Flux.1 Dev Environmental Impact
Open-source transformer-based image model
- Architecture
- Rectified Flow Transformer
- Parameters
- 12B
- Provider
- Black Forest Labs
Energy per query
3.8 Wh
13x more than a Google search (0.3 Wh)
CO2 per query
1.5 g
Global Average grid (475 gCO₂/kWh)
Water per query
7 mL
~143 queries to fill 1 litre
Processing location
Self-hosted (varies)
Provider
Black Forest Labs
Category
Image Generation
Grid carbon intensity
475 g CO2/kWh (27% renewable)
How does Flux.1 Dev compare?
Detailed Breakdown
Energy Consumption
Flux.1 Dev consumes approximately 3.8 Wh per image at 20 inference steps. As an open-source 12B parameter model using a rectified flow transformer architecture, it represents a new generation of image models that replace traditional U-Net architectures with transformer-based designs.
Power Source & Carbon
As an open-source model, Flux.1 is self-hosted across diverse infrastructure. The carbon impact varies based on deployment location. Popular hosting platforms include Replicate, RunPod, and local GPUs.
Water Usage
At approximately 7 mL per image when hosted in a data center, water consumption is moderate. Self-hosted on personal hardware, water consumption drops to effectively zero.
About Flux.1 Dev
Flux.1 Dev is a image generation model from Black Forest Labs, released in August 1, 2024. Open-source transformer-based image model. Each query uses 3.8 Wh of energy and produces 1.5 g of CO₂. That's 13x the energy of a Google search — reflecting the computational demands of image generation.
These figures are estimates derived from hardware specifications and API benchmarks — Black Forest Labs has not published official energy data for Flux.1 Dev. Actual consumption may vary significantly depending on batching, quantisation, and infrastructure optimisations that we cannot observe from outside.
Flux.1 Dev in Context
Your yearly Flux.1 Dev footprint
At 25 queries per day, your annual Flux.1 Dev usage consumes 34.7 kWh — roughly what a fridge uses in a month. That produces 13.7 kg of CO₂.
Image vs text: the energy gap
Generating one image with Flux.1 Dev uses 13x more energy than a text conversation with ChatGPT. The diffusion process that creates images requires many iterative passes through the model, each refining the image from noise — far more compute per output than generating text one token at a time.
Key Insights
What does your Flux.1 Dev usage cost the planet?
Use our calculator to estimate your personal environmental footprint based on how often you use Flux.1 Dev.
Calculate My ComputeFrequently Asked Questions
How much energy does Flux.1 Dev use per query?
Each Flux.1 Dev query consumes approximately 3.8 Wh of energy. This is 13x more than a traditional Google search (~0.3 Wh).
What is Flux.1 Dev's carbon footprint?
Based on the carbon intensity of Self-hosted (varies), each query produces approximately 1.5 g of CO2. The grid in this region has a carbon intensity of 475 g CO2/kWh with 27% renewable energy.
How much water does Flux.1 Dev use?
Each query consumes approximately 7 mL of water, primarily used for cooling the data centers that process the request.
How does Flux.1 Dev compare to a Google search?
A Flux.1 Dev query uses 13x more than a Google search in terms of energy. A Google search uses approximately 0.3 Wh, while Flux.1 Dev uses 3.8 Wh.
Technical Details
Architecture
Rectified Flow Transformer
Parameters
12B
Release date
2024-08-01
Open source
Yes