How to Use Seedream 4.5 in 2026: 4K Images, Styles and Text

Zoey Zhang

Oct 2026

Seedream 4.5 is ByteDance's earlier Seedream generation, still a strong choice for large, text-heavy images. On Flick it defaults to 4K: every image we made came back 4096 × 2304, for 20 credits. Switch to 2K and it costs 10. It works with Flickpedia visual styles.

Quick answer: how do you use Seedream 4.5?

Add an image node, pick Seedream 4.5, and write the scene. Then:

  1. Choose 2K while you explore. 4K is the default and doubles the price.
  2. Put typography in quotes. Name the exact words and where they go.
  3. Switch to 4K for the keeper. 4096 wide leaves room to crop.
SpecSeedream 4.5 on Flick
MakerByteDance Seed
Price20 credits at 4K (default), 10 at 2K
Output we measured4096 × 2304 at 16:9 (4K setting)
SettingsResolution (2K, 4K), safety checker
Flickpedia stylesYes
Reference imagesUp to 10
PlansAll plans, including Free

ByteDance's page highlights "typography and dense text rendering" and small readable text on posters. Every rate is on model credit costs.

Make a print-sized frame

Draft at 2K, then render the keeper at 4096 wide.

How we tested

One prompt, three Flickpedia styles, in October 2026:

A woman in a red coat walks her small dog along a seaside promenade at dusk, with a lighthouse and a ferry in the distance.

The styles were Art Deco Illustration, Vintage Naturalistic Photography and Pixel Art Animation Style, plus three plain test prompts for realism, typography and illustration. The same tests ran on ten other models.

Three Flickpedia styles

Top row: the three Flickpedia style references. Bottom row: Seedream 4.5's promenade as a painted orange sunset, a warm dusk photograph on a pier, and a pier tiled in a colored mosaic
Top row: the three Flickpedia style references. Bottom row: Seedream 4.5's promenade as a painted orange sunset, a warm dusk photograph on a pier, and a pier tiled in a colored mosaic
  • Art Deco: the orange sky came through, but the picture is a realistic painting seen from behind, not the flat graphic look of the reference.
  • Vintage photo: warm, slightly faded dusk with a believable lighthouse and ferry.
  • Pixel art: it turned the pier into a mosaic of small square tiles. The reference has a tiled wall, so it took the tile, not the pixel.

Of the style-capable models, it kept the most of its own realism.

Three test prompts

Seedream 4.5 on three test prompts: a cook tossing noodles in a flaming wok under neon signs in the rain, a Porto Lume poster where the lighthouse stands in front of the title, and a fox in a yellow raincoat reading a map under a red mushroom
Seedream 4.5 on three test prompts: a cook tossing noodles in a flaming wok under neon signs in the rain, a Porto Lume poster where the lighthouse stands in front of the title, and a fox in a yellow raincoat reading a map under a red mushroom
  • Street food, 35mm: the best-lit of the set: noodles mid-toss, steam, reflections, two customers on stools. The shop signs are invented characters, as with most models.
  • Poster: both lines spelled right, and the only poster where the lighthouse overlaps the title, a designer's move that keeps "PORTO LUME" readable.
  • Fox: detailed watercolor with fur on the hood.

Wall-clock time on our busy canvas ran from 20 to 116 seconds.

Is 4K worth 20 credits?

For a final frame, often yes: at 4096 wide you can crop a close-up out of a wide shot and still have a 1080p image. For exploring, no: 2K is half the price, and the composition is what you are judging. Seedream 5.0 Lite gave 3072 wide for 7 credits, so see our Seedream 5.0 Lite guide if you need large but cheap.

When to use it, and when not

Use it when: the image has real typography, you need print-sized output, or you want photographic light even with a style pinned.

Skip it when: you want the style reference copied closely (Seedream 5.0 Lite did that better), or you are drafting at volume.

Sources

  • Seedream 4.5, ByteDance Seed, checked October 21, 2026
  • Prices and settings from Flick's model configuration; images, sizes and timings from our Flick canvases, October 2026

常见问题

How much does Seedream 4.5 cost on Flick?

What resolution does it output? The 4K setting returned 4096 × 2304 for 16:9.

What resolution does it output?

Does it work with Flickpedia styles? Yes, though it keeps more of its own realism than Seedream 5.0 Lite.

Does it work with Flickpedia styles?

Is it good at text? In our poster test both lines were spelled right, and the layout was the most designed of the set.