If you want to try an AI avatar video tool for free, Synthesia, HeyGen and Colossyan all have free plans, but each comes with limits: Synthesia and HeyGen add a watermark, and HeyGen’s free output is for personal, non-commercial use only. For a paid entry plan, Synthesia Starter costs $14 a month on annual billing ($168 a year), HeyGen Creator costs $29 a month on monthly billing or $24 a month on annual billing, and Colossyan Professional costs $59 a month on yearly billing. D-ID also sells avatar video plans, but we could not confirm its prices.
This is a documentary comparison based on the providers’ official pages. We have not bought, tested or generated anything with these tools, so nothing here is a verdict on avatar realism, voice quality or ease of use. Feature and safety statements below are the providers’ own claims.
What these tools do, and what to plan for
AI avatar video tools turn a script into a video with a synthetic presenter, either a stock avatar or a custom one made from footage of a real person. Your plan buys an allowance of credits or minutes, not unlimited video. Watermarks, editor seats, commercial rights and unused credits all change the real cost. Before choosing a plan, decide who reviews each script and each video before it goes out. Our guide to AI-assisted video production with review covers that workflow.
Entry and mid plans side by side
Prices and plan details were checked on the providers’ official pages on 5 November 2026. Figures are in USD as displayed. Prices vary by country, currency, taxes and promotions, so confirm the final amount at checkout.
| Item | Synthesia Starter | Synthesia Pro | HeyGen Creator | Colossyan Professional |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly billing | $9 first month, then $19/month | $49 first month, then $89/month | $29/month | Not confirmed |
| Annual billing | $14/month, $168/year | $59/month, $708/year | $24/month ($288/year, our arithmetic) | $59/month ($708/year, our arithmetic) |
| Allowance | 1,250 credits/month; up to ~12 min video/month | 6,000 credits/month; up to ~60 min video/month | 600 credits/month; videos up to 30 minutes | 30 min/month NEO; 10 min/month NEO2 |
| Users | 1 editor + 3 guests | 1 editor + 5 guests | 1 seat | Up to 3 editors; extra member $30/month |
| Watermark | Logo removal listed | Not listed separately on the Pro card | Watermark removal listed | Watermark removal listed |
| Custom avatars | Not confirmed on Starter | 5 personal avatars | Custom Video Avatar with your own voice and likeness | 20 custom avatars + 5 voices |
| Export | Full HD 1920×1080 MP4 listed; per-plan detail not confirmed | Same | 1080p | Up to 1080p |
Synthesia’s monthly prices start with an introductory first month. On monthly billing, a first year of Starter would cost $218 ($9 + 11 × $19, our arithmetic) and Pro $1,028 ($49 + 11 × $89, our arithmetic). Annual billing is cheaper on both plans if you are sure you will use the tool all year. HeyGen labels its yearly toggle “2 months free” but only states the annual price for Creator. Colossyan shows “Yearly -34%” next to Professional, but its monthly price did not appear on the page we read.
Credits are not comparable across providers. Synthesia shows approximate video minutes next to its credits, while HeyGen says credit use varies by model, duration and complexity. For higher volumes, HeyGen Pro starts at $49 a month for 1,000 credits, with tiers up to $4,300 a month for 100,000 credits, and HeyGen Business is $149 a month for 1,500 credits, with extra seats at $20 per seat per month. Pro and Business annual prices were not confirmed.
Free plans and their limits
- Synthesia Basic: one editor, 500 credits a month, 10 minutes of Studio video or dubbing and 9 stock avatars. Videos carry a Synthesia watermark or logo. Commercial-use rights on the free plan were not confirmed.
- HeyGen Free: three videos a month of up to one minute each, one Custom Video Avatar and 500+ ready-made presenters. Videos are watermarked, and HeyGen’s terms license free-plan output only for personal, non-commercial and internal evaluation purposes.
- Colossyan Starter: free with no credit card, 20 minutes a month with NEO and 0.5 minutes with NEO2, 15 custom avatars and 3 voices, and export up to 1080p. Watermark removal is listed only from Professional upward. Commercial-use rights were not confirmed.
You can compare the free and paid tiers on Synthesia before deciding whether the watermark matters for your first videos.
Unused credits and running out
Synthesia says monthly allowances and credits reset each billing period, with no rollover, and that video creation pauses until your plan renews once you hit the limit. Separately bought credits stay valid for 12 months. HeyGen lets monthly subscribers roll unused credits over for one month, and annual subscribers’ credits accumulate until renewal, but nothing carries over after cancellation. Colossyan says unused minutes do not roll over, and it lets you pause an account for up to two months free. Check the current credit tiers on HeyGen if you expect to need more than the base allowance.
Commercial use and ownership
Each provider words this differently, so read the terms for the plan you buy. This is a summary of what the providers state, not legal advice.
- Synthesia: its Customer Terms say the customer owns Customer Data, including Output. The phrase “commercial use” is not used.
- HeyGen: on Creator, Pro and Business, the terms say you own all rights in your input and output. Free-plan output may not be monetized.
- Colossyan: the standard terms grant the customer a perpetual, non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to created content. The Enterprise terms say the customer owns it. Per-plan commercial-use wording was not confirmed.
- D-ID: its terms say the Lite plan is for non-commercial use only. Rights on other plans are set by its price list, which we could not read.
Custom avatars, consent and labelling
All four providers put the responsibility for consent on you. Synthesia’s terms require that the person behind a custom avatar has given free and informed consent and is above the applicable legal age. HeyGen asks for a consent video in which the person reads the provided consent text exactly, under 30 seconds, recorded and submitted with the avatar footage. Its terms add that owning a recording does not by itself give permission to clone someone’s voice. Colossyan’s Enterprise terms make collecting all necessary consents the customer’s sole responsibility. D-ID requires the express consent of any third party and prohibits impersonation.
On labelling, Synthesia says its content is labeled in line with Article 50 of the EU AI Act and shows a Content Authenticity Initiative logo. HeyGen’s terms say that, where the law requires it, you must disclose that output was made with AI and may not present it as entirely human-made. Colossyan’s terms prohibit presenting content as human-generated when it is not. D-ID says all its videos contain a synthetic mark that may not be removed, and political uses need prominent visible watermarks. None of the four confirmed C2PA Content Credentials on the pages we read. Our guide to provenance and disclosure for AI media explains how to label videos yourself.
D-ID: what we could confirm
D-ID lists Trial, Lite, Pro, Advanced and Enterprise plans, but its price table did not load on the page we read, so we do not quote prices or minute allowances. It states 1080p output on Trial, Pro, Advanced and Enterprise and a maximum video length of five minutes. Trial and Lite videos carry a D-ID watermark, and trial users get a full-screen watermark. Minutes renew monthly, unused minutes expire, and usage is rounded up to the nearest 15 seconds.
Refunds and renewals
Read these before you choose annual billing:
- Synthesia: purchases are non-cancelable and non-refundable unless the contract says otherwise, including unused renewals, and Studio Avatars cannot be refunded once produced. Plans renew automatically; cancel in Billing before the renewal date, as a reminder email is not guaranteed.
- HeyGen: payments are non-refundable except where required by law. Subscriptions renew until you cancel, and cancellations take effect at the end of the billing cycle.
- Colossyan: its non-EU/UK terms allow a full refund claim within 14 days of purchase if conditions are met. Annual plans stay active to the end of the period, and unused months are not refunded. A 14-day free trial is mentioned on the site.
- D-ID: fees are non-refundable, and you must cancel 15 days before the end of the billing period.
Colossyan is the only one of the four that states a refund window for standard plans. You can see the current trial terms on Colossyan.
How to decide
Choose Synthesia Starter on annual billing if you want the lowest confirmed yearly price ($168) and can live with roughly 12 minutes of video a month. Choose Synthesia Pro or Colossyan Professional if several people work on videos: Synthesia Pro adds guests and five personal avatars, while Colossyan Professional includes up to three editors. Choose HeyGen Creator if you want monthly billing without an introductory price, a custom avatar of yourself and videos up to 30 minutes. For a head-to-head of the two best-known names, read Synthesia vs HeyGen. If you also need still images, see our AI image generators comparison.
- Estimate how many minutes of finished video you need each month.
- Check whether the free plan’s watermark and usage limits rule it out.
- Confirm that the plan you pick allows the commercial use you have in mind.
- Get written consent from anyone whose face or voice becomes a custom avatar.
- Decide how you will label AI-generated videos.
- Note the refund rule: only Colossyan states a refund window.
- Set a reminder before renewal, and confirm the final price, taxes and currency at checkout.
AIPilotera is reader-supported: we may earn a commission if you buy through some links, at no extra cost to you. Commissions never decide our recommendations. How we make money.