Seedance vs Seedream - ByteDance Video vs Image Models

Seedance is a video model and Seedream is an image model - both families come from the ByteDance Seed team, but they do not replace each other, they work together. Seedream gives you the frame (a photo, poster or cover), Seedance turns text or that frame into a clip with sound. Below are all variants of both families available on Jantaris in one table, the typical "frame first, then motion" chain, and my advice on which variant to use for what.

Seedance and Seedream at a glance

• Seedance - a video generator. It makes clips from text, from a first (and optional last) frame or from references, together with sound. Version 2.0 makes 4-15 s clips up to 4K, version 2.5 up to 30 s in a single shot, up to 1080p.
• Seedream - an image generator. It makes images from text and from reference images, in 1K-3K tiers. Version 5.0 Pro handles text inside the frame well, Flash can edit marked areas and split an image into layers, Lite makes series of up to 4 consistent images at once.

The names are similar because both belong to the same Seed model family, but you pay for different things: Seedance per second of video, Seedream per image.

Every Seedance and Seedream variant in one table

For Seedance the price is the per-second rate at the lowest resolution of that variant, for Seedream it is the price of one image at the base tier. A few things the table does not show directly:

• In Seedance, resolution changes the rate a lot. 720p costs more than twice as much per second as 480p, and 4K in Seedance 2.0 is roughly five times the 720p rate. Details are in Seedance 2.0 vs 2.5.
• Seedream 5.0 Pro at 2K costs twice as much as at 1K. Every reference image after the first adds a small surcharge.
• Seedream 5.0 Flash has one price per image regardless of the 1K, 1.5K or 2K tier and the number of references. It is the cheapest image in the family, but slow: about 90 s for a 1K image and about 160 s for 2K.
• Seedream 5.0 Lite charges for every image in a series. Four images in one request cost four times the price of one.
• Reference video clips raise the cost of Seedance. The seconds of clips you pass in video_urls are billed too, not only the seconds of the output.

Exact rates for each resolution are on the model pages and on the pricing page.

The typical chain: frame in Seedream, motion in Seedance

Most of the time I use both models together. First I refine the frame in Seedream, because an image is cheap and I can quickly see whether the composition, light and character are right. Only then do I pass the finished frame to Seedance as the first frame in the image_url field. That way I do not pay for seconds of video until the starting image is what I want.

• Step 1. Seedream 5.0 Pro or Flash: a frame in the aspect ratio of the final video (for example 9:16 for a reel).
• Step 2. Seedance 2.0 Mini or Fast at 480p: a few short motion drafts from the same frame.
• Step 3. The final in Seedance 2.0 (up to 4K) or 2.5 (up to 30 s), with the same image_url and a refined prompt.

With aspect_ratio: "adaptive" Seedance matches the video aspect ratio to the input image. The whole chain through the API looks like this:

import os, time, requests

API = "https://jantaris.com/v1"
H = {"Authorization": f"Bearer {os.environ['JANTARIS_API_KEY']}"}

def run(model: str, inp: dict) -> dict:
    task = requests.post(f"{API}/generate", headers=H,
                         json={"model": model, "input": inp}, timeout=30).json()
    print(model, task["id"], task["estimated_cost"])
    delay = 2
    while True:
        task = requests.get(f"{API}/tasks/{task['id']}", headers=H, timeout=30).json()
        if task["status"] in ("succeeded", "failed"):
            return task
        time.sleep(delay)
        delay = min(delay * 1.5, 15)

# 1. the frame in Seedream
frame = run("seedream-5.0-pro", {
    "prompt": "An old fisherman mending a red net on a wooden pier at dawn, "
              "soft fog over the sea, 35mm photo, natural skin texture",
    "aspect_ratio": "9:16",
    "resolution": "1K",
})
if frame["status"] != "succeeded":
    raise SystemExit(frame["error"])
image_url = frame["output"][0]["url"]

# 2. motion in Seedance with that frame as the first frame
clip = run("seedance-2.0-fast", {
    "prompt": "The fisherman pulls the net tight and looks up at the sea, "
              "fog drifts slowly, gulls in the distance, slow push-in, no music",
    "image_url": image_url,
    "aspect_ratio": "adaptive",
    "duration": 5,
    "resolution": "480p",
})
if clip["status"] == "succeeded":
    print(clip["output"][0]["url"], clip["cost"])
else:
    print("failed:", clip["error"])

In Jantaris Studio you can do the same without code: pick the generated image as the first frame in the Seedance form. Animating photos step by step is covered in the image to video guide.

When to use which variant

Image (Seedream):

• Poster, cover, graphic with text in the frame: Seedream 5.0 Pro.
• Portrait or product shot at an exact pixel size: Seedream 5.0 Pro or Flash.
• Fixing a marked area, transparent background, splitting into layers: Seedream 5.0 Flash.
• Lots of cheap frames when you can wait: Seedream 5.0 Flash.
• A series of up to 4 consistent images in one request, or 3K output: Seedream 5.0 Lite.

Video (Seedance):

• Motion drafts and prompt tests: Seedance 2.0 Mini at 480p (audio is off by default).
• 720p reels up to 15 seconds: Seedance 2.0 Fast or 2.0.
• A 4K shot: Seedance 2.0 or 2.0 Eco.
• Cheap 1080p up to 15 seconds: Seedance 2.0 Mini Eco.
• A scene longer than 15 seconds in one shot, many references, editing or extending a clip: Seedance 2.5, or the cheaper 2.5 Eco at 720p or 1080p.

Comparisons with other models

Seedance against other video generators:

• Seedance 2.0 vs Seedance 2.0 Fast
• Seedance 2.0 vs Seedance 2.0 Mini
• Kling 3.0 vs Seedance 2.0
• Kling 3.0 vs Seedance 2.5
• Veo 3.1 vs Seedance 2.5
• MiniMax H3 vs Seedance 2.5
• Wan 3.0 vs Seedance 2.5
• Gemini Omni 1.1 vs Seedance 2.5
• Grok Imagine Video 1.5 vs Seedance 2.0
• HappyHorse 1.0 vs Seedance 2.0

Seedream against other image generators:

• Seedream 5.0 Pro vs Nano Banana Pro
• Seedream 5.0 Pro vs Nano Banana 2
• Seedream 5.0 Pro vs GPT Image 2.5

Broader rankings are in best AI image generator 2026 and best AI video generator 2026.

FAQ

Are Seedance and Seedream the same model?

No. Both come from ByteDance Seed and have similar names, but Seedance generates video (you pay per second) and Seedream generates images (you pay per image). They work well together: you can pass a Seedream frame to Seedance as the first frame.

Which one is cheaper for testing?

For image tests, Seedream 5.0 Flash ($0.0343 per image), if you can wait 1.5-3 minutes for the result. For video tests, Seedance 2.0 Mini at 480p (from $0.0366 per second). I run the final in a more expensive variant only once the prompt and frame are ready.

Can Seedream make a video, or Seedance an image?

No. Seedream returns only images and Seedance returns only video. If you need both, chain them: a Seedream image as the image_url in Seedance.

Do I need separate accounts or a subscription for the two models?

No. On Jantaris both models run on one API key and one balance, with no subscription, and the balance does not expire. You pay only for the images and video seconds you generate.