Firefly is a set of generative AI tools developed by Adobe. Built into Creative Cloud, Firefly’s features are designed to supercharge your workflow, whether you’re generating images, editing photos or designing graphics.
What sets Firefly apart from many of the best AI image generators is that it was trained on licensed Adobe stock and public domain images, which means it should be safer to user commercially.
New Firefly features are being added to Creative Cloud all the time. Read on to find out how Firefly can improve your creative process.
This article was correct as of February 2025. AI tools are updated regularly and it is possible that some features have changed since this article was written. Some features may also only be available in certain countries.
What is Adobe Firefly?
Firefly is a set of creative tools built on four generative AI models: Image, Vector, Design and Video (which is still in beta). Developed by Adobe, Firefly uses AI to give designers and digital artists more creative flexibility. Some of its features are available as standalone tools, such as Firefly’s web-based text-to-image generator. Others are built directly into Creative Cloud apps, such as Generative Fill in Photoshop.
Launched in March 2023, Adobe Firefly is improving all the time, with new tools regularly added to Creative Cloud apps. The latest update included the beta rollout of its Video model, which powers Generative Expand in Premiere Pro, as well as photographic image adjustments in the Firefly web app.
Firefly is regarded as one of the most ethical AI image generators. This is because its models were trained exclusively on public domain images and licensed Adobe Stock. This makes it a popular choice for commercial and professional users, as it’s less likely to result in copyright issues with generated content.
What can you use Adobe Firefly for?
Adobe Firefly’s full capabilities are too numerous to list here, but they can be broken down into two categories. First, you have the standalone Firefly web interface. A fully featured AI image generator, it can be used to create high-quality images from natural language prompts in a range of visual styles.
It offers powerful options not found on other platforms: you can choose between art and photo content types, provide reference images for style and composition, apply lighting, colour and camera angle effects, as well as refining specific details in the prompt itself.
Then there are the various Firefly tools built into other Creative Cloud apps. You’ve got the powerful Generative Fill and Generative Expand tools in Photoshop, which leverage AI to edit the contents of existing photos and expand their margins. You can also use generative text effects to stylize typography in Adobe Express, while Text to Vector Graphic allows you to easily generate vectors in Illustrator. The new Generative Expand feature in Premiere Pro can even add seconds on to video clips.
What can’t you use Adobe Firefly for?
Firefly is designed to complement the creative process, rather than replace it entirely. As capable as it is, the output of its various tools often needs further refinement or integration into a project before it’s ready to go. Its output also fares better with some subjects than others, and the text-to-image tool will quite often generate unrealistic or surreal results.
The model’s ethics also limit what it can be used to generate. Firefly is built to avoid copyright infringement. Because it’s trained on Adobe Stock and public domain images, there are restrictions on the source material. It won’t generate branded imagery or likenesses of real people, for example. It will also steer clear of offensive or harmful imagery.
How much does Adobe Firefly cost?
Adobe Firefly is available for free via the web interface. The free plan includes 25 generative credits per month and doesn’t require a Creative Cloud subscription. For more comprehensive access, you can take out one of Adobe’s paid Firefly plans.
Firefly Standard costs ($9.99 / £9.98 / AU$16.49 per month) and includes unlimited access to image and vector features. You get 2,000 generative credits per month, which can be used to create five-second videos and translate audio. Firefly Pro ($29.99 / £28.99 / AU$49.49 per month) ups these limits, with 7,000 generative credits.
You can also access Firefly’s features by taking out a Creative Cloud Single App ($9.99 / £9.98 / AU$16.49 per month) or All Apps ($59.99 / £56.98 / AU$96.99 per month) subscription. The former includes anywhere from 100 to 500 generative credits, depending on the app, while the latter gives you 1,000 to play with. For reference, one image generation usually uses one credit.
Where can you use Adobe Firefly?
Adobe Firefly’s text-to-image features can be accessed via the web platform at firefly.adobe.com. Several of its generative tools, including text effects, can also be used online through Adobe Express.
Other Firefly-powered features are only available through the relevant app. Generative Fill and Generative Expand, for example, require you to use Adobe Photoshop.
Is Adobe Firefly any good?
Firefly’s effectiveness depends on what you’re using it for. In our review of Adobe Photoshop, for example, we praised the effectiveness of the Generative Fill tool. Powered by Firefly Image Model 3, we found it capable of generating realistic imagery with deeper control of detail and composition. We also encountered few uncanny results. It’s not perfect, though, producing surreal outcomes more than occasionally.
As a text-to-image generator, the web-based version of Firefly has one of the most comprehensive feature sets. In our hands-on experience, however, it doesn’t always pay exact attention to the details of your prompt. Complex prompts can confuse it, too. From our time using it, Firefly’s generative tool is better employed for design and graphics work than photorealism.
Use Adobe Firefly if…
You want a powerful AI image generator
Granular control of its web interface makes Firefly one of the most powerful AI image generators, with the ability to control camera angles, visual styles and more, as well as providing reference images for composition.
You want to stay on the right side of the law
Trained exclusively on licensed stock and public domain images, Adobe Firefly’s generative content is less likely to fall foul of copyright laws. This means you’re safer to use its output as part of commercial projects.
Don’t use Adobe Firefly if…
You’re not a Creative Cloud subscriber
With features into several of Adobe apps, including Photoshop, Firefly complements existing tools with the power of generative AI. If you don’t use these programs, you won’t get the best out of it.
You mainly need photorealistic images
Firefly is a powerful text-to-image generator, but it’s best used for graphic and illustrative work. Complex photo prompts can often come out warped, with more believable results generated by models like Imagen 3.
Also consider
- Luminar Neo is an intuitive, subscription-free photo editor with built-in AI tools. Simpler to use than Photoshop or Lightroom, it allows amateur photographers to save time when editing their images, with powerful removal tools. It doesn’t come close to the power and versatility offered by Adobe Firefly, though.
- Leonardo is an AI image generator with pro-friendly features, including real-time editing and granular settings control. It has a range of generative tools, including one that lets you create AI images from sketches. It doesn’t have the cross-app depth of Firefly, but it’s a powerful creative option.
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