hockey.”
Modern Clean Menu
Text-to-Image“Modern minimalist restaurant menu design, white background with colorful food photos in grid, sections for appetizers/pizza/mains, bold sans-serif fonts, vibrant accents, clean professional layout for casual dining.”
Adorable Baby Animals in Sunny Meadow
Text-to-Image“Hyper-photorealistic scene of fluffy baby animals—a golden retriever puppy, tabby kitten, baby bunny, and red fox kit—with big expressive eyes and ultra-detailed soft fur, playfully chasing butterflies and tumbling together in a lush wildflower meadow, warm golden sunrise light with god rays and dew sparkles, joyful wholesome vibe, 8K masterpiece.”
Bald man challenge
Image Editing“Give the person a full, thick head of natural hair with realistic texture, density, and a natural hairline. Preserve facial features and lighting.”
Man and Car in California
Image Editing“Make a photo of the man driving the car down the California coastline”
Studio Ghibli Anime Style
Image Editing“Transform this photo into a Studio Ghibli–inspired illustration. Use soft pastel colors, hand-painted textures, gentle lighting, dreamy backgrounds, and a warm, nostalgic mood”
Neutral Expression to Genuine Smile
Image Editing{
"action": "image_edit",
"reference": "uploaded neutral portrait",
"change": "Warm genuine Duchenne smile: lips curved up, slight natural teeth, soft eye crinkles, subtle cheek raise",
"details": "Realistic smiling skin (dimples if present, soft cheek shadows), slightly brighter eyes; keep exact eye shape/color/iris",
"preserve_exact": "Face identity/structure, eyes/nose/lips/eyebrows, hair, skin texture/pores/freckles, makeup, clothing, head pose, background, lighting, shadows, framing",
"no_changes": "No face shape change, no new features, no gaze shift, no hair/clothing/lighting/background edits",
"style": "Ultra-photorealistic 8K portrait, sharp face focus, natural soft lighting, realistic skin glow"
}
Isometric Miniature Diorama Scenes
Text-to-Image“Create a clear, 45° top-down isometric miniature 3D cartoon scene of Japan's signature dish: sushi, with soft refined textures, realistic PBR materials, gentle lighting, on a small raised diorama base with minimal garnish and plate. Solid light blue background. At top-center: 'JAPAN' in large bold text, 'SUSHI' below it, small flag icon. Perfectly centered, ultra-clean, high-clarity, square format.”
Night Sky Transformation
Image Editing“Change the scene to night: a deep, dark sky with subtle, glistening stars visible behind the mountain.”
Candid Street Photography
Text-to-Image“A candid street photo of an elderly Japanese man repairing a red bicycle in light rain, reflections on wet pavement, shallow depth of field, 50mm lens, natural skin texture, imperfect framing, motion blur from passing cars, cinematic but realistic, no stylization.”
Vintage Cafe Logo
Text-to-Image“Vintage minimalist restaurant logo for "Caffè Florian", retro cloche dome with steam and "Est. 1720" banner, classic typography, warm brown and cream tones, subtle texture on light background, vector emblem style.”
Heroic Super Hero Portrait
Text-to-Image“Hyper-photorealistic full-body portrait of a female superhero standing triumphantly on a New York skyscraper rooftop at golden sunset, wearing a classic modest superhero costume with flowing cape, chest emblem, gloves, and boots in red and blue colors, practical design, short hair, strong determined heroic expression looking into the distance, powerful confident stance with hands on hips and cape billowing dramatically in the wind, detailed urban cityscape background, warm natural sunlight with sharp shadows and fabric highlights, ultra-sharp textures on suit, hair, and concrete, 8K masterpiece, empowering family-friendly style.”
Golden Hour Stroll
Image Editing“Add dynamic motion to this photo: make hair blow in the wind, add leaves flying, energetic and lively feel.”
Fantasy Warrior
Text-to-Image“Close portrait of a battle-worn paladin in ornate engraved plate armor, hair braided with small beads, faint scars and dirt on the skin, warm torchlight reflecting off metal, shallow depth of field, bokeh sparks, lifelike eyes, highly detailed texture on leather straps and cloth underlayer.”
Apollo 11: Journey to Tranquility
Text-to-Image“Create a clean, modern vector infographic poster about the Apollo 11 mission. NASA-inspired palette (navy, white, muted red, light gray). Flat-vector style, crisp lines, consistent iconography, subtle gradients only. Steps (stop at landing): 1. Launch (Saturn Vicon) 2. Earth Orbit (Earth + orbit ring icon) 3. Translunar (trajectory arc icon) 4. Lunar Orbit (Moon + orbit ring icon) 5. Descent (lunar module descending icon) 6. Landing (lunar module on the surface icon) Small supporting elements (minimal text): • Crew strip: three silhouette icons with only last names: Armstrong, Aldrin, Collins. • Landing site marker: Moon pin labeled "Tranquility" only. Layout constraints: generous margins, large readable labels, clean background with subtle stars. Vector-only, print-poster look, high resolution.”
Intricate Floral Mandala
Text-to-Image“Perfectly symmetrical mandala made entirely of real flowers, petals, leaves, fruits, and seeds in vibrant natural colors, intricate layered patterns with radial symmetry, top-down view on a soft neutral background, hyper-detailed organic textures and subtle shadows, photorealistic, 8K masterpiece.”
Best for
All categoriesGallery
View all 21 imagesSeedream 5.0 Lite FAQ
Seedream 5.0 Lite starts at $0.035 per image through Lumenfall. Pricing varies by provider. Lumenfall does not add any markup to provider pricing.
You can use Seedream 5.0 Lite through Lumenfall's OpenAI-compatible API. Send requests to the unified endpoint with model ID "seedream-5-lite". Code examples are available in Python, JavaScript, and cURL.
Seedream 5.0 Lite is available through Replicate on Lumenfall. Lumenfall automatically routes requests to the best available provider.
Seedream 5.0 Lite supports images up to 3072x3072 resolution.
Overview
Seedream 5.0 Lite is a diffusion-based image generation model developed by ByteDance that integrates logical reasoning with high-fidelity visual synthesis. Unlike standard text-to-image models, it features native support for example-based editing and is capable of producing outputs at resolutions up to 3K. Its primary distinction lies in its ability to process complex instructions that require deep domain knowledge, bridging the gap between creative prompting and technical accuracy.
Strengths
- High-Resolution Output: Native support for generating images at up to 3K resolution, reducing the reliance on external upscalers for detailed assets.
- Structured Reasoning: The model utilizes built-in reasoning capabilities to better interpret complex prompts, ensuring that spatial Relationships and multi-subject interactions remain consistent with the input text.
- Example-Based Editing: Beyond simple text-to-image, the model excels at image-to-image tasks where an existing image serves as a structural or stylistic reference for modifications.
- Domain-Specific Knowledge: Demonstrates a high degree of accuracy when rendering subjects that require specialized knowledge, such as technical diagrams, specific architectural styles, or culturally nuanced details.
Limitations
- Computational Latency: Due to the internal reasoning steps and high-resolution output capabilities, inference times may be longer compared to more streamlined, lower-resolution diffusion models.
- Lite vs. Full Tradeoffs: As a “Lite” version, this model is optimized for a specific balance of speed and cost; it may lack some of the extreme atmospheric nuance or compositional complexity found in larger, non-lite iterations of the Seedream family.
- Consistency in Sequence: While strong at individual image generation and editing, maintaining strict character or environmental consistency across a long sequence of many disparate images can still require significant prompt engineering.
Technical Background
Seedream 5.0 Lite belongs to the Seedream family of multimodal models, utilizing an architecture that accepts both text and image inputs. A key technical decision in its development was the integration of a reasoning module that pre-processes prompts to ensure logical consistency before the diffusion process begins. This allows the model to handle “long-tail” knowledge prompts that typically challenge general-purpose generators.
Best For
Seedream 5.0 Lite is best suited for professional design workflows where resolution and adherence to specific references are critical, such as concept art, marketing assets, and iterative image editing. It is particularly effective for users who need to perform “resynthesis” or stylistic transfers using an example image as a baseline.
You can experiment with Seedream 5.0 Lite and integrate it into your production environment through Lumenfall’s unified API and playground, which provides a consistent interface for testing its 3K output and reasoning capabilities.
Top Matchups
See how Seedream 5.0 Lite performs head-to-head against other AI image models, ranked by community votes in blind comparisons.
Try Seedream 5.0 Lite in Playground
Generate images with custom prompts — no API key needed.