Picture book illustrations: 12 spreads x 3 takes cost $2.64

A 12-spread picture book with three candidate takes per spread and a four-take cover costs $2.635 on ChatGPT Image 2.5 through Sume, before the small charge for input reference images. Twelve spreads at three takes are 36 images at $0.065875, $2.3715, and the cover is four images, $0.2635.

The question a children's author asks is not the unit price but how to keep one character recognizable across 12 pages. ChatGPT Image 2.5 accepts up to 16 reference images per call, and that is the lever: the same character sheet goes into every spread.

Reference slots and cost

Put the approved character sheet in as one reference, add a second for the style (a page you already like), and a third for the location when a spread returns to a setting. Three references per call leaves 13 free slots, so the limit is not the constraint; cost and consistency are. The $0.065875 figure is the per-image rate used here; check the pricing page for your size and quality setting, because other settings can differ.

Because a failed generation is not billed and a completed one always is, budget by images you will generate, not images you will keep. A picture book of 12 spreads with a 1-in-3 keep rate is the 36 images in the table. If a spread needs eight tries, add them: each extra try is 6.6 cents.

Keeping text and print in your hands

Set the book's words in your layout tool, not inside the image. A model can misspell on page 7 and get it right on page 8, and a printed misspelling is permanent. Use generated art for the picture only, leave clear space for type, and ask for that space in the prompt.

For print, check your printer's required resolution and bleed against the image size you generate; the images in the table are screen-sized, and a print edition may need an upscale pass, which Sume prices separately at $0.20 per image. For 12 spreads that would be $2.40 more, so decide whether you print before you plan the art budget.

Say in the book's front matter or listing that the illustrations were made with AI, and check your retailer's rules on AI-generated content, which differ and change. A draft pass at the cheaper model's rate lets you settle the story and layout for $0.90 before you spend the higher rate on finals.