AI Headshot Generator Test (2026): 8 Models Tested for Likeness

The models that keep your face closest in an AI headshot are GPT Image 2, GPT Image 2.5 and Seedream 5.0 Flash — and all three cost between 15 and 40 credits. We gave eight models one photo each of six people and asked for six kinds of professional headshot, then measured every face against its photo with FaceNet, the way a face-recognition system would compare them. Every model made a usable headshot every time; what separates them is likeness.

Closest faces: GPT Image 2 — 0.97 face match, all six passed every check, 40 credits.
Best value: GPT Image 2.5 — 0.96, all six passed every check, 15 credits.
Loosest faces: the Nano Banana models (0.88–0.89), including the 75-credit Nano Banana Pro.

The results

#	Model	Usable	Passed every check	Face match	Credits
1	GPT Image 2	6 of 6	6 of 6	0.97	40
2	GPT Image 2.5	6 of 6	6 of 6	0.96	15
3	FLUX 3	6 of 6	6 of 6	0.94	25
4	Seedream 5.0 Pro	6 of 6	6 of 6	0.94	35
5	Nano Banana 2	6 of 6	6 of 6	0.89	40
6	Nano Banana Pro	6 of 6	6 of 6	0.88	75
7	Seedream 5.0 Flash	6 of 6	5 of 6	0.96	15
8	Nano Banana 2.1	6 of 6	4 of 6	0.88	25

Usable counts the headshots that failed no check and Passed every check those that met all four in full; nothing is averaged. Face match compares the face in the headshot with the face in its photo (1.00 is identical; our different test people score 0.22 or lower against each other). We count 0.80 or higher as a close likeness.

How we tested

One photo per person, the same description for every model, once each. The six people are AI-generated, so no real person's face was used — which also means our numbers say how models keep a face, not how they keep yours.

Tested: 2026-10-15, on PicYep, as a visitor would use it
Models: Nano Banana 2.1, Nano Banana 2, Nano Banana Pro, Seedream 5.0 Pro, FLUX 3, GPT Image 2.5, GPT Image 2, Seedream 5.0 Flash
Settings: 1K, 4:5, one photo per request, each model's default quality, the description sent as written with no rewrite
Size of the test: 6 cases, 48 requests, one each, every result kept

What each photo was checked for

Looks like the input. Each person (or pet) is recognisably the one in their input photo: face, hair, build.
Professional. Clothes, backdrop and light are fit for LinkedIn or a job application.
As described. Scene, clothes, pose and style follow the description.
Realistic. Passes as a photo: skin, hands, eyes and light have no obvious AI faults.

Each check is marked passed, partly or failed; no points are added up or averaged. A photo is usable when it fails no check, and the table counts the usable photos and the photos that passed every check. A request that ended without a photo counts as not usable. Every result is shown below, each with a link to its original file.

Face match is measured, not judged: FaceNet (InceptionResnetV1 trained on VGGFace2) turns each face into numbers, and we give the cosine similarity between the face in the result and the face in its input photo, person by person. 1.00 is the same face; our different input people score -0.22 to 0.22 against each other.

Headshot by headshot

LinkedIn, navy blazer

All eight made a polished LinkedIn headshot. Nano Banana 2.1 drew a bigger smile and a slightly different face (0.795).

Input photo 1 — DescriptionA professional LinkedIn headshot, navy blazer over a white top, soft grey studio backdrop, soft even light, confident friendly expression, realistic photo.

Result from Nano Banana 2.1 — DescriptionA professional LinkedIn headshot, navy blazer over a white top, soft grey studio backdrop, soft even light, confident friendly expression, realistic photo.

Classic job application photo

Suit, tie, light grey backdrop — every model got it right; FLUX 3, the GPT models and Seedream 5.0 Flash kept the face at about 0.96 or higher.

Outdoors

The easiest case: every model kept the face at 0.94 or higher.

White background, corporate

All eight kept the white background and dark jacket. Seedream 5.0 Flash chose a casual zip jacket instead of a suit jacket.

Modern office, arms crossed

Every model put the man in a blurred office with his arms crossed.

Creative professional

Mustard turtleneck, warm backdrop. Nano Banana 2.1 put her in a room rather than in front of a backdrop.

More people and conditions

The six people above are adults photographed head-on in good light. To try other faces and harder photos, we made six more test people with an AI model: a woman around 70, a man in thick glasses, a woman in a knit hat, a man photographed from the side, a woman in a dim evening room, and a man against a bright window. On October 15, 2026, each one's photo went with the LinkedIn headshot description above to the default model and to the two that rank best for value.

Seedream 5.0 Flash passed every check for all six people (face match 0.90 on average).
GPT Image 2.5 passed every check for five; the man against the window came out just under our likeness line (0.79).
Nano Banana 2.1 made all six usable; the woman around 70 and the man in glasses both came out just under 0.80.

#	Model	Usable	Passed every check	Face match	Credits
1	Seedream 5.0 Flash	6 of 6	6 of 6	0.90	15
2	GPT Image 2.5	6 of 6	5 of 6	0.87	15
3	Nano Banana 2.1	6 of 6	4 of 6	0.81	25

Two of the new people, both women with long brown hair, score 0.67 against each other on face match; the other pairs score 0.31 or lower.

Around 70, white hair

Thick glasses

A knit hat

Photographed from the side

A dim evening room

Against a bright window

The same request, three times

Every photo above is one try. To see how steady a model is, we sent two of these descriptions to PicYep's default model, Nano Banana 2.1, two more times each, with the same photos and settings, and checked every result the same way (October 15, 2026). All six tries were usable and five passed every check. The one that did not was the first LinkedIn headshot, whose face match was just under 0.80. In every case the first try was already usable.

#	Try	Usable	Passed every check	Face match	Credits
1	Try 1	2 of 2	1 of 2	0.82	25
2	Try 2	2 of 2	2 of 2	0.86	25
3	Try 3	2 of 2	2 of 2	0.85	25

Result from Try 1 — DescriptionA professional LinkedIn headshot, navy blazer over a white top, soft grey studio backdrop, soft even light, confident friendly expression, realistic photo.

Model by model

GPT Image 2 (40 credits, medium quality) — 6 of 6 passed every check; face match 0.97. The most faithful faces.
GPT Image 2.5 (15 credits, medium quality) — 6 of 6 passed every check; face match 0.96. The best value.
Seedream 5.0 Flash (15 credits) — 6 of 6 usable, 5 passed every check; face match 0.96. A casual jacket once.
FLUX 3 (25 credits) — 6 of 6 passed every check; face match 0.94.
Seedream 5.0 Pro (35 credits) — 6 of 6 passed every check; face match 0.94.
Nano Banana 2 (40 credits) — 6 of 6 passed every check; face match 0.89.
Nano Banana Pro (75 credits) — 6 of 6 passed every check; face match 0.88. Polished, but the face drifts most at the highest price.
Nano Banana 2.1 (25 credits) — 6 of 6 usable, 4 passed every check; face match 0.88.

Headshot services, or an AI photo generator?

For "best AI headshot generator for LinkedIn", ChatGPT compared Aragon, BetterPic and HeadshotPro. What their own pages say (checked October 15, 2026):

Service	What you upload	Price	What you get
HeadshotPro	"a few selfies"	One-time $29, $39 or $59	30 headshots in about 2 hours, 50 in about 30 minutes, or 70 in about 15 minutes (4K)
HeadshotPro free tool	One selfie, "No sign-up. No credit card."	Free	One HD headshot (1024×1024)
BetterPic	Not checked on its own pricing page	Its blog lists $35 (20 headshots, 4K) and $39 (60)	One-time payment
PicYep	One photo	15–75 credits a headshot; free credits for new accounts	One headshot per request, the model and scene you choose

Aragon's site and BetterPic's pricing page could not be opened from our test machine. A package service suits a team that wants dozens of shots in one style; a generator suits one person who wants a few specific headshots now.

For prices, refunds and privacy across more AI photo services, see our comparison.

Which one should you use?

Likeness first: GPT Image 2, or GPT Image 2.5 for a third of the price.
One good headshot cheaply: GPT Image 2.5 or Seedream 5.0 Flash.
Avoid if likeness matters most: the Nano Banana models, which drew the loosest faces in our test.

Descriptions to copy

A professional LinkedIn headshot, navy blazer over a white top, soft grey studio backdrop, soft even light, confident friendly expression, realistic photo.
A classic job application photo, dark suit and tie, light grey backdrop, even studio light, head and shoulders, realistic photo.
A business headshot in a modern office with a softly blurred background, light blue shirt, arms crossed, friendly expression, realistic photo.

Paste one into the headshot generator, add your photo and pick a model.

Questions

Which AI headshot generator actually looks like you?

In our test, GPT Image 2 kept faces closest (0.97 average face match, where 1.00 is the same face), followed by GPT Image 2.5 and Seedream 5.0 Flash at 0.96. The Nano Banana models were the loosest at 0.88 to 0.89. We measured every face with FaceNet against the input photo.

Can I make a LinkedIn headshot from one selfie?

Yes. Every model made a professional headshot from one photo — no training on 10 or more selfies. Six of the eight passed every check in all six headshot styles.

What is the cheapest good AI headshot?

GPT Image 2.5 passed every check in all six headshots, with 0.96 face match, at 15 credits a headshot. Seedream 5.0 Flash, also 15 credits, passed every check in five — once it chose a casual jacket for a corporate photo.

Is an AI headshot good enough for a job application?

In our test every model made a clean head-and-shoulders photo in a suit and tie on a light grey backdrop when asked for a classic job application photo, and kept the face at 0.83 or higher.

How is this different from AI headshot services like HeadshotPro?

HeadshotPro sells one-time packages from $29 (30 headshots in about 2 hours) to $59 (70 headshots, 4K) after you upload a few selfies, according to its pricing page. On PicYep you make one headshot at a time from one photo, choosing the model and the scene, from 15 credits each.

How much does an AI headshot cost on PicYep?

From 15 to 75 credits a headshot depending on the model, shown before you send. New accounts start with free credits, no card is needed, and a request that ends without a photo gets its credits back.

Does it work with glasses, a hat, an older face or a dim photo?

In a follow-up with six more test people — around 70, thick glasses, a knit hat, a side view, a dim room and a bright window behind — Seedream 5.0 Flash passed every check for all six headshots, and the default model made all six usable.

AI Headshot GeneratorAdd one photo of yourself and make a professional headshot: a blazer or a shirt, a calm background, head and shoulders in the frame.