How to use Microsoft Image Creator to generate and edit stunning AI images for free
Generative AI is super popular right now. Since OpenAI released ChatGPT in 2022, countless tools and chatbots have popped up. For example, Microsoft launched an AI image generator within Bing, powered by DALL-E 3, one of OpenAI’s visual projects. It was originally called Bing Image Creator but is now called Image Creator under the Microsoft Designer umbrella.
Image Creator lets you generate AI images from text prompts. It’s easy to use, whether you’re accessing it through Copilot or directly on its website. Just type in a description, and the AI does the rest, creating a set of images based on your prompt. Microsoft says it takes responsible AI seriously — blocking harmful prompts and adding invisible watermarks to AI images.
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When you first sign up with a personal account, you get 15 “boosts,” which speed up image generation, plus editing and resizing. Boosts refill daily. If you run out, you can still create images, but they’ll take a little longer to generate until your boosts are refreshed. (With work or school accounts, you won’t be able to create until boosts refill.)
You can also redeem Microsoft Rewards for more boosts if needed.
With support for over 100 languages, Image Creator is a powerful tool for most casual users. If you’re ready to try Image Creator, our guide shows you exactly how to get started with generating images today.
How to use Microsoft Image Creator
What you need: To use Image Creator, all you need is access to bing.com/create. No OpenAI account required, but you do need a Microsoft account. You can access Image Creator through Copilot or through its website. We’ll cover in detail how to create images on the Image Creator site, but you can check the FAQ below for instructions on using Copilot.
You don’t need Microsoft Edge to use Image Creator from Designer, but you will need a Microsoft account. Just head to bing.com/create, click on “Join & Create,” log in to your Microsoft account, and you’ll be good to go.
Also: How to remove Copilot from your Microsoft 365 plan
Personal accounts get 15 “boosts” per day for faster image creation, plus unlimited image generation. Work and school accounts will need to wait for their boosts to refill before they can keep using the tool.
Next, enter a description of the image you want Image Creator to generate. The more detailed your prompt, the better the result. After typing your prompt, click “Create” to generate your image.
For example, I requested the following images:
- “Photo-realistic image of a three-year-old toddler with coily curly blonde hair that goes past her shoulder blades. Show her lying on a dark wood floor watching an 85-inch TV. She’s wrapped in a fluffy white blanket and holding a green alien stuffed animal.”
- “Two black labs and a husky sitting in a snow-covered backyard.”
- “Photo of a dodo bird sitting on a concrete floor of a brightly lit home in the tropics.”
Once your images are ready, it’s time to check the results. DALL-E 3 and Image Creator typically generate four images for each prompt.
The images aren’t always perfect. You might notice odd details, like a person’s fingers or eyes being off. In one of my prompts, I had it create an image of a toddler covered in a fuzzy blanket. The result showed two images — one of a toddler wearing the blanket like a coat (sleeves and all), but the other rendered an actual blanket.
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I also had it create an image of a dodo bird, which is a tricky request since it won’t have many references (they went extinct in the 17th century). The result resembled a dodo, but it also also looked like a mix of a pelican and a toucan, which, hey, is close enough for this test.
You can click on any image to resize or customize it. The customize tool lets you add text or visuals, markup, adjust layers, auto-enhance, and do basic editing like crop, rotate, blur, and adjust brightness and color.
After reviewing the generated images and customizing or resizing them to you’re liking, you can save them. I downloaded the one below. When you click on an image, you’ll see the options to Share, Save to your account, Download, or give Feedback. You can download one, all, or none of the images — totally up to you.
Can you create images with Microsoft Copilot?
Yes. There are two ways to use Image Creator. You can generate images by going to bing.com/create, as mentioned earlier, or you can use Copilot ro create images directly in a chat.
Here’s how to create an image right from the chat window:
- Go to copilot.microsoft.com.
- Log in with your Microsoft account.
- Write your prompt. You can start with phrases like “create an image” or “generate a photo,” but it’s not required. It usually picks up on what you mean.
A big perk of using Copilot to generate images is that you can ask follow-up questions to tweak the image. Copilot will suggest things like, “Can you make the dodo wear a hat?” or “Change the color of the feather to blue.”
Can you edit the AI images after downloading them?
Yes, once you download your image from Image Creator, you are free to edit it using other software or photo-editing apps, but you won’t be able to edit it directly in Microsoft’s Image Creator once it’s been saved. You can, however, use the customize tool to make adjustments like cropping, rotating, or auto-enhancing before downloading the image.
How to write good prompts for AI image generation
The more specific you are with your prompts, the better the result.
Think of the prompt as a detailed description of the image you want to create. Include adjectives, nouns, and verbs to explain the image and what the subject is doing — styles are also a great addition. For example, if you ask the AI bot to create “a photo of…,” you’ll get a different result than if you specify you want a cartoon, a painting, or a 3D render. The style really matters.
Also: The five biggest mistakes people make when prompting an AI
Here are some prompt tips from Microsoft you might find helpful:
- Creating an image with Image Creator is different from searching Bing. It works best when you’re specific — add details like adjectives, locations, and artistic styles (e.g., “digital art” or “photorealistic”).
- Instead of just typing “astronaut,” try: “A close-up photo of an astronaut in a glowing plasma suit, with the galaxy inside it, putting on their helmet, but you can’t see their face because of the visor, realistic, film stock, bright colors.”
- Use the following format when writing your prompts: Adjective + Noun + Verb + Style. (For example, “Fuzzy creature wearing sunglasses, digital art.”)
Do you own AI-generated images?
According to the latest ruling from the US Copyright Office, purely AI-generated images aren’t protected under current copyright laws because they’re not the result of human authorship. Images created with Designer have an invisible watermark that shows they’re AI-generated. This watermark includes Microsoft’s info, along with the date and time the image was made.
Also: Is DeepSeek’s new image model another win for cheaper AI?
AI image generators have sparked controversy because they’re trained on images found online, many of which were created by other people. While the art you create with these tools is unique, it’s still influenced by millions of images from across the internet.
Is Image Creator free to use?
Microsoft Designer’s Image Creator is currently free to use, offering 15 daily boosts to speed up image generation. Each boost allows for faster processing of your image prompts. If you run out of boosts, you can still create images, but the generation process will take longer. To continue enjoying faster image creation, you can redeem Microsoft Rewards points for additional boosts.
For those seeking more boosts, Microsoft offers a Copilot Pro subscription, which provides 100 boosts per day. This subscription also includes other benefits across Microsoft 365 apps.
