Best OpenAI Models for AI Writer Image Generation

1. What the Image Helper Needs #

The AI Writer’s image helper is typically used for:

• Featured images (hero images for posts).
• Inline content images (illustrations inside articles).
• Social/cover images (Pinterest, Twitter, etc.).

So we want models that are:

• Visually strong and on-prompt (follow instructions well).
• Capable of good composition and text rendering (for covers/banners).
• Flexible in styles (photorealistic, illustration, historical art vibes, etc.).
• Reasonably priced, since images are heavier than text.

2. OpenAI’s Image Models Today #

OpenAI’s current generation of image models is the GPT Image 1 family, which succeeds DALL·E 3: OpenAI Platform+2Zapier+2

• gpt-image-1
  • State-of-the-art text→image model.
  • Natively multimodal (understands text + images).
  • Much better instruction following and text rendering than older DALL·E 3.
  • Flexible style control; good for hero images, product images, concept art, etc.
• gpt-image-1-mini (shown in pricing docs) OpenAI Platform+1
  • Cheaper, faster variant.
  • Slightly lower fidelity but still strong for blog illustrations, icons, simple covers.

Pricing-wise (rough ballpark, at time of writing): blog.laozhang.ai+3OpenAI+3OpenAI Platform+3

• Low-quality 1024×1024 images can be around $0.01 per image.
• Higher-quality / larger aspect ratios cost more (up to ~0.17 per image).

Your plugin doesn’t decide the price; it just calls the model you configure.

3. Recommended Models for AI Writer Image Generation #

Primary recommendation for most users:

1. gpt-image-1
   Use this if:
   • You care about visual quality (hero sections, marketing banners).
   • You need consistent style across multiple images.
   • You sometimes need text in the image (titles, banners, “Historact AI” etc.).
   Why it’s good:
   • Successor to DALL·E 3 with improved instruction following. OpenAI Platform+2Zapier+2
   • Handles complex compositions and historical/artistic prompts better.
   • Strong at styles: oil painting, digital art, line-art, photo, etc.

Budget / high-volume recommendation:

2. gpt-image-1-mini
   Use this if:
   • You generate many images per day (e.g. thumbnails, simple illustrations).
   • You want to keep costs very low.
   Why it’s good:
   • Pricing docs show mini is significantly cheaper than full gpt-image-1. OpenAI Platform+1
   • Quality is sufficient for:
     • Inline blog illustrations.
     • Simple decorative images.
     • Non-critical visuals where perfect quality is not mandatory.

Fallback (older setups):

3. dall-e-3
   Use only if:
   • Your project or library is still wired to DALL·E 3 and you haven’t migrated yet.
   • gpt-image-1 isn’t available in your account for some reason.
   Note:
   • DALL·E 3 is still strong, but OpenAI now positions GPT Image 1 as its successor and is focusing improvements there. OpenAI Platform+1

4. Models You Should NOT Use for Image Generation #

Important: your image helper must call an image model. Using pure text models for images will not produce PNG/JPEG outputs (they just generate text).

Avoid:

• Text-only models for image generation:
  • gpt-4.1, gpt-4.1-mini, gpt-4.1-nano, gpt-4o, gpt-3.5-turbo, etc.
  • These can help you write image prompts, but they do not generate images themselves via the image endpoint.
• Reasoning models (o1, o3, o4-mini):
  • These are for complex reasoning and are priced as such.
  • Even if technically routable via a text endpoint, they’re not needed for simple “turn prompt into an image” workloads.
• Old or deprecated image models (like dall-e-2):
  • Lower quality, and OpenAI is clearly moving forward with GPT Image 1. OpenAI Platform+1

5. How to Use These Models with AI Writer’s Image Helper #

Your plugin’s image helper is controlled via the AI Writer / media helper settings (behind the class DavixImage\class-davix-image-controller.php you documented earlier).

Depending on how you exposed it in your UI, there are two possibilities:

A. If you have a specific “Image model” field #

1. Go to WordPress admin → Davix AI Engine → AI Writer.
2. Scroll to the Image / Media Helper section.
3. Look for a field like “OpenAI image model” or “Image generation model”.
4. Set:
   • gpt-image-1 if you want best overall quality, or
   • gpt-image-1-mini if you prioritize cost and speed.
5. Save changes.

image IMAGE PLACEHOLDER: Screenshot of Davix AI Engine → AI Writer → Media helpers section showing a text field or dropdown labeled “OpenAI Image Model” with gpt-image-1 selected. IMAGE image

Next time you use the image helper in the AI Writer sidebar, it will call that model.

B. If you don’t have a separate image-model field #

Some setups keep things simpler and:

• Use the same OpenAI project and a fixed image model internally (e.g., hardcoded to gpt-image-1).

In that case:

• You don’t need to set a separate image model.
• Just ensure:
  • Your OpenAI API key has access to gpt-image-1.
  • Your billing is configured.

(We already documented how to add the API key in the API Keys category.)

6. Practical Recommendations by Use Case #

Here’s a quick guide:

• Blog hero / cover images (e.g., for Historact articles):
  • Model: gpt-image-1
  • Reason: strong composition, better text rendering if you want titles or subtle typography in the image.
• Inline illustrations (supporting images inside the article, simple decorative art):
  • Model: gpt-image-1-mini
  • Reason: cheaper and fast; quality is enough for small inline visuals.
• Social media variations (Pinterest / X / IG crops):
  • Start with gpt-image-1 for the main asset;
  • Use AI Writer or external editors to crop/resize.
• High-volume test/staging environments:
  • Model: gpt-image-1-mini
  • Reason: you may generate many experimental images; mini keeps costs down.

image IMAGE PLACEHOLDER: Screenshot collage (or mock) showing three article cards each with a different AI-generated hero image produced via gpt-image-1, representing how the final images look on the site. IMAGE image