{
  "schema_version": 1,
  "public_model_id": "google/gemini-3.1-flash-lite-image",
  "canonical_page": "https://www.maxapi.dev/models/google/gemini-3.1-flash-lite-image",
  "reviewed_at": "2026-09-10",
  "generated_at": "2026-09-11T02:12:59.276Z",
  "scope": "Checked against MaxAPI's public catalogue, gateway implementation and local regression cases. Shared gateway checks are not separate end-to-end tests of every listed model. This is an integration reference, not a live upstream availability or performance report.",
  "summary": "Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite Image is available in MaxAPI's image API under google/gemini-3.1-flash-lite-image, for generation and reference-image editing. This catalogue entry allows up to 3 references. Published routes are mix; file acceptance, permissions and output options must be checked for the route you actually use.",
  "model_profile": {
    "family_id": "google/gemini-3.1-flash-lite-image",
    "reviewed_at": "2026-09-10",
    "title": "Simple 1K generation and localized edits",
    "provider_positioning": "Google positions Nano Banana 2 Lite around efficient 1K image work. Its model card describes localized edits such as recoloring and background changes, while the family guide warns it is not optimized for complex multiple-reference or sequential-editing workloads.",
    "selection_advice": "Evaluate it for simple illustration, stickers and one-step edits. Choose Nano Banana 2 or Pro for a reference-heavy campaign, complex typography or a deliverable requiring a native 2K/4K tier.",
    "limitations": "This is not a smaller copy of Pro with all the same capabilities. MaxAPI's three-reference input ceiling is not a recommendation to use three conflicting references. No 2K/4K or search-grounding promise is made here.",
    "suggested_use_cases": [
      {
        "title": "Single-subject stickers",
        "body": "Keep the silhouette simple and use a plain background. Test readability at the small size used by your product."
      },
      {
        "title": "One-step color previews",
        "body": "Ask for one localized change from one reference. Compare the changed region and avoid chaining unreviewed edits."
      },
      {
        "title": "Lightweight app illustrations",
        "body": "Prepare one clear scene for a 1K asset. Add exact interface labels in your application rather than asking the image to render a whole UI."
      }
    ],
    "example_prompt": {
      "title": "A simple rain-boot sticker",
      "text": "Create one friendly sticker illustration of a blue rain boot with a small green leaf tucked inside. Use a bold clean silhouette, a plain white background and soft shading. Center the boot, leave generous margins and include no lettering or additional objects. The image should remain clear when displayed small.",
      "review": "Check the small-size silhouette; use the API's 1K setting, not a 4K prompt request."
    },
    "scope": "Provider capabilities describe the model, not the complete MaxAPI feature set. Use the parameters, input types and routes documented for this MaxAPI entry. Vendor speed or quality descriptions are not service-level guarantees.",
    "variant_note": null,
    "sources": [
      {
        "label": "Google · gemini-3.1-flash-lite-image",
        "url": "https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/models/gemini-3.1-flash-lite-image"
      },
      {
        "label": "Google · Nano Banana image generation",
        "url": "https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/image-generation"
      }
    ]
  },
  "illustration": {
    "url": "https://www.maxapi.dev/model-guides/individual-20260910/gemini-3-1-flash-lite-image.webp",
    "alt": "A pair of blue rain boots as a sticker with green leaves on a white background",
    "caption": "A focused small-asset brief: one subject, a clear silhouette and a simple background.",
    "provenance": "ai_generated_editorial_concept",
    "is_output_from_named_model": false,
    "is_benchmark": false
  },
  "illustrations": [
    {
      "section": "usecases",
      "url": "https://www.maxapi.dev/model-guides/individual-20260910/gemini-3-1-flash-lite-image.webp",
      "alt": "A pair of blue rain boots as a sticker with green leaves on a white background",
      "caption": "A focused small-asset brief: one subject, a clear silhouette and a simple background.",
      "width": 1536,
      "height": 1024,
      "provenance": "ai_generated_editorial_concept",
      "is_output_from_named_model": false,
      "is_benchmark": false
    },
    {
      "section": "features",
      "url": "https://www.maxapi.dev/model-guides/expanded-20260911/gemini-3-1-flash-lite-image-practice.webp",
      "alt": "Tactile cobalt paper umbrella with one green leaf",
      "caption": "Keep a small visual asset focused on a simple, recognizable subject.",
      "width": 1536,
      "height": 1024,
      "provenance": "ai_generated_editorial_concept",
      "is_output_from_named_model": false,
      "is_benchmark": false
    },
    {
      "section": "prompts",
      "url": "https://www.maxapi.dev/model-guides/expanded-20260911/gemini-3-1-flash-lite-image-prompt.webp",
      "alt": "Paper sticker of blue rain boots at a side angle with one green leaf.",
      "caption": "Small-asset silhouette and paper-texture concept.",
      "width": 1536,
      "height": 1024,
      "provenance": "ai_generated_editorial_concept",
      "is_output_from_named_model": false,
      "is_benchmark": false
    },
    {
      "section": "workflow",
      "url": "https://www.maxapi.dev/model-guides/expanded-20260911/gemini-3-1-flash-lite-image-workflow.webp",
      "alt": "Small blue boot stickers inspected on a white proof sheet.",
      "caption": "Inspect silhouette and separation at the intended small size.",
      "width": 1536,
      "height": 1024,
      "provenance": "ai_generated_editorial_concept",
      "is_output_from_named_model": false,
      "is_benchmark": false
    }
  ],
  "configured_facts": [
    {
      "label": "Request model ID",
      "value": "google/gemini-3.1-flash-lite-image",
      "code": true
    },
    {
      "label": "Output type",
      "value": "Image"
    },
    {
      "label": "Base URL",
      "value": "https://api.maxapi.dev",
      "code": true
    },
    {
      "label": "Generation workflow",
      "value": "Synchronous or asynchronous"
    },
    {
      "label": "Reference images · MaxAPI limit",
      "value": "3"
    },
    {
      "label": "Resolution & dimensions",
      "value": "1K output; use the supported aspect-ratio presets."
    }
  ],
  "pricing_scope": "1 credit = US$1. These are catalogue base rates, not a live account quote. Account multipliers and the active billing configuration determine the final charge. Token rates are not a fixed price per image.",
  "pricing_index": "https://www.maxapi.dev/pricing.json",
  "routing_rules": [
    {
      "title": "Which route wins?",
      "body": "Routing priority is: the API key's configured route_modes list → an explicitly requested route → the model's default route. A non-empty key list takes precedence over route_mode in the request. To test a specific route, check the key configuration first; changing the request alone may not change the route used."
    },
    {
      "title": "A key cannot grant account permissions",
      "body": "The a, x and pro routes require the corresponding account permission. Listing one on an API key does not grant that permission. An unauthorized gated-route selection returns 403 rather than silently switching to a different pricing tier."
    },
    {
      "title": "RPM is shared at account level",
      "body": "An account's positive RPM limit covers its API keys together. A key can impose a stricter limit, but a higher key limit does not override the user limit. For example, a user limit of 200 RPM is not 200 RPM for each key. Service-level RPM and concurrency controls also apply; adding keys is not a way to bypass them."
    }
  ],
  "troubleshooting": [
    {
      "code": "400",
      "title": "Missing or invalid request fields",
      "meaning": "Check the response's error code, not only 400. For image edits, an empty prompt produces prompt_required. A parameter validation error is different from an upstream generation failure.",
      "action": "Check model, prompt, field types and documented size/quality values. Correct the request before retrying. For Gemini-native responses, inspect the numeric error.code and error.status fields."
    },
    {
      "code": "Invalid image file",
      "title": "A reference cannot be decoded or accepted",
      "meaning": "A filename ending in .png does not prove that the bytes are a valid PNG. The URL may return an error page, an incomplete download or a format the selected channel cannot use. An upstream 400 may be reported as a generic generation failure, so status alone does not identify the bad file.",
      "action": "Download and decode every reference locally. Check MIME type and pixel dimensions, then export a fresh supported image if needed. Submit one reference first and add the others in order to locate the problematic input; do not repeatedly resend an unchanged invalid file."
    },
    {
      "code": "403",
      "title": "a_route_not_enabled / x_route_not_enabled / pro_route_not_enabled",
      "meaning": "The selected restricted route is not enabled for the account. It is an access issue, not evidence that the model is offline.",
      "action": "Check both the account permission and the API key's route list. Select a route you are entitled to use or request access; do not solve a 403 by increasing retries."
    },
    {
      "code": "429",
      "title": "rate_limit_exceeded / capacity_exhausted",
      "meaning": "429 can represent account/key RPM, service-wide capacity or generation capacity. Use Retry-After and available X-RateLimit-* / X-Global-* headers to distinguish them; one status code does not identify one unique cause.",
      "action": "Respect Retry-After when present, reduce request rate or active concurrency as appropriate, and use bounded backoff. Do not treat the site's total capacity as your account's personal quota."
    },
    {
      "code": "451",
      "title": "content_policy_violation",
      "meaning": "On the image generation failure path, a recognized upstream content refusal is mapped to 451. This is not the same as a network outage. MaxAPI's local moderation and an upstream refusal are different stages, even when both prevent a result.",
      "action": "Review the stated policy issue and use compliant inputs, or contact support if you believe the classification is mistaken. Do not retry unchanged blocked content or rotate routes to evade moderation."
    },
    {
      "code": "502 / 503 / 504",
      "title": "Generation failure, unavailable service or timeout",
      "meaning": "These responses do not all mean the same thing. MaxAPI distinguishes generation_failed, generation_unavailable and generation_timeout on compatible image endpoints. A client-side timeout can also happen before the server has finished a task.",
      "action": "If you have a task ID, poll before creating another task. Without an ID, keep the request ID and timestamp and investigate before blindly resubmitting. Retry transient failures with a limit, not an unbounded loop."
    }
  ],
  "verification": {
    "environment": "local_mock_requests_and_test_storage",
    "coverage": "shared_gateway_components_not_each_model_end_to_end",
    "paid_upstream_calls": 0,
    "reviewed_at": "2026-09-10",
    "cases": [
      {
        "key": "shared-user-rpm",
        "title": "Multiple keys share the user limit",
        "input": "Use two keys owned by the same account against an in-memory limiter with a small user quota.",
        "result": "Requests across the keys consume the same user quota; subsequent requests are limited. A larger key quota does not override the user quota, and a smaller key quota remains effective."
      },
      {
        "key": "empty-edit-prompt",
        "title": "An edit with no prompt is rejected early",
        "input": "Send an image-edit request with an empty prompt and a reference URL to a local test handler.",
        "result": "HTTP 400 with error.code=prompt_required, before route dispatch. A reference image does not replace the edit instruction."
      },
      {
        "key": "image-url-input",
        "title": "JSON reference URLs are normalized for editing",
        "input": "Pass an image_url plus prompt through the local JSON-to-multipart converter; separately test image_url=not-a-url.",
        "result": "The converter retains the model and reference fields; invalid URL syntax is rejected. This is a request-format check, not a download or model-generation success test."
      },
      {
        "key": "failure-mapping",
        "title": "Content refusal and capacity failure stay distinct",
        "input": "Feed mocked upstream content-refusal and 429/503/504 responses into the generation-error mapper.",
        "result": "Content refusal maps to 451; capacity, unavailable service and timeout retain distinct public codes. The compatible 429/503 responses include Retry-After: 2 in these tests."
      },
      {
        "key": "image-reservation",
        "title": "Image reservations settle or release on completion",
        "input": "Exercise successful and failed synchronous image reservations with a local test database.",
        "result": "Success consumes the hold with a usage record. Failure releases the reservation without a generation charge. This verifies the tested code path, not a live account's current balance."
      }
    ],
    "limitations": "Local tests use simulated requests, responses and test storage; they do not call paid model channels. They verify request handling, not model image quality, live success rates, latency or end-to-end support for the maximum reference count. The concept illustrations elsewhere on this page are not these test outputs."
  },
  "sources": {
    "maxapi_documentation": "https://www.maxapi.dev/docs",
    "catalogue": "https://www.maxapi.dev/models.json",
    "provider_documentation": "https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/models/gemini-3.1-flash-lite-image"
  }
}