Verdict
Firefly's own model is trained on Adobe Stock and public domain pictures, which makes it the cautious pick for anything going on sale or into print. CNET scored it 7 out of 10 and said it struggles with photorealism, and user threads in 2026 are full of people paying credits for edits that went wrong. The free daily allowance is enough to try it properly.
Best for
Photoshop users and small sellers who want images with fewer copyright worries
Skip if
Already paying for ChatGPT or Gemini and only making images for fun
Key facts
- Category
- Images, art & design
- Made by
- Adobe
- Based in
- US
- Launched
- 2023
- Works on
- Web, iPhone, Android
- In the UK
- Yes
- Price from
- £9.98 a month
- Free plan
- Free daily generations across image, video and audio, refreshed each day, including some partner models such as Nano Banana
Pricing
| Plan | Price | Billed |
|---|---|---|
| Firefly Standard | £9.98 | month |
| Firefly Pro | £19.99 | month |
| Firefly Pro Plus | £47.99 | month |
| Firefly Premium | £200.4 | month |
| Firefly Pro for teams (per licence, excl. VAT) | £16.66 | month |
| Firefly Pro Plus for teams (per licence, excl. VAT) | £39.99 | month |
| Firefly Premium for teams (per licence, excl. VAT) | £167.0 | month |
What it does
- makes images from text prompts, sketches or reference images
- makes video from text or an image, including talking avatars
- generates music, sound effects and text-to-speech
- translates and dubs audio and video
- removes backgrounds and objects and upscales images and video
- offers partner models such as Nano Banana, Kling and Runway
Ratings
What people say
user reviews in 2026 is mostly negative. People complain that Firefly ignores prompts, charges credits for failed attempts and errors out on video, while a minority like having many models in one place. Store stars (4.6 iOS, 4.1 Android) are far kinder than user reviews, and the Trustpilot score of 1.1 covers Adobe as a whole and is mostly about billing. Most high-engagement X posts come from paid Firefly Ambassadors, so they were not used as quotes.
“Its been the best ive ever used (and i have used almost every ai generation platform there is) but lately firefly nano banana pro has a lot of issues for me.”
Individual user review, 3 March 2026 · source
“Number 1 entry point to creative models of all kind. Including surprises like 11-labs text to speech models.”
Individual user review, 3 March 2026 · source
“It sucks. I couldn’t even generate something as simple as curtains. It kept generating strange objects covered in curtain. … I went to ChatGPT and it did it perfectly from first try.”
Individual user review, 5 March 2026 · source
“I really hate that I have to pay for Firefly to do it wrong. Adobe should only charge upon downloading.”
Individual user review, 14 June 2026 · source
“Every time I try to generate a video with Adobe Firefly, I get this message that something went wrong, and that I should try again later.”
Individual user review, 19 September 2026 · source
Press reviews
- TechRadar 2026-07-21
"An excellent choice for AI image creation, backed by powerful editing features and a generous free plan"; weak on AI avatars and video editing still in beta.
- CNET 2026-07-17
7.0 out of 10; commercially safe and ties into other Adobe apps, but struggles with photorealistic images.
- Zapier 2026-08-03
Best for integrating AI-generated images into photos; at its best inside Photoshop.
Privacy
- Trains on your data
- no; Adobe says Firefly models are trained on licensed Adobe Stock and public domain content and never on customer content (General Terms 2.2F). Stock contributors' uploads are used under the Stock contributor agreement.
- Opt-out
- Not needed for generative training. Separate content analysis for product improvement on cloud files can be switched off in Adobe account privacy settings (adobe.com/privacy/opt-out.html).
- Retention
- Generation history kept until deleted by the user. Adobe's Sep 2026 Firefly security fact sheet (enterprise) says inference logs are kept 90 days and feedback 6 months. Cloud content may be deleted 30 days after a paid licence ends. No consumer-specific retention period published.
- Incidents
- Apr 2024: Bloomberg reported about 5% of Firefly training images were AI-generated pictures (including Midjourney output) uploaded to Adobe Stock, undermining the 'ethical' training claim; some Stock contributors said they felt pushed into allowing training. Jun 2024: backlash over updated terms of use led Adobe to clarify it does not train on customer content. Mar 2026: Adobe agreed a $75m penalty plus $75m in free services to settle the US DOJ/FTC case over hidden early termination fees (no admission of wrongdoing); the UK CMA then opened its own investigation into Adobe's cancellation fees. Partner models inside Firefly (Google, OpenAI, others) are not covered by Adobe's commercial-safety claim.
- Age limit
- 13+ to register an Adobe ID (schools can deploy to under-13s under education terms); App Store rating 12+
Official videos
- New Capabilities in Firefly AI Assistant (beta) | Adobe Firefly 2026-06-18
- Adobe Firefly: The next evolution of creative AI is here 2025-04-24
FAQ
Is Adobe Firefly free?
Yes, there is a free allowance of daily generations for images, video and audio that refreshes each day. Paid plans in the UK start at £9.98 a month for 2,000 credits.
Is Adobe Firefly safe to use commercially?
Adobe says its own Firefly models are trained only on licensed Adobe Stock and public domain content, which is why reviewers call it the commercially safe option. That promise does not cover the Google, OpenAI and other partner models also offered inside Firefly.
Does Adobe train Firefly on my photos?
Adobe's terms say it does not train generative AI on customer content unless it is submitted to Adobe Stock. A separate content analysis setting for product improvement can be switched off in account privacy settings.
Is there a Firefly app for phones?
Yes. Adobe released Firefly apps for iPhone and Android in June 2025, and both are available in the UK.
Adobe Firefly vs Midjourney?
Midjourney is usually rated higher for artistic quality, while Firefly is chosen for its licensed training data and links to Photoshop. CNET scored Firefly 7.0 and Midjourney 6.5 in its 2026 tests.
Scores are based on published evidence, not lab tests. How we score.
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