Midjourney

About Midjourney

Midjourney is an AI image generator that turns short text descriptions, called prompts, into detailed images. Built by an independent lab founded by David Holz, it is widely used for AI art, illustration, concept design, and marketing visuals. Each prompt returns four images, which you refine by upscaling, varying, or remixing. It is best known for a distinctive style: painterly, cinematic, richly detailed images. The current default model is V7, released in April 2025 and set as default in June 2025, with V8 rolling out in 2026.

Key features

• Text-to-image generation: describe a scene, style, lighting, and mood in plain language and get four variations in under a minute.
• Web editor and Discord bot: generate on the web at midjourney.com or through Discord, where the tool originally launched.
• Parameters: set aspect ratio with --ar, pick a model version with --v, adjust stylization with --stylize, add randomness with --chaos, and make seamless patterns with --tile.
• Style and character references: --sref copies the look of a reference image, and --cref keeps the same character consistent across scenes.
• Built-in editor: upscale, vary a region, remix a prompt, pan, and zoom in place.

How to use it

1. Create an account on midjourney.com and pick a plan. A paid plan is required before you can generate anything.
2. Type a prompt in the imagine box, for example: a lighthouse on a rocky coast at dusk, watercolor style.
3. Review the four images, then upscale the best one or press vary for new versions of it.
4. Add parameters such as --ar 16:9 for a wide image or --stylize 250 for a stronger artistic look.
5. Use the editor to retexture parts of an image or extend the canvas, then download the result. Paid plans include commercial use rights.

Pricing

Midjourney is subscription-only: Basic at 10 dollars per month, Standard at 30, Pro at 60, and Mega at 120. Annual billing cuts each price by 20 percent. Plans differ mainly in fast GPU hours: Basic about 3.3, Standard 15 plus unlimited slower Relax mode, Pro 30 plus Stealth mode for private generation, and Mega 60. Extra fast GPU time costs 4 dollars per hour. There is no free tier or trial. Companies over 1 million dollars in annual revenue must use Pro or Mega.

Strengths

• Arguably the best artistic quality of any image generator, especially for illustration, fantasy, and cinematic styles.
• Very fast iteration: four variations per prompt and a smooth upscale and vary workflow.
• A large, active community and a public gallery full of prompt examples to learn from.

Limitations

• No free tier, so you must pay at least 10 dollars per month to try it.
• Text inside images is still less reliable than in some rivals, though newer models have improved it.
• Precise control is harder than with open models: no custom models and no fine-tuning on your own data.
• Generations are public by default on Basic and Standard; private Stealth mode needs Pro or Mega.