Unveiling Exceptional Alternatives: Midjourney Competitors That Merit Attention

Evan Brooks - Aug 22 - - Dev Community

Midjourney, a trailblazer in natural language artificial intelligence (AI) art generation, is not the sole pioneer in this realm. There are numerous captivating alternatives, and the best part is that not all of them come with a price tag. Are you eager to unleash your creativity and prompt an AI to craft something truly breathtaking?

Here's a curated list of the top free Midjourney alternatives, along with my personal journey to transform into a Power Ranger.

Starry AI: A Celestial Artistic Companion

Harnessing the power of Starry AI to generate art.
Jon Martindale /

Starry AI offers a seamless, user-centric image generation experience that's absolutely free, requiring only a simple account sign-up. You can expedite the process by linking your Google or Facebook account, making it one of the quickest and most accessible AI art generators available. With a diverse range of art styles to choose from, adjustable canvas sizes, and the option to upload an image as a starting point, the creative possibilities are endless.

While it may not be the fastest – and in one of our test runs, it appeared to stall but had, in fact, finished – it produces remarkably detailed art with impressive consistency. By honing your prompt skills, you can achieve truly remarkable results.

Microsoft Copilot with Dall-E: A Powerful Creative Duo

Transforming Jon into a Power Ranger with AI art.
I don’t think it’s quite captured my face. Jon Martindale /

Thanks to Microsoft's partnership with OpenAI, the Dall-E 3 image generator AI is seamlessly integrated into its Copilot chatbot. You can utilize it for free by visiting the Copilot homepage and simply typing in what you want it to do. You can provide it with a custom text prompt or leverage the prompt helper to guide you on the best way to format it for optimal results.

You can then send it further prompts to refine or adjust the image to your liking, allowing for a high degree of creative control.

Adobe Firefly in Photoshop Beta and on the Web: Unleashing AI-Powered Creativity

Before and after screenshots showcasing Photoshop's AI canvas expansion capabilities.
Before and after screenshots showcasing Photoshop’s AI canvas expansion capabilities. Adobe

Are you an Adobe Photoshop subscriber? If so, you can experiment with Adobe's Firefly generative AI within Photoshop. Simply download the latest beta and start exploring. I've already been utilizing Photoshop's Generative Fill to enhance my workflow, and you can do the same. Firefly is perfect for creating random AI art based on your prompts, offering a new dimension of creative possibilities.

Firefly's interpretation of the Green Power Ranger
Adobe

For more insights into the world of AI art generation and computing, visit https://carsnewstoday.com/computing/exploring-top-notch-free-options-midjourney-rivals-worth-discovering/.

If you're not a Photoshop subscriber, don't fret. You can still delve into Firefly through its dedicated web portal here. Peruse the array of pre-generated images and then type in the description of what you want created in the context window at the bottom of the page. You'll need to sign up/in to your Adobe account to access the generator, but it's otherwise free to use. You can see its interpretation of "Green Power Ranger" above, which is surprising given Adobe's generally strict guardrails against copyrighted works in its AI.

Nightcafe Studio

Crafting a Jon Martindale Power Ranger with Nightcafe.
I still don’t think it’s nailing the face… Jon Martindale /

Another ridiculously effortless AI generator to sign up for and utilize, Nightcafe is also one of the speediest we could find. You'll receive a handful of complimentary credits to create a range of image styles, but after that, credits are $8 for 100. You can also earn more free credits by accepting marketing emails, and you'll get five more free credits each day, so you can come back and use it more in the future.

Nightcafe excels at producing character art for your DnD games. It's swift, effective, easy to use, and looks fantastic.

DeepAI Generator

Crafting a Power Ranger with DeepAI.
Jon Martindale /

You don't even need to register to utilize DeepAI. Just navigate to the main page, hit the image button, and enter your prompt. Pick a style, and then this AI generator will produce a decent-looking image in under 20 seconds. You'll need to pay for more advanced features, but for a quick and straightforward AI art tool, it gets the job done.

Idiogram AI

Crafting a Power Ranger Jon with Idiogram.
I wish my beard were that impressive. Image used with permission by copyright holder

One of the most comprehensive, fastest, and capable AI generators out there, it's astonishing that Idiogram is as free as it is. You can use it with a simple sign-up using your Google details if desired, and then you're in with the option of adjusting styles and inputting complex prompts. The wait is less than 10 seconds most of the time, and you can refine your results afterward.

This phenomenal service is so masterfully crafted that it's astonishing it remains freely accessible. Seize the opportunity to utilize it while you still can.

Visionary

Unleashing creativity with Dream by Wombo.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Accessible via the web, iOS, and Android, Dream is an innovative image generator catering to a broad spectrum of users. Although it limits you to a few image art styles and restricts you to creating one image at a time unless you upgrade to premium, there are numerous options to fine-tune. The real allure here lies in its adaptability, allowing it to function seamlessly on any device and platform, making Dream an excellent solution for generating AI art regardless of your device.

Leonardo.AI

LeonardoAI's artistic interpretation of the Green Power Ranger
Leonardo.AI

Leonardo.AI offers an extensive suite of complimentary generative tools to its users, including text-to-image, image-to-video, as well as a range of image manipulation and editing tools, and canvas expanders. It also features a real-time generator that allows you to adjust the influence of various input art styles, such as “Toon & Anime” and “Folk Art Illustration.” It successfully recreated a Bandai-esque Green Power Ranger, complete with the brand’s logo.

Stable Diffusion Online

Stable Diffusion Online's modeling clay rendition of the Green Power Ranger
Stable Diffusion

Stable Diffusion is another feature-rich generative AI that provides a free tier for its users. With it, you can generate text-to-image, image-to-image, sketch-to-image, upscale images, remove image backgrounds and assets, and swap faces. Although the free tier has limitations compared to the $7/month and $14/month Pro and Max plans, you can still generate multiple images per month (or purchase more credits à la carte) in a variety of styles, like this Green Power Ranger crafted from modeling clay.

Playground AI

Playground AI's artistic vision of the Green Power Ranger
Playground AI

Playground offers its users a diverse array of artistic styles, effortlessly shifting between photorealistic and high-definition illustrations, available on both its web and iOS platforms. The platform provides a free tier, limited to 50 images per day, with lower resolutions, in addition to its premium $15/month Pro and $45/month Turbo subscriptions, featuring advanced capabilities.

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