Runway vs Kling vs Pika vs Veo: cost at 30s and 60s
Single attempt first, then the real world: 2 retries (3 attempts) per finished video. Last checked Oct 16, 2026 (Runway and Kling rates re-verified Oct 17, 2026; Runway Aleph 2.0 added Oct 17; Seedance 2.0 in Runway added Oct 18, 2026; MiniMax H3-Max, Veo 3.1 Fast 4K and Wan 3.0 inside Runway added Oct 19, 2026; Runway and Pika re-verified Oct 19, 2026; Veo re-verified and Veo 3.1 without audio added Oct 20, 2026; Seedance 2.0 Mini inside Runway added Oct 20, 2026).
| Tool / rate used | 30s · 1 attempt | 60s · 1 attempt | 30s · with 2 retries | 60s · with 2 retries | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runway Gen-4.5 | $6.91 | $13.82 | $20.74* | $41.47* | 12 credits/sec × $0.0192/credit (Standard, $12/mo annual, 625 credits). *Effective cost at the plan credit rate, NOT cash covered by Standard alone: a 30s usable clip with 2 retries needs 1,080 credits, but Standard gives only 625/mo (~1× 30s try). Top-ups are min. 1,000 credits for $10 ($0.01/credit, never expire). Gen-4.5 generates 2–10s at a time, so 30s+ is stitched. |
| Runway Gen-4 Turbo | $2.88 | $5.76 | $8.64 | $17.28 | 5 credits/sec × $0.0192/credit (Standard annual). Standard fits 1 usable 30s Turbo clip (450 credits). |
| Runway Aleph 2.0 — editing (video-to-video) | $16.13 | $32.26 | $48.38 | $96.77 | 28 credits/sec (140/5s on runway.com/pricing, verified Oct 17, 2026; 56-credit minimum per generation per Runway API docs) × $0.0192/credit. Edits existing video — not a text-to-video generator; priced per second edited, 2–30s per edit (60s = two edits). See Runway Aleph 2.0 cost per edit and Runway credits explained. |
| Runway — Seedance 2.0 Fast (in Runway) | $16.70 | $33.41 | $50.11 | $100.22 | 29 credits/sec (116 credits/4s on runway.com/pricing, re-checked Oct 18, 2026) × $0.0192/credit (Standard annual). Includes audio. Standard’s 625 credits cover ~21s. Same model on the BytePlus API: $4.56 per 30s at 720p. |
| Runway — Seedance 2.0 Mini, 480p/720p (in Runway) | $9.22 | $18.43 | $27.65 | $55.30 | 16 credits/sec in the app (Runway Academy credits page, verified Oct 20, 2026, re-checked Oct 27); the Runway API now bills seedance2_mini at 7 / 15 credits/sec at 480p / 720p with a 28-credit minimum (Runway API pricing, Oct 27, 2026) × $0.0192/credit (Standard annual). Native audio not stated. For short vertical clips see AI video cost for TikTok and Shorts |
| Runway — Seedance 2.0 Pro 1080p (in Runway) | $23.04 | $46.08 | $69.12 | $138.24 | 40 credits/sec (160 credits/4s on runway.com/pricing, re-checked Oct 18, 2026) × $0.0192/credit. Standard covers ~15s a month — one 30s try needs 1,200 credits. |
| Kling 3.0 — 1080p, native audio | $3.60 | $7.20 | $10.80 | $21.60 | 12 credits/sec (official VIDEO 3.0 guide, verified Oct 17, 2026) × $0.0100/credit (Standard, $6.60/mo annual, 660 credits). Membership credits expire 1 month after distribution. 3–15s per generation. |
| Kling 3.0 Std, no audio (inside Runway) New Oct 22 | $5.18 | $10.37 | $15.55 | $31.10 | 9 Runway credits/sec (13 with audio; Pro 12 / 17) on the Runway Academy and API pricing pages, verified Oct 22, 2026 × $0.0192/credit (Standard, $12/mo annual, 625 credits). Resolution of Std vs Pro not stated by Runway. See Kling 3.0 cost per video. |
| LTX 2.5 Fast 720p (inside Runway) New Oct 23 | $5.18 | $10.37 | $15.55 | $31.10 | 9 Runway credits/sec with audio (1080p 13, 1440p 19, 4K 30; LTX 2.5 Pro 12 / 17 at 720p / 1080p) on the Runway Academy credits page, verified Oct 23, 2026 × $0.0192/credit (Standard, $12/mo annual, 625 credits). Not on the Runway API price list; check plan availability in-app. |
| Kling 3.0 — 720p, no audio | $1.80 | $3.60 | $5.40 | $10.80 | 6 credits/sec × same Standard credit price. Full breakdown: Runway vs Kling cost. |
| Kling 2.6 — Standard mode, no audio | $0.90 | $1.80 | $2.70 | $5.40 | 3 credits/sec (official VIDEO 2.6 guide) × $0.0100/credit — cheapest verified subscription rate on ClipCost (only two APIs are lower: Grok Imagine 1.5 Lite 480p on xAI, $0.02/sec, since Oct 27, 2026, and the Alibaba Cloud Wan 2.6 Flash API, $0.025/sec). 5s or 10s generations. |
| Pika — Wan 3.0, 720p | $1.76 | $3.52 | $5.28 | $10.56 | 33 credits/5s × $0.00889/credit (Starter, $8/mo annual, 900 credits). Starter includes a commercial licence (added Oct 2026, re-verified Oct 23). |
| Runway — Wan 3.0, 720p (same model as Pika Wan) | $5.76 | $11.52 | $17.28 | $34.56 | 10 credits/sec × $0.0192/credit (Standard annual); Runway Academy + API pricing, verified Oct 19, 2026. 480p is 5 credits/sec ($2.88 per 30s try). See Runway vs Pika cost |
| Pika — Seedance 2.5, 720p | $6.51 | $13.01 | $19.52 | $39.04 | 122 credits/5s on same Starter credit price |
| Veo 3.1 Lite, 720p, no audio (Vertex AI) | $0.90 | $1.80 | $2.70 | $5.40 | $0.03/sec video-only on Google Cloud Agent Platform (Vertex AI) pricing, verified Oct 20, 2026 — ties Kling 2.6 Standard as cheapest verified rate. See Veo 3 cost per video |
| Seedance 2.0 Mini, 480p (BytePlus API) New Oct 22 | $1.08 | $2.16 | $3.24 | $6.48 | $0.18 per 5s video = $0.036/sec, no video input, on BytePlus ModelArk pricing (re-verified Oct 22, 2026); 480p/720p only, audio not stated. See AI video API pricing. |
| Veo 3.1 Lite, 720p (Vertex AI) | $1.50 | $3.00 | $4.50 | $9.00 | $0.05/sec, audio included, pay-as-you-go |
| Veo 3.1 Fast, 720p (API) | $3.00 | $6.00 | $9.00 | $18.00 | $0.10/sec |
| Veo 3.1 Fast, 4K (API) | $9.00 | $18.00 | $27.00 | $54.00 | $0.30/sec with audio (Vertex AI pricing, re-verified Oct 22, 2026) — half of Veo 3.1 Standard 4K ($0.60/sec) |
| MiniMax H3-Max, 480P (API) | $1.50 | $3.00 | $4.50 | $9.00 | $0.05/sec (official MiniMax video pricing, verified Oct 19, 2026); 768P is $0.08/sec. 5–15s per generation, so 30s is stitched; native audio not stated; extra reference images after the first 2 cost $0.074 each. |
| Veo 3.1 Standard, 720p/1080p (API) | $12.00 | $24.00 | $36.00 | $72.00 | $0.40/sec with audio ($0.20 without on Vertex AI). Gemini API preview models shut down Oct 22, 2026; same prices on Vertex AI |
| Runway — Veo 3.1 without audio | $11.52 | $23.04 | $34.56 | $69.12 | 20 credits/sec × $0.0192/credit (Standard annual), verified Oct 20, 2026; with audio 40 credits/sec ($23.04 per 30s try). See Veo 3 cost per video |
How to read this
- Cheapest sticker ≠ cheapest usable. Multiply by your real retry rate.
- Kling vs Runway: same 12 credits/sec at Kling 3.0 1080p-with-audio and Runway Gen-4.5, but Kling credits are about half the price — see Runway vs Kling cost per video. Kling still shows the exact charge in-product before each generation.
- Commercial rights change the winner: Pika's cheapest tier excludes commercial use, so Creator ($28/mo annual) is the real Pika starting point for client/ monetised work.
- Longer videos are usually stitched from short generations (Veo native clips are 8s) — editing time and failed stitches are real costs too.
Want every tool, plan and $/credit in one place? See the AI video generator pricing comparison. Posting to YouTube or Shorts? See the cheapest AI video generator for YouTube ranking for best-by-use-case picks, and AI video cost for TikTok and Shorts for 15s/30s/60s vertical clips and monthly posting budgets. Choosing between ByteDance and Google models? See Seedance vs Veo cost (direct API vs inside Runway and Pika). Counting credits instead of dollars? See how many credits do I need for a 1-minute video (credits per 10s/30s/60s, what each plan covers, when top-ups are cheaper). Building on an API? See AI video API pricing per second (Vertex AI Veo, BytePlus Seedance, MiniMax and the Runway API, 5s to 60s). Using Kling 3.0? See Kling 3.0 cost per video (in Kling vs inside Runway, 5s to 60s with retries). Choosing between Kling and Veo? See Kling vs Veo cost (Kling app, Vertex AI and inside Runway). Looking at Seedance 2.5? See Seedance 2.5 cost (inside Runway on Pro/Max only, BytePlus API and Pika, 5s to 60s with retries). Choosing a model inside Runway? Runway models ranked by cost lists all 39 verified Runway rates, from Gen-4 Turbo at 5 credits/sec ($8.64 usable 30s) to Seedance 2.5 1080p at 68. Looking at Wan 2.6? Wan 2.6 cost compares Wan 2.6 / Flash inside Runway ($8.64–$25.92 usable 30s) with the Alibaba Cloud API (from $2.25) and Wan 3.0. Cheapest pay-per-second API by use case (138 rates; cheapest Grok Imagine 1.5 Lite 480p with audio $0.02/sec = $1.80 usable 30s, then Wan 2.6 Flash 720p silent $0.025/sec = $2.25): Cheapest AI video API. Grok Imagine 1.5 and 1.5 Lite on xAI’s API vs the Runway API vs Runway app credits (Lite 480p $0.02/sec with audio, $1.80 usable 30s; checked Oct 27, 2026): Grok Imagine cost. Kling 4.0 on the Runway API (12.56 / 18.8 credits per second at 720p / 1080p with audio, 20% off through Nov 30, 2026 UTC; $11.31 usable 30s at 720p; not ranked yet): Kling 4.0 cost. MiniMax Hailuo (H3) vs Kling, every route (H3 768P $0.08/sec vs Kling 3.0 API 720p $0.084; Kling’s app still cheaper at $5.40 usable 30s): Hailuo vs Kling cost. LTX vs Google Veo 3.1, every route (LTX-2.3 Fast 720p $0.03/sec with audio vs Veo 3.1 Lite $0.05; Veo ties only with audio off): LTX vs Veo cost. Seedance vs LTX, every route (LTX-2.3 Fast 720p $0.03/sec with audio vs Seedance 2.0 Mini $0.036 at 480p and $0.076 at 720p; LTX wins all 11 match-ups): Seedance vs LTX cost. Grok Imagine vs Veo, every route (Grok Imagine 1.5 Lite $0.02/sec at 480p and $0.03 at 720p with audio vs Veo 3.1 Lite $0.05; Veo wins at 1080p and the mid tier; Grok wins 9 of 13): Grok Imagine vs Veo cost. Grok Imagine vs Kling, every route (Grok Imagine 1.5 Lite $0.03/sec at 720p with audio vs 9 credits/sec for Kling 3.0 720p with audio; Kling wins at 1080p and in the Runway app; Kling wins 8 of 16, Grok 6, 2 ties): Grok Imagine vs Kling cost. Grok Imagine vs Wan, every route (Grok Imagine 1.5 Lite $0.03/sec at 720p with audio vs $0.05 for Wan 2.6 Flash with audio; Wan wins silent, 1080p, flagship and the Runway app; Wan wins 9 of 16, Grok 7): Grok Imagine vs Wan cost. Grok Imagine vs Seedance, every route (Grok Imagine 1.5 Lite $0.03/sec at 720p with audio vs $0.076 for Seedance 2.0 Mini; Grok wins 1080p and Runway, Seedance only flagship 480p and 4K; Grok wins 14 of 16, Seedance 1, 1 tie): Grok Imagine vs Seedance cost. Grok Imagine vs LTX, every route (tie at 720p, $0.03/sec with audio; Grok Lite cheapest at 480p; LTX-2.3 cheaper at 1080p and in the Runway app; LTX wins 10 of 13, Grok 2, 1 tie): Grok Imagine vs LTX cost. Grok Imagine vs Hailuo, every route (Grok Imagine 1.5 Lite cheapest at 480p/720p; MiniMax H3 cheaper at the flagship tier, 2K and in the Runway app; Hailuo wins 8 of 16, Grok 7, 1 tie): Grok Imagine vs Hailuo cost. Every MiniMax Hailuo API rate (H3-Lite $0.025/sec at 480P, $2.25 usable 30s, tied #2 of 159; H3 $0.08 at 768P, $0.13 at 2K; checked Oct 31, 2026): MiniMax Hailuo cost. Every Vidu API rate (Q3 Turbo $0.035/sec at 540p, $3.15 usable 30s, #10 of 159; Q4 Preview up to $0.39 at 4K; checked Nov 1, 2026): Vidu cost. Every published Pika rate on plan credits vs top-ups (Wan 3.0 $5.28 usable 30s, Kling 3.0 $5.44, Veo 3.1 Fast $8.00, Seedance 2.5 $19.52; checked Nov 1, 2026): Pika cost. Luma Ray3.2 in Dream Machine vs the Luma API ($2.25 vs $2.70 per usable 30s at 540p, $18.00 vs $21.60 at 1080p; checked Nov 2, 2026): Luma cost. Luma partner models (Seedance Mini $2.70 usable inside Luma vs $3.24 on BytePlus; checked Nov 2, 2026 9pm): Luma partner models cost. Which storefront for Seedance/Kling/Veo/MiniMax (Luma Mini $2.70, Kling app $5.40, Vertex Veo Lite $4.50, MiniMax H3-Lite $2.25; checked Nov 3, 2026): Which AI video storefront. FLUX 3 on Black Forest Labs (Draft HD $5.40 usable, HD $13.50, FHD $21.60 undercuts Luma; checked Nov 3, 2026 9pm): FLUX 3 cost. Runway API partners newly ranked Nov 4, 2026 9am (Gemini Omni Flash 1.1 360p $3.06 usable; Kling 4.0 promo $11.30): Runway API partner models cost. Gemini Omni Flash native Google rates vs Runway (360p $3.04 usable): Gemini Omni Flash cost. LTX’s own API per second (LTX-2.3 Fast $0.03 at 720p with audio, $2.70 usable 30s; LTX-2.5 Fast $0.09, $8.10; checked Oct 26, 2026): LTX API pricing. Seedance vs Kling route by route (Kling wins 13 of 15; Kling 3.0 720p $5.40 silent / $8.10 audio vs Seedance 2.0 $13.68 usable 30s): Seedance vs Kling cost. Kling’s own API per second (verified Oct 25, 2026; Kling 2.6 / 2.5 Turbo $0.042 at 720p = $3.78 usable 30s; Kling 3.0 $0.084–$0.168): Kling API pricing. Kling 2.5 Turbo inside Runway (10 credits/sec; Turbo Pro 12 / 15 at 720p / 1080p; $17.28 / $20.74 / $25.92 usable 30s on Standard vs $3.78 / $6.30 on Kling’s own API): Kling 2.5 Turbo cost. Wan vs Kling, route by route (Wan 2.6 Flash $2.25 vs Kling 2.6 $2.70 / Kling 3.0 $5.40 silent; with audio Kling 3.0 $8.10 vs Wan 2.6 $9.00; inside Runway Wan $8.64 vs Kling $15.55): Wan vs Kling cost. Kling O3 inside Runway (13 / 17 / 43 credits/sec, $22.46 / $29.38 / $74.30 usable 30s) vs Kling’s own API ($10.08 / $12.60 / $37.80) and Kling 3.0: Kling O3 cost. HappyHorse 1.0 inside Runway (15 / 30 credits/sec, $25.92 / $51.84 usable 30s) vs Alibaba Cloud ($12.60 / $21.60): HappyHorse cost. Every Alibaba Cloud Wan and HappyHorse rate, from $0.025/sec: Wan API pricing. More: cheapest AI video generator overall, cost of 1 minute of AI video, Kling credits explained, Runway credits explained , Runway Aleph 2.0 cost per edit, Runway vs Pika cost per video, Veo 3 cost per video and, for talking-presenter videos, the cheapest AI avatar video generator (HeyGen vs Hedra per minute). Run your own numbers in the calculator. Sources on each tool page. LTX vs Wan head-to-head: LTX vs Wan cost (LTX API pricing). Seedance vs Wan route by route (Wan wins 14 of 16; Wan 2.6 Flash $2.25 vs Seedance 2.0 Mini $3.24 usable 30s): Seedance vs Wan cost. Runway API credits ($0.01, 2–150 credits/sec; Seedance 2.0 Mini now 7/sec = $6.30 usable 30s) vs Runway plans: Runway API pricing.