How much does Seedream 5 Lite cost on varg?

Seedream 5 Lite costs from $0.03 per run on varg (from $0.028/image on the cheapest route). varg charges the provider's price with no markup, from one credit balance. For the exact price of a request before you run it, send the same body to POST https://api.varg.ai/v2/estimate.

How do I call the Seedream 5 Lite API?

Send POST https://api.varg.ai/v2/tools/image/call with the header "Authorization: Bearer $VARG_API_KEY" and a JSON body that includes "model": "seedream_5_lite". The call answers 202 with a job right away. Poll GET https://api.varg.ai/v2/jobs/{id} until "status" is "completed", then read output.outputs[0].url, or pass options.webhook_url to be called back.

Can I use Seedream 5 Lite from Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor?

Yes. Add the varg MCP server (https://mcp.varg.ai/mcp) to Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor or any other MCP client and sign in with varg, with no API key to paste. The agent runs Seedream 5 Lite with call_tool, passing tool "image" and "model": "seedream_5_lite".

How long does a Seedream 5 Lite request take?

Typically about 30 s on the fastest route, by the catalog's estimate. The API answers at once with a job id, so nothing waits on an open connection while it runs.

Images · Text to image

Seedream 5 Lite API

ByteDance Seedream 5 Lite. Text-to-image.

Price: From $0.03 per run from $0.028/image
Typical time: ~30 s
Model id: seedream_5_lite

Seedream 5 Lite runs on one varg API key and one credit balance, the same as every other model here. You pay the provider's price, with no markup.

POST /v2/tools/image/call

curl -X POST https://api.varg.ai/v2/tools/image/call \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $VARG_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
  "model": "seedream_5_lite",
  "prompt": "a serene mountain landscape at golden hour, photorealistic",
  "aspect_ratio": "16:9"
}'

Try it in the Playground Get an API key

Real outputa serene mountain landscape at golden hour, photorealistic

Seedream 5 Lite pricing

From $0.03 per run. Prices are in US dollars and are the provider's own, with no markup. Seedream 5 Lite has 2 routes: "model": "seedream_5_lite" picks one automatically, or pass a route key as "model" to pin it. For the exact price of a request, send the same body to POST https://api.varg.ai/v2/estimate.

piapi from $0.028/image
piapi:seedream-5-lite
Text to image ByteDance Seedream 5.0 Lite via PiAPI — strict moderation. Text-to-image + up to 10 reference images. 2K/3K output.
Size 3K
$0.042/image
Other
$0.028/image
Minimum charge
$0.03
Most one request can cost
$0.05
Typical time
~30 s
piapi from $0.035/image
piapi:seedream-5-lite-less-restriction
Text to image ByteDance Seedream 5.0 Lite via PiAPI — permissive review (NSFW ok), +10%. No retry on content rejection. Explicit opt-in via exact model_key only.
Size 3K
$0.0525/image
Other
$0.035/image
Minimum charge
$0.04
Most one request can cost
$0.06
Typical time
~30 s

Seedream 5 Lite inputs

The JSON body of the request. Media inputs are URLs: upload a local file with POST /v2/files and pass the URL it returns. Full JSON Schema, no key needed: api.varg.ai/v2/tools/image?model=seedream_5_lite

Seedream 5 Lite request fields
Field	What it does
`model` string required	`seedream_5_lite` picks a route automatically. To pin one, pass a route key from Pricing above.
`prompt` string	—
`files` array of { url }	—
`aspect_ratio` string	Allowed e.g. 16:9 \| 9:16 \| 1:1 \| 4:3 \| 3:4 \| 21:9 \| auto

Provider options

Optional, under provider_options.<provider>. Only the options of the provider that runs the job apply; pin a route to choose it.

`provider_options.piapi`

Seedream 5 Lite options for piapi
Field	What it does
`input.size` string	Allowed 2K \| 3K
`input.prompt` string	—
`input.image_urls` array of URL strings	—
`input.aspect_ratio` string	Allowed 21:9 \| 16:9 \| 4:3 \| 1:1 \| 3:4 \| 9:16
`input.output_format` string	Allowed jpeg \| png
`task_type` string	Allowed seedream-5-lite \| seedream-5-lite-less-restriction

Call the Seedream 5 Lite API

POST https://api.varg.ai/v2/tools/image/call with Authorization: Bearer $VARG_API_KEY. It answers 202 with a job right away.

1. Send the request

cURL

curl -X POST https://api.varg.ai/v2/tools/image/call \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $VARG_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
  "model": "seedream_5_lite",
  "prompt": "a serene mountain landscape at golden hour, photorealistic",
  "aspect_ratio": "16:9"
}'

JavaScript

const headers = {
  Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.VARG_API_KEY}`,
  'Content-Type': 'application/json',
}

const res = await fetch('https://api.varg.ai/v2/tools/image/call', {
  method: 'POST',
  headers,
  body: JSON.stringify({
    "model": "seedream_5_lite",
    "prompt": "a serene mountain landscape at golden hour, photorealistic",
    "aspect_ratio": "16:9"
  }),
})
const job = await res.json() // { id: "job_…", status: "queued" }

Python

import os
import requests

headers = {"Authorization": f"Bearer {os.environ['VARG_API_KEY']}"}

job = requests.post(
    "https://api.varg.ai/v2/tools/image/call",
    headers=headers,
    json={
      "model": "seedream_5_lite",
      "prompt": "a serene mountain landscape at golden hour, photorealistic",
      "aspect_ratio": "16:9"
    },
).json()  # {"id": "job_…", "status": "queued"}

2. Get the result

Poll the job until its status is completed, failed or cancelled; Seedream 5 Lite typically takes about 30 s. The result is at output.outputs[0].url.

GET /v2/jobs/{id}

curl https://api.varg.ai/v2/jobs/$JOB_ID \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $VARG_API_KEY"

# Poll until "status" is completed, failed or cancelled.
# The result is in output.outputs[0].url

JavaScript

let current = job
while (!['completed', 'failed', 'cancelled'].includes(current.status)) {
  await new Promise((resolve) => setTimeout(resolve, 3000))
  current = await (await fetch(`https://api.varg.ai/v2/jobs/${current.id}`, { headers })).json()
}
console.log(current.output?.outputs?.[0]?.url)

Python

import time

while job["status"] not in ("completed", "failed", "cancelled"):
    time.sleep(3)
    job = requests.get(f"https://api.varg.ai/v2/jobs/{job['id']}", headers=headers).json()

print(job["output"]["outputs"][0]["url"])

Or take a webhook instead of polling

Add options.webhook_url and varg POSTs the finished job to it.

request body

{
  "model": "seedream_5_lite",
  "prompt": "a serene mountain landscape at golden hour, photorealistic",
  "aspect_ratio": "16:9",
  "options": {
    "webhook_url": "https://your-app.com/varg-webhook"
  }
}

From Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor (MCP)

The varg MCP server, https://mcp.varg.ai/mcp, runs Seedream 5 Lite with call_tool. Sign in with varg, no API key to paste. How to connect it

call_tool

{
  "tool": "image",
  "input": {
    "model": "seedream_5_lite",
    "prompt": "a serene mountain landscape at golden hour, photorealistic",
    "aspect_ratio": "16:9"
  },
  "wait": true
}