Synthesia vs HeyGen
Synthesia or HeyGen? Here is how they compare on price, free plan, platforms and the jobs each does best, from each vendor's own pages.
| Compared on | Visit | Visit |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | AI video platform that turns scripts into presenter-led avatar videos | AI avatar video generator with video translation and voice cloning |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Cheapest paid plan | $18/mo billed annually (Starter)Synthesia pricing | $24/mo billed annually (Creator)HeyGen pricing |
| What it covers | Yearly plan includes 14,500 credits per year (up to 120 minutes of video per year); 1 editor and 3 guests. | $288 billed yearly; 600 credits per month; videos up to 30 minutes; 1080p export. |
| Free trial | None stated | None stated |
| Platforms | Web, API | Web, API |
| Integrations (vendor's figure) | Not stated | Not stated |
| Open source | No | No |
| Made by | Synthesia Ltd | HeyGen |
Choose Synthesia if…
- Price matters: its cheapest paid plan is $18/mo against $24/mo.
- The job is turning a training script into a presenter-style video without filming.
- The job is producing the same video in several languages.
Choose HeyGen if…
- The job is making talking-head marketing or explainer videos with an AI avatar.
- The job is translating existing videos into other languages.
Still weighing it up?
If neither is quite right, see how other AI video and voice tools compare: Descript vs CapCut.
What Synthesia does
- AI avatars presenting scripted videos, with 160+ languages and voices
- AI Dubbing and an AI Video Assistant
- Personal avatars: 5 on Creator, unlimited on Enterprise
- Branded video pages and interactive videos on Creator
- API access on Creator
- SCORM export, SAML/SSO and 1-click translation into 80+ languages on Enterprise
Watch out for
- Basic (free) plan: up to 10 minutes of video per month and 9 AI avatars
- Video downloads and Synthesia logo removal start on the Starter plan
- Yearly Starter plan is capped at 120 minutes of video per year
What HeyGen does
- AI avatar videos with 500+ stock avatars (700+ on paid plans)
- Avatar IV video generation
- Video translation in 175+ languages and dialects on paid plans
- Voice cloning and photo avatars
- Export up to 1080p on Creator and 4K on Pro
- SCORM export, LMS integrations and SAML/SSO on Business
Watch out for
- Free plan: 3 videos per month, each up to 1 minute
- Watermark removal is listed from the Creator plan up
- Individual plans include 1 user seat; Business adds seats at $20 per seat per month
Questions
Is Synthesia or HeyGen cheaper?
On published entry prices, Synthesia is cheaper: $18/mo billed annually (Starter) for Synthesia against $24/mo billed annually (Creator) for HeyGen. What each plan includes differs, so compare the limits too.
Do Synthesia and HeyGen have free plans?
Both do. Synthesia: 1,200 credits per month (up to 10 minutes of video, or 10 minutes of AI dubbing, or 25 AI-generated video assets); 1 editor; 9 AI avatars. HeyGen: 3 videos per month, up to 1 minute each; 500+ stock video avatars; 1 custom video avatar; up to 3 photo avatars; 30+ languages.