Verdict
Ideogram made its name spelling words correctly inside images, and Zapier still picks it for posters and anything with text. The free plan gives a small weekly allowance in a slow queue, and everything free users make is public. ChatGPT and Gemini now get text right most of the time too, so the gap has narrowed.
Privacy note. Policy says user input trains its models with no opt-out stated; free images public by default; deletion only on paid plans (ideogram.ai/legal/privacy)
Best for
Posters, invitations and social graphics with words on them
Skip if
Wanting private images without paying, or an Android app
Key facts
- Category
- Images, art & design
- Made by
- Ideogram AI (Ideogram, Inc.)
- Based in
- Canada
- Launched
- 2023
- Works on
- Web, iPhone
- In the UK
- Yes
- Price from
- $20 a month
- Free plan
- weekly slow-queue credits for eligible accounts signing in with Google, Apple or Microsoft; images public; no editing tools that need priority credits
Pricing
| Plan | Price | Billed |
|---|---|---|
| Plus | $20 | month |
| Plus (billed annually) | $180 | year |
| Pro | $60 | month |
| Pro (billed annually) | $504 | year |
| Team (per user) | $30 | month |
| Team (per user, billed annually) | $20 | month |
What it does
- generates images with clear, readable text
- edits images and keeps text in editable layers
- removes backgrounds and objects
- resizes ads to different formats
- swaps colours and materials on products
- connects to Claude, Cursor and other MCP clients
Ratings
What people say
Most 2026 user reviews talk is about the open-weight Ideogram 4 model rather than the app; people praise its control over text and layout and complain about structured JSON prompting and over-eager content blocking. UK App Store stars (4.71) rest on only 306 ratings, which is thin.
“Ideogram is incredible for generating funny quotes and typography-heavy designs.”
Individual user review, 13 May 2026 · source
“These are posters I made in Ideogram 4, using only prompting and bounding boxes. No image reference, no controlnets, or loras.”
Individual user review, 15 June 2026 · source
“If it weren't for that terrible, terrible bbox/json prompting nonsense, I would have been unprepared for the (relatively simple) added complexity of Minimax prompting.”
Individual user review, 3 September 2026 · source
“Sometimes it generates semi-nude girls, but sometimes a little house in nature or a spaceship exploring the moon gets blocked.”
Individual user review, 8 June 2026 · source
Press reviews
- Zapier 2026-08-03
Picked for accurate text; 'Ideogram, though, has cracked it' and was 'up there with Midjourney in terms of quality'.
- Envato 2026-08-10
Named the best free AI image generator for text, useful for posters, social graphics and layouts.
- Tom's Guide 2025-03-22
Disappointed by the faster 2a model, finding 'far too many glitches and lackadaisical prompt adherence problems'.
Privacy
- Trains on your data
- yes; the privacy policy lists 'training the models that power our Services' among uses of user input and other data
- Opt-out
- no training opt-out stated in the policy; paid Plus/Pro users can make images private and delete them
- Retention
- kept 'as long as is reasonably necessary'; no fixed period stated; image deletion only for paid subscribers
- Age limit
- 13+ (parent or guardian must accept the terms for under-18s); App Store rating 9+
Official videos
- Introducing Ideogram 4.5: The Most Precise Edit Model 2026-09-30
- Introducing Ideogram 4.0: The Best Open Image Model in the World 2026-06-03
FAQ
Is Ideogram free?
Yes, in a limited way. Free accounts get weekly credits that run in a slow queue, and the images are public. Paid plans start at $20 a month, or $15 a month billed yearly.
Is there an Ideogram app?
There is an official iPhone app in the UK App Store. No official Android app was found, so Android users need the website.
Can Ideogram images be used commercially?
Ideogram's terms say it claims no ownership of outputs and users may use them for any purpose, including commercial use.
Are my Ideogram images private?
Not on the free plan. Images are published to the community by default, and only Plus and Pro subscribers can make or delete private images.
Ideogram vs Midjourney?
Reviewers pick Ideogram for readable text such as posters and Midjourney for artistic style. Ideogram has a free tier and Midjourney does not.
Scores are based on published evidence, not lab tests. How we score.
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