Synthesia review: $29 a month Starter, checked in October
Synthesia turns a script into video with an AI presenter, and it meters in credits that stand for video minutes. Our check of synthesia.io on 1 October 2026 recorded Basic at $0 a month, Starter at $29 and Creator at $89, with Enterprise quoted. It is the default choice for training video at scale.
The short answer
Buy Synthesia Buy Synthesia Starter if you produce training, onboarding or explainer video regularly and nobody wants to be filmed. Starter was $29 a month, or $18 billed annually, when we checked synthesia.io/pricing on 1 October 2026, which is the largest proportional prepay discount on its ladder.
Skip it if the video needs to feel like a person rather than look like one. For original footage, Runway recorded Standard at $15 a month on 6 October 2026, and for short social clips an avatar is usually the wrong register whatever it costs.
Where Synthesia fits
Synthesia is the tool for video that has to exist in quantity, be updated often and be understood in several languages. Training libraries, policy explainers, product walkthroughs and internal communications are where it earns its price, because a script change is a re-render rather than a reshoot.
The meter is credits that stand for video minutes, which our 1 October 2026 snapshot recorded as the model without recording the allowance on each tier. That is an important gap to be honest about: we can tell you the plan prices with a date, and the minute counts behind them are something to read off the live page.
Basic sat at $0 a month on that check, with a free demo account producing a single sample video and no time limit on it. That is a quality test rather than a working tier, and it is the right way to settle the uncanny-valley question before any money moves.
Starter was $29 a month, or $18 billed annually. Across a year that is $348 monthly against $216 annually, so prepaying saved $132, which is close to a third off and the steepest discount Synthesia published to us.
Creator at $89 a month, or $64 billed annually, is $1,068 against $768 across a year and a $300 difference. This is the tier that carries custom avatars, which is the feature most teams eventually want, so budget for it if the plan is to put your own presenter on screen rather than a stock one.
Against the alternatives, the close rival is HeyGen, which recorded Creator at $29 a month, Pro at $49 and Business at $149 on 1 October 2026 and tends to win on expressive social clips while Synthesia wins on corporate polish. Vidnoz AI recorded Starter at $26.99 a month on 15 June 2026, undercutting Synthesia by a couple of dollars on a four-month-older check, with avatar quality a step behind. D-ID recorded Lite at $5.90 a month on 13 June 2026 and animates photographs you supply rather than offering a studio roster.
This pricing was checked on 1 October 2026, which is recent, and the honest caveat is about the allowances rather than the rates. A credit-metered tool can keep its price and change what a credit buys, so confirm the minutes on each tier before you commit. The AI video tools category holds the rest of the field.
Synthesia pricing
Synthesia prices per seat and meters in credits that represent video minutes. The figures below come from our check of synthesia.io/pricing on 1 October 2026, which is recent, and they cover the plan rates rather than the per-tier minute allowances.
| Plan | Price | What it adds |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | $0/mo | Free demo account, one sample video, no time limit |
| Starter | $29/mo | $18/mo billed annually. The steepest prepay discount here |
| Creator | $89/mo | $64/mo billed annually. Custom avatars sit at this tier |
| Enterprise | Custom | Quoted. Contact sales |
Minutes and seats both meter here. Four things decide the bill:
- Video minutes a month, since credits stand for minutes and, by the common account of this product, do not roll over. An unusually busy month is an upgrade rather than a borrowed allowance.
- Re-renders, because a script correction regenerates the video and spends the allowance again. Teams that approve scripts carefully get noticeably more from the same plan.
- Custom avatars, which sit on Creator at $89 a month. If the plan is to put a named colleague on screen, that decides the tier before volume does.
- Billing period, which is worth more here than anywhere else in the category. Starter was $29 monthly against $18 annually and Creator $89 against $64, which is $132 and $300 of difference across a year.
Synthesia pricing against the AI video tools
At $29 a month Synthesia sits level with the category's cluster and above its cheapest options. HeyGen recorded Creator at $29 a month and Pro at $49 on 1 October 2026, the same entry price on the same date, which makes the choice a question of register rather than budget. Runway recorded Standard at $15 a month on 6 October 2026 for generated footage rather than presenters. Pictory recorded Starter at $29 and Professional at $59 on 1 October 2026 and uses stock footage in place of an avatar. Vidnoz AI recorded Starter at $26.99 a month on 15 June 2026, which is the budget end on older evidence.
Synthesia billing terms worth knowing
The allowance, not the price, is the thing to settle before you buy.
- Basic
- $0 per month. Free demo account with one sample video, no time limit, as of 1 October 2026.
- Starter
- $29 per month or $18 billed annually. $348 or $216 across a year.
- Creator
- $89 per month or $64 billed annually. $1,068 or $768 across a year.
- Best prepay saving
- $300 a year on Creator, $132 on Starter, on the 1 October 2026 rates.
- Minute allowances
- Not captured in our 1 October 2026 snapshot. Read them off the live page.
- Rollover
- Minutes are widely reported not to carry over month to month. Confirm with the vendor.
- Custom avatars
- Creator tier, $89 per month at list.
Synthesia plans: Basic $0/mo; Starter $29/mo ($18/mo billed annually); Creator $89/mo ($64/mo billed annually); Enterprise Custom.
Synthesia's price is defensible for what it does and the number that will decide your satisfaction is the minute allowance rather than the monthly rate. Our figures are from 1 October 2026 and the live rate card governs. The creator tool cost calculators will total a video stack once you have the current allowances.
What Synthesia gives up
You give up the last few per cent of realism, and it is the part audiences notice. The avatars are good enough for training and briefing and they still read as synthetic on a second viewing, which is a problem for anything that trades on warmth.
You give up unused minutes. The allowance is monthly and widely reported not to roll over, so a quiet month subsidises a busy one rather than funding it.
You give up editing. Synthesia builds videos from scripts and templates, so trimming, layering and sound design happen elsewhere, and a team doing finished marketing work ends up with a second subscription.
You give up custom avatars on the entry tier. Your own presenter sits on Creator at $89 a month on the 1 October 2026 check, which is a threefold step up from Starter.
You give up speed when the queue is busy, since render times vary and priority rendering is sold rather than given. Plan your deadline around the render rather than the script.
You give up the budget argument. Vidnoz AI recorded Starter at $26.99 a month on 15 June 2026 and D-ID recorded Lite at $5.90 a month on 13 June 2026, so if price is the deciding factor, Synthesia is not the answer, though both of those checks are four months older than this one.
You give up short-form credibility. An avatar in a vertical feed reads as an advert within a second or two, which is a format cost rather than a product fault, and it is why social-first creators tend to use this tool for explainers rather than for posts.
How Synthesia compares
The three tools below are the ones weighed against Synthesia, and the axis is avatar polish against expressiveness, generated footage or stock assembly. Each price is that vendor's own published rate with the date we checked it, and these four checks fall within a week of each other, so the column is close to like for like. The wider field sits in the AI video tools category.
| Tool | Best for | Price | Where it breaks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Synthesia | Training and multilingual video at scale | $0 Basic, $29/mo Starter (October 2026) | Minutes do not roll over; custom avatars need Creator |
| HeyGen | Expressive avatars for social and sales clips | Free, $29/mo Creator (October 2026) | Brand and team tooling sit on higher tiers |
| Runway | Original generated footage, no presenter | Free, $15/mo Standard (October 2026) | Silent output; about 10 seconds per generation |
| Pictory | Stock footage video from written content | Free, $29/mo Starter (October 2026) | No presenter; footage matching needs swaps |
What to test on the Synthesia free plan
Basic was $0 a month on our 1 October 2026 check, with a free demo account producing one sample video and no clock on it. One video is enough to answer the only question the free tier can answer, so pick the script carefully.
- Read the current minute allowance on Starter and Creator before anything else. Our snapshot recorded the prices and not the allowances, and the allowance is what you are buying.
- Write your sample from a real script, in your own register, including the awkward sentences. Avatars handle clean marketing copy well and stumble on the phrasing people write.
- Watch it with the sound on and then with a colleague who did not make it. Your tolerance for a synthetic presenter is higher than your audience's after one viewing.
- Test the language you need rather than the language list. The vendor advertises a long roster, and the only accent that matters is the one your learners will hear.
- Count your monthly finished minutes, including re-renders after script corrections. Those re-renders are the usual reason a plan runs out early.
- Decide whether you need your own face on screen. Custom avatars sat on Creator at $89 a month on 1 October 2026, which is a different budget from Starter.
- Settle the billing period last. Starter was $29 monthly against $18 annually and Creator $89 against $64 on 1 October 2026, which is $132 and $300 across a year, and the cost calculators will total the stack.
Synthesia questions buyers ask
How much does Synthesia cost per month?
Synthesia's Basic plan is $0 a month, Starter is $29 a month and Creator is $89 a month, verified 1 October 2026. Annual billing brings Starter to $18 a month and Creator to $64 a month, and Enterprise pricing is custom. The Starter plan includes 10 video minutes and 90+ avatars. The Creator plan adds custom avatars, 30 video minutes, and priority rendering.
Does Synthesia have a free plan?
Yes. Synthesia's free plan gives you 3 minutes of video per month with a watermark. It's enough to test avatar quality, rendering speed, and the editing interface, but not enough for regular content production. You get access to a limited set of avatars and templates.
Can I create a custom AI avatar that looks like me?
Yes, but only on the Creator plan ($89/month) or Enterprise. The Starter plan ($29/month) only includes stock avatars. Custom avatar creation requires you to record a short video of yourself, which Synthesia uses to generate your AI likeness. The process takes a few days for approval.
Synthesia vs HeyGen: which is better?
Synthesia has better language support (140+ vs HeyGen's 40+) and more polished avatar quality for professional content. HeyGen is stronger for short-form social content, offers more expressive avatars, and has a comparable Starter price. Choose Synthesia for multilingual or corporate content; choose HeyGen for social media and marketing videos.
How many languages does Synthesia support?
Synthesia supports 140+ languages and accents for AI narration. You can create the same video in multiple languages by translating the script (no re-recording needed). Quality is strongest in major languages (English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese) and varies for less common languages.
Is Synthesia good for YouTube content?
It depends on the content type. Synthesia works well for educational, tutorial, and explainer YouTube videos where information delivery matters more than personality. It's a poor fit for vlogs, commentary, or any format where viewers expect an authentic human presence: the AI avatars, while realistic, are still noticeably artificial.
What are Synthesia's video export options?
Synthesia exports videos in 1080p (Full HD) by default. The Creator plan and above support higher quality exports. Videos are rendered as MP4 files. You can also share via a hosted link without downloading. There's no native 4K export on standard plans: if you need 4K, check Enterprise pricing.
Can teams collaborate on videos in Synthesia?
Yes. Synthesia supports shared workspaces where team members can access templates, brand assets, and draft videos. The brand kit locks in colors, fonts, and logos for consistency. Enterprise plans add role-based permissions and SSO. For small teams (2-3 people), the Creator plan's collaboration features are sufficient.
How long does it take to render a video in Synthesia?
A 2-3 minute video typically renders in 5-10 minutes. Longer videos (10+ minutes) can take 20-30 minutes, and queue times increase during peak hours. The Creator plan includes priority rendering for faster turnaround. If rendering speed is critical for your workflow, factor this into your plan choice.
Is Synthesia worth it compared to hiring a video editor?
For simple, repeatable video formats (training, product demos, multilingual content), Synthesia at $29-89/month is significantly cheaper than hiring a video editor ($500-2000/video). For creative, personality-driven content that needs real footage, custom graphics, and storytelling, a human editor will produce better results. Most creators use Synthesia for volume content and editors for hero content.