📖 The AI Tool Bible

Flux vs Runway

A side-by-side look at pricing, capabilities, pros, cons, and our editorial scores.

 
Flux
Image Generation
Runway
Video
TaglineBlack Forest Labs' open-weights image model — rivals Midjourney quality.Pro-grade AI video editor and Gen-4 generation.
CategoryImage GenerationVideo
PricingFreemium· API per-image; weights free for [schnell] and [dev]Paid· $15/mo Standard; $35/mo Pro; $95/mo Unlimited
ModelFlux.1 [schnell / dev / pro]Gen-4
Editorial score9.0 / 109.0 / 10
Use cases
open sourceself-hostedhigh quality
short filmVFXimage-to-video
Pros
  • Open weights for [schnell]/[dev] variants
  • Quality rivals Midjourney
  • Excellent prompt adherence
  • Self-hostable
  • Pro editing timeline
  • Best-in-class control (motion brush, etc.)
  • Used in real productions
  • Generation + editing in one tool
Cons
  • [pro] is API-only
  • Self-hosting needs serious GPU
  • Expensive for hobby use
  • Render times can be long
Websiteblackforestlabs.airunwayml.com
Pick Flux if
  • ✅ Open weights for [schnell]/[dev] variants
  • ✅ Quality rivals Midjourney
  • ✅ Excellent prompt adherence
  • ✅ Self-hostable
Pick Runway if
  • ✅ Pro editing timeline
  • ✅ Best-in-class control (motion brush, etc.)
  • ✅ Used in real productions
  • ✅ Generation + editing in one tool
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