HeyGen vs Synthesia at a glance
| HeyGen | Synthesia | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | $0: 3 videos a month, up to 1 minute each, with a watermark; 500+ stock avatars, 1 custom video avatar, 30+ languages | $0: 10 minutes of video a month and 500 credits, 9 avatars, Synthesia watermark; MP4 download is not included (share link only) |
| Entry plan | Creator: $29/mo monthly, $24/mo billed annually; 600 credits | Starter: $19/mo monthly ($9 first month), $14/mo billed yearly ($168); up to ~12 extra minutes a month |
| Mid plan | Pro: $49/mo monthly, 1,000 credits; higher tiers up to 100,000 credits for $4,300/mo. Annual price: not stated (the yearly toggle says "2 months free") | Pro: $89/mo monthly ($49 first month), $59/mo billed yearly ($708); up to ~60 extra minutes a month |
| Team plan | Business: $149/mo plus $20 per extra seat; 1,500 credits. Annual price: not stated | No separate team plan: Starter includes 1 editor and 3 guests, Pro 1 editor and 5 guests |
| Enterprise | Custom pricing | Custom pricing, unlimited video minutes |
| Stock avatars | 500+ on Free, 700+ on paid plans | 9 (Basic), 125+ (Starter), 180+ (Pro), 240+ (Enterprise) |
| Custom avatars | 1 (Free), 1+ (Creator, Pro), 5+ (Business), 10+ (Enterprise) | None (Basic), 3 (Starter), 5 (Pro), unlimited (Enterprise) |
| Voices | 1,000+ AI voices on every plan; voice cloning on every plan, usage grows by tier | "140+ languages & voices" on every plan; voice cloning on every plan |
| Languages | 30+ on Free; 175 languages and dialects on paid plans | 140+; dubbing into 70+ (140+ on Enterprise) |
| Input types | Script, PowerPoint and PDF import, audio input, image and video references, URL | Prompt, script, PDF, PowerPoint, DOCX, TXT, URL |
| URL input | Yes, via its URL to Video tool; pages behind a login may need a pasted script instead | Yes, public pages under 4,500 words |
| API | Yes, priced separately (the pricing page links to API pricing; rates not shown there) | Video API from Pro: up to 360 minutes a year, taken from the plan's limits; Enterprise includes 360 minutes a year. Separate API rates for dubbing ($0.40/min) and interactive avatars ($0.10/min) |
| Max video length | 1 minute (Free), 30 minutes (Creator, Pro), 60 minutes (Business), no maximum (Enterprise) | Not stated for standard videos; Syren, its AI video agent, makes videos up to 3 minutes |
| Export resolution | Up to 1080p (Creator), up to 4K (Pro and above) | Full HD, 1920×1080 MP4 on paid plans |
| Watermark on free | Yes | Yes |
| Collaboration | 1 seat on Free, Creator and Pro, with video comments; shared workspace, draft collaboration and SSO on Business | Guests can comment on Starter and Pro; workspaces and real-time live collaboration on Enterprise only |
| Training (L&D) features | Interactive video, quizzes, branching and SCORM export on Business and Enterprise | Interactive CTAs and branching from Pro; quizzes and SCORM export on Enterprise |
| Unused credits | Roll over one month on monthly plans; accumulate until renewal on annual plans | Monthly allowance and credits reset each period; annual plans get the year's credits upfront |
Sources, all checked November 4, 2026: HeyGen pricing, HeyGen URL to Video, Synthesia pricing, Synthesia AI video generator, Synthesia URL to video, Synthesia API pricing. "Not stated" means the vendor's pages don't give the figure.
Which is cheaper, HeyGen or Synthesia?
On list price, Synthesia. Its Starter plan is $19 a month, or $14 a month billed yearly ($168), and it advertises a $9 first month. HeyGen's cheapest paid plan, Creator, is $29 a month, or $24 a month billed annually (Synthesia pricing, HeyGen pricing, checked November 4, 2026).
The plans meter usage differently, so the headline price is only half the answer:
- HeyGen sells credits: 600 on Creator, 1,000 on Pro, 1,500 on Business. It says a video's credit cost "can vary based on which AI model is used, video duration, and the complexity of the generation." Unused credits roll over for one month on monthly plans.
- Synthesia gives every plan 10 free minutes a month, then adds credits on top: up to about 12 extra minutes on Starter and 60 on Pro. It says a typical finished minute uses about 100 credits. Allowances reset each billing period, and you can't pay per video.
At the middle tier the gap flips in HeyGen's favour on monthly billing: HeyGen Pro is $49 a month against Synthesia Pro at $89 (or $59 billed yearly). For a team, HeyGen Business is $149 a month plus $20 per extra seat; Synthesia's shared workspaces are on Enterprise, which is custom-priced.
Which has better avatars and voices?
Neither vendor's page can tell you which avatars look better to your audience, so we stick to what each one publishes:
- Stock avatars: HeyGen lists 500+ on Free and 700+ on every paid plan. Synthesia lists 9 on Basic, 125+ on Starter, 180+ on Pro and 240+ on Enterprise.
- Your own avatar: HeyGen includes 1 custom video avatar even on Free, 5+ on Business and 10+ on Enterprise. Synthesia includes 3 personal avatars on Starter, 5 on Pro and unlimited on Enterprise, with a Studio avatar as a $1,000-a-year add-on.
- Voices and languages: HeyGen lists 1,000+ AI voices and 175 languages and dialects on paid plans (30+ on Free). Synthesia lists "140+ languages & voices" on every plan and dubbing into 70+ languages (140+ on Enterprise).
- Resolution: HeyGen exports up to 1080p on Creator and up to 4K from Pro. Synthesia downloads are Full HD, 1920×1080.
Both have free plans, so the fair test is to render the same 30-second script in each and show it to someone who'll watch the real thing.
Which is better for training vs marketing videos?
Training and internal comms. Synthesia's own navigation leads with learning and development, HR, compliance and SOP videos, and it says it is trusted by over 90% of Fortune 100 companies. Its interactive CTAs and branching start on Pro; quizzes, SCORM export, 1-click translation, workspaces and live collaboration are Enterprise features. HeyGen puts interactive video, quizzes, branching and SCORM export on Business ($149/mo), so a mid-sized L&D team can get SCORM from HeyGen at a published price (Synthesia, HeyGen).
Marketing and creator videos. HeyGen's pricing page is titled for "Creators and Marketers." It lists 4K export from Pro, videos up to 30 minutes from Creator, Avatar IV, product placement and integrations with HubSpot, Zapier, Make and n8n on Business. Its URL to Video tool pitches landing pages turned into ad variants for Meta, TikTok and YouTube (HeyGen). Synthesia's Pro plan adds branded share pages with a CTA button, and its Syren agent makes videos of up to 3 minutes from a written description.
For localisation at volume, compare the language lists directly: 175 on HeyGen's paid plans, 140+ on Synthesia, with one-click translation on Synthesia Enterprise and translated-script proofreading from HeyGen Pro.
What if you need a launch or product video instead?
HeyGen and Synthesia both make videos presented by an avatar. That works for training, explainers and talking-head ads. A product launch video usually needs something else: your actual UI on screen, motion graphics, and pacing built for a Product Hunt page or a landing-page hero.
That's the one job nod does. You paste your product page link and get a finished launch film with a script, designed UI scenes, motion graphics, voiceover and music. Pricing: $69/mo for 1 video, $149/mo for 3, $299/mo for 8, $999/mo unlimited (own API keys). It's not an avatar tool, so it isn't a substitute for either one on training. See the side-by-sides: nod vs HeyGen and nod vs Synthesia.
Still weighing avatar tools? See HeyGen alternatives, Synthesia alternatives and our roundup of AI explainer video generators.