Which should you choose?
Choose Synthesia if you want a free plan that builds up to 10 minutes a month, turn slide decks into training videos that change often, and publish through hosted links or embeds; every generated minute costs the same 120 credits. Choose HeyGen if you need 4K, single videos up to 30 or 60 minutes, SCORM without an Enterprise contract, or low-cost lip-synced translation of existing footage.
Key differences between Synthesia and HeyGen
- Billing unitSynthesia charges 2 credits per second of generated video whatever the avatar. HeyGen charges per minute by avatar model: 16 credits for Avatar IV with a photo look, 31 with a video look and 48 for Avatar V.
- Worked exampleAssuming 30 finished minutes a month and HeyGen's Avatar IV video look, Synthesia needs 3,600 credits (30 x 120), its Creator allowance at USD 89 a month billed monthly (USD 64 billed yearly), while HeyGen needs about 930 (30 x 31), inside Pro's 1,000-credit entry tier at USD 49 billed monthly (about USD 41 billed yearly).
- Free accessSynthesia Basic gives 1,200 credits a month, about 10 minutes, with 9 stock avatars but no downloads. HeyGen Free allows up to 3 videos a month of at most 1 minute each, always watermarked and shared through a 720p link.
- Resolution and lengthSynthesia paid plans download 1080p MP4. HeyGen reaches 4K on Pro and above with 4K avatar footage, and caps single videos at 30 minutes on Creator and 60 on Business.
- TranslationSynthesia dubs uploaded video on every plan, at 50 credits a minute with lip sync on Starter and Creator, and keeps full one-click translation for Enterprise. HeyGen translates with lip sync from 6 credits a minute on paid plans.
- LMS deliverySynthesia exports SCORM 1.2 or 2004 packages only on Enterprise. HeyGen includes SCORM export on Business, at USD 119 a month billed yearly (USD 149 monthly), and on Enterprise.
Which one, when
Synthesia for slide-based training that keeps changing
Speaker notes in a .pptx become the script, and each regeneration bills only the seconds you touched, so monthly course updates stay cheap.
HeyGen for localizing footage you already have
At Speed-mode rates, Creator's 600 credits translate about 100 minutes with lip sync, several times what the same balance generates as new avatar video.
HeyGen Business for LMS delivery below Enterprise
SCORM, a shared credit pool and 60-minute videos arrive on a published plan, where Synthesia requires a sales conversation for SCORM.
Our editorial judgement about fit. Neither tool carries a score here, and we have not run controlled tests against either one.
Synthesia and HeyGen side by side
| What do you need? | Synthesia | HeyGen |
|---|---|---|
| In short | Create presenter-led videos from scripts or slides with AI avatars and voiceovers. | Create avatar-presented videos from a script and translate videos with lip-sync. |
| Primary use | Presenter-led training and explainer videos with AI avatars | Avatar-presented videos and lip-synced video translation |
| Pricing model | Free Basic plan; paid Starter, Creator and Enterprise | Free plan; paid Creator, Pro and Business |
| Free access | Free access available | Free access available |
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| Profile source review | September 24, 2026 | September 24, 2026 |
| Pricing check | Prices confirmed · Sep 25, 2026 | Prices confirmed · Sep 24, 2026 |
| Full profile | Read the profile | Read the profile |
Figures come from the two profiles and update with them.
On real tasks
| If the job is… | Synthesia | HeyGen |
|---|---|---|
| Turn a 20-slide deck into a narrated video | .pptx up to 1 GB or 150 slides; speaker notes become the script, animations are dropped | PPT, PPTX or PDF up to 50 MB and 50 slides; speaker-note scripts only from PowerPoint files |
| Publish a 3-minute onboarding video every week | Assuming 4 videos a month, about 1,440 credits (12 minutes x 120): over Starter, inside Creator | Assuming 4 videos a month, about 372 credits with Avatar IV video looks (12 minutes x 31): inside Creator's 600 |
| Dub a 10-minute product demo into Spanish | AI Dubbing with lip sync: 500 credits on Starter or Creator (10 x 50), on-screen text unchanged | Speed-mode lip-synced translation: 60 credits (10 x 6) |
| Put yourself on screen | Personal avatar from one photo or a recorded video on Starter and above, with the subject's consent | Digital Twin from your footage plus a consent video under 30 seconds, read word for word |
| Send a course to an LMS | SCORM 1.2 or 2004 package on Enterprise | SCORM export on Business or Enterprise |
How many finished minutes does each plan buy?
Synthesia charges the same 120 credits for every generated minute, so its plans convert straight into minutes. HeyGen’s cost per minute depends on the avatar model, so the same plan covers more or fewer minutes as you switch models.
- Synthesia Starter: 1,200 credits a month on monthly billing, about 10 minutes; annual billing gives 14,500 credits a year, which the pricing page equates to about 120 minutes.
- Synthesia Creator: 3,600 credits a month, about 30 minutes, or 44,000 a year on annual billing, about 360 minutes.
- HeyGen Creator: 600 credits, about 37 minutes with Avatar IV photo looks at 16 credits, 19 minutes with video looks at 31, or 12 minutes with Avatar V at 48.
- HeyGen Business: 1,500 credits shared by the workspace, about 31 minutes of Avatar V; extra credits cost USD 5 per 100.
Revisions cost differently too. Synthesia charges only for newly added or replaced seconds when you regenerate an edited video, and deleting or reordering words is free. HeyGen shows the credit cost in the product before generating when the figure is available.
How long, how sharp, and where can the video go?
Synthesia’s paid plans download 1080p MP4 files with WAV audio, SRT and VTT captions and XLIFF files, and up to 10 videos generate at once. Videos with buttons, quizzes or branching play only inside Synthesia, and password-protected share pages start on Creator.
HeyGen downloads at 720p, 1080p or 4K with audio-only and SRT options, but 4K needs Pro or higher and 4K avatar footage. Single videos can run up to 30 minutes on Creator and 60 on Business, with no maximum on Enterprise. Its share page shows views, average watch time and completion rate, and comments there cannot be switched off.
Which one handles other languages at lower cost?
Synthesia’s AI Dubbing replaces the spoken track on any plan: 50 credits a minute with lip sync or 25 without on Starter and Creator, and 240 or 120 on Basic. The dubbing article itself lists 240 credits a minute for lip sync without naming a plan, so check the rate the app shows before planning a large job. On-screen text stays in the original language; rebuilding the whole video in 80+ languages with a multilingual player is an Enterprise feature.
HeyGen translates into 175+ languages and dialects on paid plans, against 30+ on Free. Lip-synced translation costs 6 credits a minute in Speed mode or 10 in Precision mode, and 4 without lip sync, so localizing existing footage costs far less per minute than generating new avatar video.
Which path fits which team?
Editorial assessment
Monthly minutes, the avatar model and the delivery route decide most purchases.
- Synthesia Basic: testing scripts and avatars when a hosted link or embed is an acceptable way to deliver.
- Synthesia Starter or Creator: slide-based training of up to 30 minutes a month that gets small edits often.
- HeyGen Creator or Pro: marketing and creator videos, 4K from Pro, and translation of footage you already have.
- HeyGen Business: a team sharing one credit pool, courses that need SCORM, or single videos over 30 minutes.
- Synthesia Enterprise: more than 30 minutes a month, one-click translation, or SSO-protected viewing.
Proposed evaluation · not performed yet
Build the same 60-second script on both free plans with a stock avatar and compare lip sync, pronunciation of product names and how each video can be shared. See the Synthesia profile, the HeyGen profile, Runway vs Descript for generated footage and editing, the AI video tools category, all comparisons and our editorial policy.
Frequently asked questions
Which is cheaper, Synthesia or HeyGen?
At entry level they match on monthly billing: USD 29 a month for Synthesia Starter and HeyGen Creator. Billed yearly, Starter lists USD 18 a month and Creator USD 24, charged as USD 288. One step up, HeyGen Pro starts at USD 49 a month against USD 89 for Synthesia Creator, both on monthly billing. Synthesia shows European visitors EUR prices instead, and neither vendor says whether tax is included.
What happens to credits I do not use?
Synthesia resets the balance each billing period, and an upgrade replaces it with the new plan's allowance; a manual or automated top-up in Billing covers a shortfall. HeyGen web subscribers on monthly plans keep unused credits for one extra cycle, and annual subscribers until renewal, but pausing a plan expires the balance and only Business can buy extra credits on web.
Can I get a refund if the tool does not suit me?
Synthesia purchases are non-refundable, and after a cancelled plan ends every video in the account becomes inaccessible, so download first. HeyGen payments are generally non-refundable too, though web and Google Play purchases can be reviewed case by case within 15 days; cancelling returns the account to Free and any remaining credits are lost.
How many people can work in one account?
Synthesia's self-serve plans have a single editor, with 3 guests on Starter and 5 on Creator, and Enterprise adds SAML/SSO. HeyGen Business shares its credit pool across the workspace and adds seats at USD 20 a month each, and extra seats give access without extra credits. Its comparison table also labels Business as USD 149 per seat, so confirm at checkout.
How many custom avatars are included?
Both vendors give conflicting counts. Synthesia's comparison table lists 3 personal avatars on Starter and 5 on Creator, while its FAQ says one comes with annual plans; Studio Avatars cost USD 1,000 a year extra. HeyGen's pricing page shows 1+ custom avatar on Creator and Pro, while help articles list 5 Digital Twin slots. Check the count inside the account.
Keep comparing
Pick a different pair from the full directory, build your own match-up on the comparison page, or read how we verify and correct these profiles.