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Side-by-side comparison · Video & Audio

Google Veo vs HeyGen vs CapCut

Everything that matters when choosing between them, in one place: our rating, what each can do, what they cost, and the trade-offs.

Google Veo

3.8

From AUD $32.99/mo

Best overall

HeyGen

4.1

From $29/mo

CapCut

4.0

From AUD $37.99/mo

Comparing 3 tools, the maximum.

At a glance

Google Veo

3.8

Pick it if: Marketers and creators who want realistic short AI video, with sound.

HeyGen

4.1
Best overall

Pick it if: Founders, marketers and trainers who need lots of on-camera video but hate filming.

CapCut

4.0
Best value

Pick it if: Anyone making short social videos who wants a capable editor without a steep learning curve.

HeyGen scores highest overall, but CapCut gives you more for your money. Which one is right comes down to what you value most.

Overview

AttributeGoogle VeoHeyGenCapCut
In one lineGoogle's video model: describe a scene or upload a photo and get a short clip with sound.Type a script and a lifelike presenter reads it on camera, in your voice or any language.Free phone and desktop editor for TikToks and Reels, with auto captions and templates.
Pricing modelFreemiumFreemiumFreemium
Starting priceAUD $32.99/mo$29/moAUD $37.99/mo
Free plan Yes Yes Yes
Works with Claude Code No Yes No

Rating breakdown

Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.

AttributeGoogle VeoHeyGenCapCut
Overall rating3.84.1Winner4.0
Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it.
4.0
4.5
4.5
FeaturesHow much it can do, and how well the pieces fit together.
3.5
4.5
4.0
Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them.
4.5
4.0
3.5
Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan.
3.5
3.5
4.0
Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over.
3.5
4.0
4.0

Feature comparison

A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.

AttributeGoogle VeoHeyGenCapCut
Access & platform
Free plan Yes Yes Yes
Mobile app Yes Yes Yes
Desktop app No No Yes
Browser extension No No No
API access Yes Yes No
Teams & business
Team workspace No Yes Yes
Enterprise plan or SSO Yes Yes–
Connects to other apps– Yes Yes
Open source or self-hosted No No No
AI abilities
Works with your files Yes Yes Yes
Understands images Yes Yes Yes
Makes images No No Yes
Makes video Yes Yes Yes
Writes code No No No
Runs agents or automations No Yes No
Learns your brand or style No Yes Yes
Works in many languages Yes Yes Yes
Capabilities score8/ 1712/ 1711/ 17

Pricing

Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.

AttributeGoogle VeoHeyGenCapCut
Plans

Free (via Flow and Gemini)

Free

Trying a few clips.

Free

Free

Testing an avatar and the translation feature.

Free

Free

Most everyday social editing.

Google AI ProOur pick

AUD $32.99/mo

Marketers who already use Google's tools.

CreatorOur pick

$29/mo, or $24/mo billed yearly

Solo founders and marketers publishing regularly.

ProOur pick

AUD $37.99/mo, or AUD $299.99/yr

Anyone posting several times a week.

Google AI Ultra

From AUD $149.99/mo

Heavy daily video makers.

Pro

From $49/mo

Heavier users who want 4K and flexible usage.

Ultra

AUD $111.99/mo, or AUD $1,299.99/yr

Heavy users of CapCut's AI video and image generation.

Gemini API

From $0.05 per second of video

Developers building video into an app.

Business

$149/mo

Teams with several presenters.

Teams

From AUD $18/seat/mo

Small teams sharing templates and a brand kit.

Enterprise

Custom

Large companies producing video across departments.

Which plan to pickIf you already pay for Google AI Pro, you have Veo; use it through Flow for the most control. Developers should start on the API with Veo 3.1 Fast at $0.10 a second and only move to the Standard model for hero shots.Creator covers most solo founders and marketers: no watermark, your own avatar and 30-minute videos. Move to Business only when you need SSO, more than one custom avatar or a team sharing the account.Stay on Free until a template or effect you need turns out to be Pro-only. When that happens, take Pro on the yearly plan. Ultra's extra AI credits only matter if you generate a lot of AI video or images inside CapCut.

Key features

AttributeGoogle VeoHeyGenCapCut
Standout features
  • Native audio
  • Image to video
  • Ingredients to video
  • Vertical and 1080p
  • Fast and Lite models
  • Developer API
  • Digital twin
  • Video translation
  • Stock avatars
  • Photo avatars
  • Templates and brand kit
  • API
  • Auto captions
  • Templates
  • Background removal and AI tools
  • Long to short
  • Script to video
  • Phone and desktop

Pros and cons

AttributeGoogle VeoHeyGenCapCut
Pros
  • Realistic motion and physics with sound built in
  • Vertical video and reference images for consistent characters
  • Included with a Google AI plan many already pay for
  • Pay-per-second API for developers
  • Digital twins and translation are the best in the category for short clips
  • You can learn it in an afternoon
  • Big library of stock avatars, voices and templates
  • API and Zapier make personalised video at scale possible
  • The free plan covers most everyday editing
  • Auto captions and templates save hours each week
  • Works on phone and desktop with sync
  • Huge library of effects, music and stock footage
Cons
  • Clips are short and credits go quickly on the Standard model
  • No editing of existing footage
  • Results vary between runs, so retries add up
  • Availability and pricing differ by country
  • Free plan is only enough for a test
  • Credits make the real cost hard to predict, especially for longer videos
  • Avatars look less natural the longer they talk
  • Your own avatar needs good lighting and a careful recording to look right
  • Pro-only templates and effects watermark your export until you pay
  • Pricing varies by country and app store, and can change without notice
  • ByteDance ownership and the broad content licence worry some businesses
  • Long-form or precise editing is clunky next to Descript or Premiere

Who each one is for

AttributeGoogle VeoHeyGenCapCut
Best for
  • Short realistic clips with sound
  • Vertical video for Reels and TikTok
  • Animating a product photo
  • Consistent characters across scenes
  • Explainer and product videos
  • Translating your videos
  • Personalised sales videos
  • Training content at scale
  • TikToks, Reels and Shorts
  • Automatic captions
  • Trend templates
  • Editing on your phone
You'll find it used by
  • Marketers
  • Content creators
  • Developers
  • Agencies
  • Founders
  • Marketers
  • Sales teams
  • Trainers
  • Social media managers
  • Content creators
  • Small businesses
  • Agencies

How we compare

Ratings are our own, from using each tool, across ease of use, features, output quality, value for money, speed & reliability. The "Visit" buttons may use affiliate links, which never affect a score.

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