To use the Kimi image generator, sign in to Kimi, choose K3, and select Image Generation through the plugin menu. Kimi documents image creation through creative plugins. For posters, social graphics, and editable layouts, Kimi Design provides another official starting point.
The workflow below focuses on the web version. Check that the relevant tool is available to your account before preparing a large set of images.
Last checked: October 12, 2026.
Which Kimi image tool should you use?
| What you need | Where to start | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| An image created from a written description | Image Generation in Kimi’s plugin menu | The selected plugin, available output options, and usage allowance. |
| A poster or social graphic with text and layout | Kimi Design | Which canvas elements remain editable and which export formats are offered. |
| An edit or new composition based on your photo | Kimi Design’s documented reference-image workflow | What should change, what must remain, and whether the result preserves those details. |
Kimi can also analyze uploaded pictures, find existing images, and generate website code from visual references. Its chat documentation treats these as different capabilities. For image creation, the result should include an actual image you can inspect and save.
Use the official destinations above. A separate website branded “Kimi Image Generator” may operate its own tool, model selection, billing, and terms.
Is Kimi image generation free?
The public help pages linked here do not establish a universal free-image allowance or a fixed price per picture. Check your account’s access and credits before generating. Being able to use Kimi chat does not establish that a particular image tool is included.
Kimi’s international membership documentation describes a shared monthly credit pool. On the web, open your avatar, then Settings → Subscription to check the balance and refresh information. Use the plan details applicable to your account and region; a shared balance cannot reliably be converted into a set number of images without an image-specific rate.
External services have their own conditions. For example, OpenArt’s Kimi integration requires an OpenArt account and uses OpenArt credits. If you choose that plugin, check its allowance separately.
How to generate an image in Kimi
1. Select the image-generation plugin
- Sign in to Kimi and choose K3 using the model selector above the message box.
- Open + and the plugin menu, or type / to open the available options.
- Find Image Generation. Open its details and install it if needed.
- Select the installed plugin through + → Plugins or the slash menu before sending your request.
These entry points are documented in Kimi’s plugin guide. The available selection varies by region, interface, and account type. The guide also documents + and / as mobile entry points.
2. Describe the image and its intended use
Give the tool a clear subject, a composition, and a destination. For a website header, space for the surrounding text may matter more than extra decorative detail. For a product image, the object’s shape and materials may be the priority.
Example prompt: Create a landscape editorial illustration for an article about balcony gardening. Show three different herbs in plain terracotta pots on the right half of a light beige background. Leave the left half clear for a headline added later. Use soft daylight and no people, lettering, or logos. Aim for a 16:9 composition.
This is an illustrative prompt you can adapt. The requested composition and proportions still need checking in the result.
Submit the request and check the tool activity. Kimi’s plugin guide says the response identifies the plugin being used. If you receive only advice or a written description, confirm the image tool is selected before resubmitting.
3. Review the result and save the image file
Check whether the subject, framing, and empty space match your request. If the direction is wrong, change the relevant part of the prompt. For the gardening example, you could request another version with smaller pots and a completely clear left half.
When the result is ready, open it and use the download or export control available with that image to save the file.
If you see a preview without a usable file, ask Kimi to provide the existing generated image as a downloadable attachment. Requesting the existing file first avoids unnecessarily asking for a new picture. Once saved, open the local file to confirm that the download worked.
Use Kimi Design to edit a photo or build a layout
For an uploaded-photo edit or a composition containing text, open Kimi Design. Kimi’s official image-creation guide documents text prompts, reference images, background changes, and adding or removing visual elements.
- Upload the image you want to use, or start with a written design request.
- Describe the desired change and the details that must remain.
- Review the new version against the original, then request a focused correction if needed.
- Export the version you intend to use.
For a reference image, explain its role. You might want its lighting or color palette to guide a new composition. For an edit, identify the existing subject and the exact change you need.
Example: replace a product photo’s background
Example prompt: Edit the uploaded product photo. Replace the background with a pale blue studio backdrop and add a soft contact shadow beneath the product. Preserve the product’s shape, proportions, surface texture, label, and camera angle. Do not add accessories or invent any lettering.
Compare the label, edges, and proportions with the original before using the image in a listing. “Preserve” is an instruction to evaluate, not a guarantee of an exact match.
Example: create a social graphic with editable copy
Example prompt: Create a square graphic for a community book swap. Use the exact headline “Bring a Book, Find a Story.” Arrange a small illustration of stacked books below the headline, with a cream background and dark green text. Keep the headline large and easy to read. Do not add dates, addresses, prices, or extra claims.
Kimi’s Design feature page documents editing supported text, images, shapes, colors, and layout elements, including through canvas comments. Use those controls to correct the copy or arrangement when available.
Editability depends on how the design was created and structured. A flattened image export should not be treated as a file with independently editable text and layers.
Choose the output and check the downloaded image
Kimi’s capability FAQ lists JPG and PNG output, 1K/2K/4K resolution categories, multiple aspect ratios, and opaque or transparent backgrounds for image generation. Check which options your selected tool exposes; the documentation does not provide one identical control panel for every interface or account.
Kimi Design separately lists exports as images, PDF, PPTX, or Google Slides. Choose an image export when you need an image file, and inspect the available editable formats when the layout needs further work.
- File and dimensions: Open the saved file and inspect its format and actual pixel width and height. A ratio requested in a prompt does not prove the export has that ratio.
- Transparency: If you need a cutout, inspect it against a contrasting background. A white background can look similar to transparency in some viewers.
- Text and objects: Read every word and inspect labels, repeated details, edges, and any unexpected additions.
- Placement: Preview the image where it will appear. Check the crop and whether important content remains visible at a small display size.
PNG can preserve transparency; JPG cannot. Exporting an image as PNG does not, by itself, remove a background. For commercial graphics, check that any required brand text remains accurate after resizing.
Watermark behavior should be checked on the actual output. Kimi’s international terms prohibit tampering with AI labels or watermarks it applies, so do not assume that every route supplies an unmarked file.
If the Kimi image generator is not working
Start with the symptom you can observe. Repeating the same request will not resolve a missing tool, an expired connection, or an unavailable allowance.
| Symptom | What to check next |
|---|---|
| Image Generation is missing | Confirm you are signed in, check K3 and the plugin picker, and review availability for your interface. A missing listing does not establish that image generation is unavailable everywhere. |
| Kimi returns text instead of a picture | Confirm the generation plugin is selected. Ask for an image file and check the reported tool activity. |
| A credit or access message appears | Read the message and check the account balance or provider allowance. Use the stated refresh or access information. |
| An external plugin fails | Check that the intended provider is selected and its account authorization remains valid. |
| A preview appears but the file will not save | Request a downloadable copy of the existing result, then check the file locally. |
| The image contains wrong text or distorted details | Identify the specific error and request a focused revision. For a Design composition, correct supported text or layout elements directly. |
If the problem continues, keep the error text and note the tool name and interface you used before contacting support. This gives support something more useful than “images do not work.”
Questions about models and image rights
Which model powers Kimi’s image generator?
The current help pages identify K3 as the assistant used with image-generation tooling, but do not identify one universal image-rendering model for every Kimi workflow. A model name shown by an independent Kimi-branded website describes that service’s setup; it does not establish what Kimi Design or another plugin uses.
Does image generation in Kimi mean it is available through the API?
Treat API access as a separate capability. The public Kimi model list documents language, coding, and visual-understanding models; it does not document a Kimi Design image-output endpoint. Image understanding or tool calling alone is not evidence of a dedicated image-generation API.
Can you use the images commercially?
Kimi’s international terms assign output ownership between you and Kimi to the extent permitted by law, require rights to submitted material, and make third-party terms relevant. That ownership provision is not blanket clearance for every commercial use.
Check the terms governing your chosen service and intended use, particularly for client work, product listings, or assets containing a person, logo, or other protected material. Keep the original licensed inputs and review the final image before publication.
Are uploaded reference images private?
The international privacy policy includes uploaded and generated images in user content and describes processing for service improvement and model training. External providers may apply their own policies. Check those conditions before uploading confidential client imagery.