Synthesia Pricing 2026: Plans, Credits, Limits & Extra Costs

Synthesia pricing in 2026 has four main layers: a permanent Basic free plan, two self-serve paid plans called Starter and Creator, and a custom Enterprise tier. The headline prices are simple, but the real economics depend on credits because self-serve accounts use one shared allowance across ordinary video generation, AI dubbing and selected AI-generated assets.

Basic costs $0. Starter costs $29 month to month or $264 per year. Creator costs $89 month to month or $804 per year. Enterprise is quote-based. On annual billing, the yearly totals work out to about $22 per month for Starter and $67 per month for Creator when averaged over 12 months.

The credit model is the most important part of the comparison. Basic and monthly Starter each receive 1,200 credits. Monthly Creator receives 3,600. Ordinary generated video uses two credits per second, or 120 credits per minute. If the entire allowance is spent only on standard video, that is about 10 minutes per month on Basic/Starter and 30 minutes on Creator. Dubbing, API use and generated assets can consume the same pool at different rates.

Synthesia pricing at a glance

How Synthesia credits work

Credits are the usage currency for self-serve Synthesia. Instead of giving separate standalone quotas for every AI feature, the platform uses a shared pool. This is convenient because a user can choose how to spend capacity, but it also means a workflow with heavy dubbing or generative assets can reduce the credits available for standard avatar videos.

For ordinary self-serve video generation, the current conversion is two credits per second. Sixty seconds therefore costs 120 credits. A ten-minute video uses roughly 1,200 credits before accounting for other metered features.

Basic and monthly Starter each provide 1,200 monthly credits. Monthly Creator provides 3,600. Annual plans use larger annual allocations rather than a simple monthly reset: Starter currently receives 14,500 credits for the year and Creator 44,000.

Why annual credits matter

An annual pool can be more flexible for uneven production. A team might create very little in one month and a larger training release the next. Instead of being constrained by a fixed monthly quota, the annual allocation can support bursts of production, subject to Synthesia's current account rules.

The annual totals also provide slightly more than exactly 12 monthly allocations: 14,500 versus 14,400 for Starter and 44,000 versus 43,200 for Creator. That difference is small but useful when comparing the exact allowance.

Synthesia Basic pricing: $0

Basic is a permanent free tier rather than a time-limited trial. It currently includes 1,200 credits per month and one editor. If those credits are used only for standard generated video, the theoretical capacity is about ten minutes per month.

The plan is intended for evaluation rather than full commercial production. Current plan documentation applies limitations such as watermarked output and restricted download/collaboration functionality. The correct way to use Basic is to test the editor, stock avatars, voice quality, scene workflow and how your scripts look when performed by an AI presenter.

That testing step matters because Synthesia's paid purchases are generally non-refundable. A buyer should create representative content on Basic before committing to a paid billing term.

Who should use Basic?

• First-time users checking avatar realism and voice options.
• Teams validating whether presenter-led AI video fits their training style.
• Stakeholders comparing Synthesia with HeyGen or other avatar platforms before procurement.
• Occasional users who do not yet need production downloads or collaboration.

Synthesia Starter pricing

Starter costs $29 per month on month-to-month billing. The current annual price is $264, equivalent to about $22 per month when the yearly total is divided by 12.

Monthly Starter includes 1,200 credits per month. Annual Starter includes 14,500 credits for the year. At the standard video rate, monthly Starter supports about ten minutes of ordinary generated video if no credits are spent on other metered features.

The reason to pay for Starter rather than simply remain on Basic is production access. Starter expands the avatar library to more than 125 stock avatars, supports personal avatars, enables downloads, removes key evaluation limitations and adds tools such as AI Video Assistant and AI dubbing.

Starter collaboration

Starter remains a single-editor plan. It currently supports one editor plus three guests. That is enough for a small review loop but not the same as giving several teammates independent full editing seats.

If several people need to create and manage videos rather than review them, organizations should evaluate Enterprise instead of assuming guest seats will replace a multi-editor workspace.

Starter personal avatars

Starter currently includes up to three personal avatars. This can be valuable for a consultant, trainer or small team that wants several authorized presenters without purchasing custom studio recording for each project.

Synthesia Creator pricing

Creator costs $89 per month. The current annual total is $804, equal to about $67 per month averaged over 12 months.

Monthly Creator includes 3,600 credits, which translates to about 30 minutes of standard generated video if the entire allowance goes to ordinary video. Annual Creator includes 44,000 credits across the year.

Creator is not only a larger allowance. It adds capabilities that change how Synthesia can be integrated into a production system: the legacy Video API, interactive-video features, more stock avatars, up to five personal avatars and a larger guest allowance.

Creator is the API threshold for rendered video

The legacy v2 Video API is available on Creator and Enterprise. This matters for programmatic workflows such as automatically generating personalized videos from CRM data, onboarding records or other external systems.

API automation can increase consumption quickly because it removes the manual friction that naturally limits generation. Teams should therefore build usage monitoring into any automated workflow and define safeguards around retries, duplicates and failed upstream data.

Creator interactive video

Creator also adds more advanced interactive-video workflows, including buttons, branching and navigation. This makes it more suitable for training teams building scenario-based experiences rather than only linear videos.

However, SCORM export remains an Enterprise feature. A team can create interactive content on Creator without automatically receiving the full LMS packaging required by some corporate learning environments.

Synthesia Enterprise pricing

Enterprise pricing is custom. Synthesia does not publish a universal numerical list price because the package can depend on organizational requirements, seats, usage, security, implementation and other commercial terms.

The defining Enterprise benefit is unlimited standard video minutes under the current plan description. It also adds custom editor/guest arrangements, shared workspaces, organizations, stronger Brand Kit controls, SSO, SCORM export, tailored onboarding and dedicated customer-success support.

Enterprise is therefore designed around scale and governance rather than being a simple "more credits" tier.

Unlimited video does not mean every AI feature is unlimited

This distinction is critical. Enterprise standard video minutes can be unlimited while usage-based features still consume credits. Current Enterprise credit documentation assigns separate rates to AI dubbing, Bulk Personalization, Video API, Interactive Avatars API and selected generated assets.

A procurement model should therefore separate ordinary video creation from metered features. Otherwise an organization can misunderstand the phrase "unlimited video" and under-budget for localization or API-heavy production.

Current usage rates that can affect cost

For ordinary self-serve video, the baseline is 120 credits per minute. Current Enterprise documentation identifies different rates for several advanced features. AI dubbing without lip sync can use a lower rate than lip-synced dubbing, while API and personalization workflows have their own consumption.

Interactive Avatar sessions are also billed by usage. Current developer documentation describes a 10-credit-per-minute rate for interactive avatar sessions, equivalent to about $0.10 per minute under the documented credit value. This should be modeled separately from rendered video.

Because model-specific generative assets can have fixed or per-second rates, a "minutes only" spreadsheet will not capture the complete cost of a mixed-media workflow.

AI dubbing cost and credit impact

Dubbing is a major reason organizations consider Synthesia. It can turn one source video into localized versions without manually recording every language.

But dubbing with lip sync consumes more capacity than dubbing without lip sync. Teams with dozens of languages should estimate total source minutes multiplied by language count, then decide which videos truly need lip-sync treatment versus voice translation only.

For example, a five-minute source localized into ten additional languages is not a five-minute dubbing workload; it is roughly fifty localized output minutes before retries and revisions. This can materially change the appropriate plan.

Additional Synthesia credits and auto top-ups

In September 2026, Synthesia expanded self-serve billing controls with the ability to buy additional credits and enable automatic top-ups. This reduces the risk that a production team must wait for the next billing cycle after using its included pool.

The public materials reviewed for this article did not provide one universal top-up pack price that SearchSagar can safely apply to every account and region. Buyers should check the live Billing page for their account before assuming an incremental credit price.

Auto top-ups are convenient for continuity, but they also make cost controls more important. Teams should define a monthly spend threshold and monitor generation before enabling automatic purchases on shared production accounts.

Starter annual versus monthly cost

Starter costs $29 monthly, or $348 over twelve month-to-month payments. The annual plan costs $264. That is an $84 nominal difference over a full year, before taxes or regional pricing differences.

Annual billing also changes the credit structure from 1,200 monthly credits to a 14,500-credit yearly allocation. For a consistent long-term user, the annual plan offers both lower subscription cost and more flexible timing of usage.

The tradeoff is commitment. Because paid purchases are generally non-refundable, teams uncertain about long-term fit should use Basic and, if necessary, one month of Starter before locking into a year.

Creator annual versus monthly cost

Creator costs $89 monthly, or $1,068 across twelve monthly payments. The annual total is $804, a nominal difference of $264 over a year before taxes or local pricing.

Annual Creator provides 44,000 credits for the year instead of 3,600 resetting each month. This is especially useful for teams with launch cycles, quarterly training updates or seasonal production spikes.

Creator annual makes economic sense only if the organization will actually use the API, interactive features or higher volume. A team producing eight minutes of straightforward avatar video each month does not automatically need Creator merely because its discount is larger.

Seats, editors and guests

One of the easiest pricing details to overlook is that self-serve plans are structured around one full editor. Starter includes three guests and Creator five guests, but guests are not equivalent to adding multiple independent editor seats.

This can be a larger cost driver than credits for growing teams. If marketing, enablement, L&D and customer success all need to create content, the organization may require Enterprise even if total generated minutes are modest.

Before buying, document who needs to create videos, who only needs to review them, who manages brand assets and who approves publication. Then map those roles to the actual account permissions.

Personal-avatar allowances

Starter supports up to three personal avatars and Creator up to five. Enterprise supports broader or unlimited personal-avatar use under current fair-use and contractual conditions.

Personal avatars can reduce recurring recording costs, but they also introduce identity governance. Organizations should not treat avatar creation as a one-time technical setup. They need consent, access control and an offboarding process.

Custom Studio Avatar costs

Synthesia offers more advanced custom avatar production beyond ordinary personal avatars. Current pricing material lists Studio Express-1 as a paid add-on for eligible annual customers, while avatar documentation describes a $1,000 custom studio-avatar path using submitted footage.

Because the exact packaging language can differ between the pricing page and avatar documentation, SearchSagar recommends confirming whether the current quote is per avatar, per year or packaged differently for your account before committing budget.

Roleplay Sessions pricing considerations

Roleplay Sessions are available across plans with base session allowances, allowing learners to practice conversations with AI avatars and receive automated feedback. The plan comparison currently shows ten base sessions per month on Basic, Starter and Creator and a larger shared Enterprise base allowance.

Organizations that want broad learner access, analytics or uncapped practice should review paid Roleplay Sessions packaging separately. This is another example of why the base video subscription should not be assumed to include every training use case at unlimited scale.

SCORM and LMS cost implications

SCORM export is Enterprise-only. For organizations where every training asset must be deployed into a corporate LMS with SCORM tracking, this can become the deciding factor regardless of video volume.

A smaller Creator plan can produce excellent training videos, but if the delivery requirement mandates SCORM packages, the organization needs to compare an Enterprise Synthesia quote against alternative workflows such as hosting video separately and authoring the course wrapper in another LMS tool.

Refund policy

Synthesia states that purchases are non-cancelable and, unless the applicable contract says otherwise, non-refundable. Enterprise Order Forms can contain different commercial terms, but self-serve buyers should not assume a broad money-back guarantee.

This is why the Basic plan is strategically important. It is the safest place to evaluate avatar quality, languages, voice style, editing and the overall production process before paying.

Cancellation policy

Starter and Creator can be canceled through account billing settings. Access continues through the end of the paid billing term. When the subscription expires, account/video access can become unavailable, so teams should export required finished assets before the end date.

Upgrades and downgrades follow different timing rules: upgrades can take effect immediately with billing adjustments, while downgrades generally take effect at the next billing cycle. Enterprise customers follow their signed commercial terms.

Does Synthesia offer a free trial?

Synthesia's current acquisition path is better described as a free Basic plan than a traditional time-limited trial. Basic requires no subscription payment and can be used to evaluate the core avatar workflow.

This is more useful than a short trial for teams that need internal approval, because stakeholders can test the product without racing against a seven- or fourteen-day deadline.

Regional pricing, taxes and currency

The prices in this article are the verified USD figures from Synthesia's current public materials. Local taxes, currency conversion and region-specific checkout pricing can change the final charge.

Enterprise contracts can also contain negotiated commercial terms. International buyers should treat the USD list price as a comparison baseline rather than a guaranteed local invoice amount.

Which Synthesia plan should you choose?

Choose Basic when

• You are evaluating avatar quality and workflow fit.
• You do not need production downloads or advanced collaboration.
• You want to compare the same script across multiple AI-avatar vendors.

Choose Starter when

• One primary editor produces up to roughly ten minutes of standard video per month.
• You need downloads, AI Video Assistant, dubbing and personal avatars.
• You do not need the legacy Video API, SCORM or organization-wide workspaces.

Choose Creator when

• You need roughly 30 minutes of standard self-serve video per month.
• You want the legacy Video API or interactive-video workflows.
• You need more stock avatars, more personal avatars and a larger guest-review group.

Choose Enterprise when

• Multiple teams require shared workspaces and organization controls.
• SSO, SCORM, centralized Brand Kits or custom seats are requirements.
• Standard video volume is high enough that unlimited minutes materially matter.
• You need formal implementation and customer-success support.

How to estimate your real monthly Synthesia cost

Start with final standard video minutes. Multiply by 120 credits per minute for self-serve ordinary generation. Then add expected dubbing, especially lip-synced localization, generated assets and API usage. Add a retry allowance because not every render will become a final published asset.

Next, evaluate collaboration. A plan can have enough credits but still fail because it only has one editor. Finally, add requirements that force an Enterprise contract, such as SCORM, SSO or shared organization workspaces.

This workload-first method is more reliable than choosing a plan from the headline price alone.

Synthesia pricing verdict

Basic is unusually useful because it gives buyers a low-risk way to determine whether avatar video fits their content. Starter is sensibly priced for a single producer with modest volume, while Creator is the stronger self-serve choice when API, interactive content or 30-minute monthly capacity matters.

Enterprise is where Synthesia becomes an organization-wide video system. Its value comes from scale, governance and learning-system integration rather than a simple per-minute comparison.

The biggest pricing mistake is assuming that one stated video-minute allowance describes the entire cost. Dubbing, generated assets, APIs, additional credits and collaboration can all change the economics. Model the workflow first and the plan choice becomes much clearer.

Frequently asked questions