Top 5 AI Image Generation Tools for Dental Marketing: PART ONE (2025)
Posted on 6/10/2025 by WEO Media |
The AI landscape evolves rapidly. The information in this article is correct as of June 2025.
Marketing a dental practice is easier with the right visuals. In 2025, AI image generators now allow dental offices to create polished, commercially usable images quickly—no graphic design degree needed.
In this two-part article, we compare five leading tools for dental marketing professionals: Midjourney, ChatGPT (4o Image Generation), Adobe Firefly, Google Imagen, and Ideogram AI. Each tool offers unique strengths in image quality, ease of use, and licensing that can help you craft everything from photorealistic patient photos to fun social media graphics.
Quick Comparison of Top AI Image Generators (Mid-2025)
Below, we delve deeper into each tool’s strengths, pricing, ease of use, dental-specific use cases, free limits, licensing, output styles, and example prompts relevant to a dental practice. Let's get started!
ChatGPT (4o Image Generation)
What ChatGPT (with 4o Image Generation) Does Best:
OpenAI’s 4o Image Generation model, integrated into ChatGPT (often referred to as using the Vision or image generation feature of ChatGPT-4), excels at understanding nuanced prompts and iterating on images through conversation.
 Its main strength is the convenience and intelligence of the interface: you can literally chat with ChatGPT to get the images you want. This means:
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Iterative refinement: You could start with “Create an image of a happy dental patient” and get some results, then say, “Make the office background brighter and add a logo on the wall” and it will try to adjust accordingly. This back-and-forth ability is unique to ChatGPT’s interface.
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Complex scene composition: 4o Image Generation is very good at following detailed instructions. It was designed to overcome many of the limitations of DALL·E 2, especially by being more aligned with user intent. It handles multi-part instructions well (e.g. “a female dentist in a blue coat standing next to a patient, with an X-ray visible on the wall, and a logo that says Bright Dental on the reception desk.” It will attempt all those elements in one go).
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Safety and filtering: For a business context, ChatGPT’s integrated image generator has strong content filters (it won’t produce gore, nudity, real celebrity faces, etc.). While this can sometimes limit creativity (it might refuse certain medical imagery if it deems it graphic), it generally ensures the outputs are appropriate for general audiences and won’t inadvertently create something offensive that could slip through in other tools. |
Another strength: since it’s within ChatGPT, you have the power of GPT-4 to help craft your prompt. If you’re not sure how to prompt for what you envision, you can literally ask ChatGPT first in text-only mode, “What would be a good prompt to generate an image of XYZ?” and it will suggest something. Then you can ask it to produce that image (given you have the image generation enabled).
Pricing:
Using 4o Image Generation via ChatGPT requires a ChatGPT Plus or Enterprise subscription as of June 2025. Key points:
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ChatGPT Plus costs $20/month. This gives you access to GPT-4 and the 4o Image Generation image generation within ChatGPT’s interface. There is currently no separate charge per image – it’s all included in the flat fee. This makes it incredibly cost-effective if you generate a lot of images. OpenAI hasn’t set a hard public limit on how many images you can create, but users have observed a rate-limit of about 50 images every 3 hours or so (400 images per day cap).
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Free Tier: The official ChatGPT free tier does not include image generation (only text). However, a free alternative is Microsoft’s Bing Image Creator, which uses the 4o Image Generation model. Bing (via the Bing website or Bing Chat in Creative mode) allows anyone with a Microsoft account to generate images for free, with certain daily limits. Bing’s interface is not as conversationally flexible as ChatGPT, but you can type a prompt and get usually 4 images.
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ChatGPT Enterprise: If you happen to have this (aimed at larger companies), it includes even more robust usage (higher rate limits, data privacy, etc.). Small dental practices likely won’t need this level, since Plus is affordable and sufficient. |
There’s no complicated credit system here – $20 and you’re set with ChatGPT Plus.
Ease of Use:
This is arguably the easiest of all options. If you can chat, you can create images:
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The interface is just the ChatGPT chat box. You type what you want in plain English (or any language it supports) and it returns results. For example: “Generate an image of a toothbrush and dental floss dancing together, cartoon style.” Within seconds, you get 2-4 variations of such a cartoon. You can then say “I like the second image, but can you make the toothbrush blue and the background transparent?” and it will try its best to comply.
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No installation, no setup beyond subscription. It works in your web browser on OpenAI’s site.
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Onboarding/learning curve: Minimal. The AI can guide you if your prompt was unclear (“I want more realistic, please” can be typed and it will regenerate in a more realistic style). It’s like having a design assistant who also creates the art. For non-technical users, this reduces the intimidation factor – you don’t need to learn a special syntax or remember commands.
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The only thing to note is that ChatGPT currently outputs relatively small images (1024×1024 pixels). For web and social media, that’s usually fine. If you need higher resolution, you would have to upscale them afterwards using an external tool or ask ChatGPT for an alternate aspect ratio and then upscale.
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Since it’s conversational, you can also ask it to generate multiple images in a series easily. E.g., “Now make one with the patient giving a thumbs up. Now one with the dentist holding an X-ray.” and it will keep context. This makes creating a cohesive set of graphics (like a campaign with variations) very convenient. |
Dental Office Use Cases:
ChatGPT with 4o Image Generation can cover a broad range of needs with unmatched ease:
Idea Brainstorming and Creation:
Not sure what image you want? You can discuss with ChatGPT: “I have a dental clinic Instagram, I want a fun image for Dental Health Week. Any creative ideas?” ChatGPT might suggest a few concepts (like a superhero tooth). It’s like a copywriter and graphic designer in one, helping conceive and create. Quick Social Media Graphics:
Need something in 5 minutes? This is your go-to. For example, ask: “Create an image of a calendar cartoon showing a reminder to visit the dentist. Include a smiling tooth character next to the calendar.” You’ll get an original graphic, ready to post. If something is off, just tell ChatGPT to tweak it. Patient Education and Blog Images:
Writing a blog post about root canals? Ask for “an illustration of a tooth showing the root canal procedure, cross-section, labeled”. 4o Image Generation is pretty good at producing diagrams and might even add basic labels. If the labels are gibberish (which tends to happen), you can request ChatGPT to regenerate or leave space for you to add your own text later. Customized Stock Photos:
You can generate “stock” style photos that match your region or demographic. For example, “a happy family brushing teeth together in the bathroom, photo realistic, diverse family”. If your practice caters to a specific community, you could describe the people in the image to reflect that. These images can supplement actual patient photos in your materials. Advertising creatives:
Say you want a series of images with a consistent theme (like a certain color background and your mascot tooth doing different activities), you can instruct ChatGPT to use the same style each time. Because it remembers prior images in the conversation up to a point, it might carry over elements if you ask. This way you get a unified look for a specific ad campaign. Print media:
While resolution might be a limitation for large prints, you can generate at 1024px and then use an AI upscaler (some even free online) to enlarge. Since the outputs are yours to use, you can do this and then send it to print for flyers or banners. |
Free Tier (Bing) Note:
If you choose to use Bing Image Creator as the free route, be mindful of the content rights: Microsoft’s terms also allow you to use the created images freely (they follow OpenAI’s policy that the creator owns the output). So, even images made on Bing can be used in your marketing.
Just be sure to crop out the Bing watermark if present (Microsoft’s terms allow modification of the image, so that’s not an issue). The quality and model are essentially the same, though the chat refinement is not as smooth as ChatGPT’s. It’s a great way to test 4o Image Generation capabilities before deciding on a ChatGPT Plus subscription.
 Commercial Use & Licensing:
OpenAI’s policy is very clear that you own the images you create with 4o Image Generation in ChatGPT and can use them for any purpose, commercial included. There are no royalties or usage fees.
This was a change they made early on with DALL·E 2 and continues with 4o Image Generation – once an image is generated, the user who prompted it has full rights. This is subject to obeying their content rules (so you’re not allowed to, say, generate an image with a real company’s logo and use it as if it’s their endorsement. That would violate trademark and OpenAI’s terms).
For original content relevant to your practice, you are safe. OpenAI also doesn’t put any claim or hold on your outputs. So, a dental office can make a brochure full of ChatGPT-created images, and it’s entirely within the allowed use.
One thing to remember: OpenAI’s content policy disallows using their tools to create images of real people (e.g., you can’t properly generate an image of a specific celebrity or public figure) or specific trademarked products. So as long as your prompts are generic or fictional (which they likely will be for dental content), you’re fine.
Output Quality & Styles:
4o Image Generation’s quality is on par with other top models, and it particularly shines in imaginative compositions and following long descriptive prompts accurately. It can do photorealism well (maybe a notch below Midjourney in pure beauty of some artistic outputs, but often you can’t tell the difference).
It also can produce illustrations, 3D-render-style images, paintings, cartoons—you name it—as long as you describe it. Because it’s integrated in ChatGPT, you don’t have preset style buttons, but you can ask ChatGPT, “Give me 4 different style options for this image” and it might generate one photo, one pencil sketch, one 3D render, one watercolor, etc., in one go.
4o Image Generation is also notably good at compositional coherence (e.g., if you ask for “a toothbrush on the left and a floss on the right,” 4o Image Generation is more likely to place them correctly, as opposed to earlier models). It also handles text in images somewhat better than before, but still not as reliably as Adobe Firefly or Ideogram.
At the moment, the images are square by default. You can try prompting for specific dimensions (“a wide banner image, 16:9 ratio”) and it sometimes works by essentially letterboxing the image, but it’s not always perfect.
4o Image Generation Example Prompts (Dental Practice):
“Design a fun poster for kids featuring a superhero tooth character fighting cavity monsters. The tooth is muscular and wears a cape with a toothbrush emblem, and the cavity creatures look goofy. Colorful comic book style.”
(You can refine this by telling ChatGPT to add a slogan or adjust colors, etc. This could yield a great social media graphic for pediatric patients.) “Create a photo-realistic image of an elderly patient smiling in a dental office, with a dentist by her side. Natural lighting, warm atmosphere, both looking happy.”
(Useful for showcasing patient satisfaction. You can easily tweak details like “make the patient an older gentleman” by just asking in the next prompt.) “Generate an infographic-style image showing the steps of brushing teeth: 1) Apply toothpaste, 2) brush at 45° angle, 3) brush all surfaces, 4) spit and rinse. Use simple illustrations of a mouth and toothbrush for each step, with numbers.”
(4o Image Generation can attempt multi-panel images. If it doesn’t get it perfect, you can have it generate each step as separate images and then combine them with a 3rd party app.)
With ChatGPT’s image generation, the possibilities are endless. For a dental practice, this means faster turnaround on marketing visuals and the ability to tailor content on the fly (for example, quickly responding to a trending topic with a relevant image + caption, without waiting for a designer).
 Midjourney
What Midjourney Does Best:
Midjourney is renowned for its high-quality, photorealistic images and imaginative art styles. It excels at producing lifelike human portraits, realistic clinic scenes, and artistic illustrations with fine detail and lighting.
For example, a prompt describing a “bright, modern dental office with smiling patients” can yield strikingly real images suitable for website banners or print ads. Midjourney’s rendering of textures, facial expressions, and lighting often appears more polished and “magazine-quality” compared to many competitors.
Pricing Tiers: Midjourney is a subscription service available via Discord. It offers four paid tiers:
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Basic ($10/month)
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Standard ($30/month)
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Pro ($60/month)
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Mega ($120/month) |
The Basic plan provides roughly ~200 image generations per month (fast GPU time ~3.3 hours) and is great for light use. Standard and above include unlimited image generation in relaxed mode (slower queue), which is ideal if you need a large volume of graphics.
Annual billing can save ~20%. There is no permanent free tier – Midjourney’s free trial was discontinued due to heavy abuse and demand, so a subscription is required to generate images. Small businesses under $1M revenue can use any plan, whereas larger companies (>$1M/year) are expected to use Pro or Mega.
Ease of Use:
Using Midjourney requires Discord. Users interact with a bot (by typing /imagine and a prompt in a Discord channel). This interface has a slight learning curve for non-technical users unfamiliar with Discord, but Midjourney’s documentation and community are very active in helping newcomers.
On the plus side, Discord allows a collaborative feel—you can see others’ creations for inspiration. Midjourney outputs four variations for each prompt, and you can upscale or refine them with quick reaction buttons.
There’s now a web gallery for your images, but no dedicated app or web prompt interface yet (Discord is currently the main way). Overall, once set up, the prompting process is straightforward, though fine-tuning a prompt for best results may take some practice.
Dental Office Use Cases:
Midjourney’s photorealism is perfect for creating visual content that looks like real photography. Dental marketers can generate images for:
Website and Ads:
e.g. a “happy patient with a dentist in a modern clinic, soft natural lighting” for a hero image or Google ad (instead of using stock photos). These visuals can convey trust and professionalism. Social Media Posts:
Create artistic or humorous illustrations related to dental care (tooth characters, before-and-after smiles, etc.) to engage patients. Midjourney’s artistic styles can produce eye-catching cartoons or paintings – useful for posts about kids’ dentistry or holiday themes (imagine a tooth dressed as a pumpkin on Halloween). Educational Graphics:
Generate diagrams or friendly illustrations of teeth, gums, or procedures. For example, an ultra-detailed rendering of a tooth cross-section or a cheerful infographic-style image about flossing technique. Office Decor & Branding:
If you want a unique art piece for the office wall or a themed logo idea, Midjourney can output creative concepts (e.g. a tooth blended with nature elements for a holistic dentistry vibe). |
Note that Midjourney may sometimes produce people who look real but aren’t. Always avoid implying they are actual patients. Also, while Midjourney’s outputs can be very realistic, you should verify accuracy for any anatomic or technical detail if used in patient education.
Midjourney’s Free Tier (Or Lack Thereof):
There is effectively no free tier for Midjourney. In the past, a limited trial existed but it was halted in 2023. As a result, you must subscribe to one of the paid plans to use the tool. (On rare occasions Midjourney has opened brief trials for promotional reasons, but none are consistently available as of 2025.)
Commercial Rights:
Midjourney’s terms grant you broad rights to use the images you create for any purpose once you are a paid subscriber. This means you can legally use Midjourney-generated art in your practice’s marketing materials, website, social media, or even merchandise.
Attribution is not required. The only caveat is if your dental business grosses over $1M/year, then you’re required to use the Pro or higher plan per the license terms.
For most small dental offices, the lower tiers suffice and still include full commercial usage. (Unpaid images, if any, would not carry these rights – but since the free trial is closed, this isn’t a concern now.)
Output Quality & Styles:
Midjourney supports a range of styles – from photorealistic photography to illustrations, sketches, fantasy art, and more – via prompt keywords and model versions. Its v6 model (and beyond) is known for very realistic human figures and intricate lighting.
You can specify styles like “watercolor painting” or “3D render” or “cinematic photo” in your prompt to get different vibes. One limitation historically was rendering text (e.g., signs or labels in the image often came out garbled), so it’s not the best for generating an image with legible text (like a flyer with written content).
For pure image quality, however, Midjourney is often considered the gold standard in 2025 for rich detail and aesthetics. It tends to require less prompt engineering to get beautiful results – often a few descriptive words suffice to produce something impressive.
Example Prompts (Dental Practice):
“Ultra-realistic photo of a happy patient in a bright dental clinic, sitting in the dentist chair after a successful teeth whitening, natural lighting, professional depth of field –– for a website banner.” “Watercolor illustration of a smiling cartoon tooth holding a toothbrush and floss, in a kids-friendly style –– for a pediatric dentist’s social media post.” “Cinematic portrait of a dentist in scrubs and mask, with soft light and a blurred dental office background, 35mm photography, to use as a staff profile image.”
These prompts showcase Midjourney’s ability to handle realistic human scenarios, friendly cartoons, and professional portraits respectively. You can adjust the level of detail or style keywords to suit your branding.
Head to Part Two to Learn About Firefly, Google Imagen, and Ideogram AI
That wraps up part one of our AI Image generation breakdown. For Part Two, and a breakdown of the final three tools, CLICK HERE
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Need Help With Your Marketing?
Dental marketing can be a lot. As evidenced by this lengthy two-part article, you have to demonstrate a high level of knowledge, skill, and determination to achieve success in just one facet. That’s where we come in.
Since 2009, WEO Media has helped hundreds, if not thousands, of dentists across North America take control of their marketing and grow their practice. If you’d like to learn how we could help yours, simply call (888) 246-6906
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