Pick Leonardo AI if
designers and marketers who want a web UI, a free daily allowance, and more model/style knobs than a chat image button.
Read the Leonardo AI pageLeonardo AI vs Stable Diffusion
Our take
Pick Leonardo AI if designers and marketers who want a web UI, a free daily allowance, and more model/style knobs than a chat image button. Pick Stable Diffusion if builders who will load a checkpoint (Space, ComfyUI, or diffusers) and can live with the Community License threshold. Skip Leonardo AI if users chasing Midjourney’s exact aesthetic, or editors who need Gen-4.5 video (Runway). Skip Stable Diffusion if
Stable Diffusion
SD 3.5 Large weights + HF Space.
Best for
Leonardo AI Controlled image generation with a free daily bucket
Stable Diffusion A diffusion checkpoint you can run locally or in a Space
Free plan
Leonardo AI $0 · , 150 fast tokens/day
Stable Diffusion $0 · under the Community License if you stay under the $1M revenue cap. You pay GPU/electricity. Over $1M: Enterprise license (contact)
Lowest paid
Leonardo AI Essential $12/mo
Stable Diffusion Stability API — SD 3.5 Large $0.065
Next step up
Leonardo AI Premium $30/mo
Stable Diffusion
Runs where
Leonardo AI Hosted
Stable Diffusion Hosted
Watch out
Leonardo AI Fast tokens run out
Stable Diffusion Community License is not Apache-2.0
Last checked
Leonardo AI 2026-10-19 · leonardo.ai/pricing
Stable Diffusion 2026-10-20 · platform.stability.ai/pricing
Which one, then?
Pick Stable Diffusion if
builders who will load a checkpoint (Space, ComfyUI, or diffusers) and can live with the Community License threshold.
Read the Stable Diffusion page