Side-by-side comparison · Video & Audio
HeyGen vs Runway vs Synthesia
Everything that matters when choosing between them, in one place: our rating, what each can do, what they cost, and the trade-offs.
Comparing 3 tools, the maximum.
At a glance
HeyGen
4.1Pick it if: Founders, marketers and trainers who need lots of on-camera video but hate filming.
Runway
3.8Pick it if: Creators, marketers and agencies who need custom footage without a shoot.
Synthesia
3.8Pick it if: Teams that produce training and internal videos and need them updated often and in multiple languages.
Overview
| Attribute | HeyGen | Runway | Synthesia |
|---|---|---|---|
| In one line | Type a script and a lifelike presenter reads it on camera, in your voice or any language. | Make short AI video clips from text or images, then edit footage by describing changes. | Turn training docs and announcements into polished avatar videos in over 140 languages. |
| Pricing model | Freemium | Freemium | Freemium |
| Starting price | $29/mo | $15/mo | $29/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Works with Claude Code | Yes | Yes | No |
Rating breakdown
Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.
| Attribute | HeyGen | Runway | Synthesia |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall rating | 4.1Winner | 3.8 | 3.8 |
| Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it. | 4.5 | 3.5 | 4.0 |
| FeaturesHow much it can do, and how well the pieces fit together. | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.0 |
| Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them. | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 |
| Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan. | 3.5 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over. | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 |
Feature comparison
A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.
| Attribute | HeyGen | Runway | Synthesia |
|---|---|---|---|
| Access & platform | |||
| Free plan | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile app | Yes | Yes | – |
| Desktop app | No | No | No |
| Browser extension | No | No | No |
| API access | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Teams & business | |||
| Team workspace | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Enterprise plan or SSO | Yes | 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 | No |
| Makes images | No | Yes | Yes |
| Makes video | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Writes code | No | No | No |
| Runs agents or automations | Yes | No | No |
| Learns your brand or style | Yes | No | Yes |
| Works in many languages | Yes | – | Yes |
| Capabilities score | 12/ 17 | 9/ 17 | 10/ 17 |
Pricing
Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.
| Attribute | HeyGen | Runway | Synthesia |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plans | Free Free Testing an avatar and the translation feature. | Free Free Seeing what it can do before you pay. | Basic Free Seeing what an avatar video looks like. |
CreatorOur pick $29/mo, or $24/mo billed yearly Solo founders and marketers publishing regularly. | Standard $15/mo, or $12/mo billed yearly Occasional clips and short social videos. | Starter $29/mo, or $18/mo billed yearly One or two short videos a month. | |
Pro From $49/mo Heavier users who want 4K and flexible usage. | ProOur pick $35/mo, or $28/mo billed yearly Anyone making video most weeks. | ProOur pick $89/mo, or $64/mo billed yearly Teams producing training regularly. | |
Business $149/mo Teams with several presenters. | Max $95/mo, or $76/mo billed yearly Agencies and heavy daily users. | Enterprise Custom Companies rolling video out across departments. | |
Enterprise Custom Large companies producing video across departments. | Team and Enterprise See website Companies that need shared workspaces and security controls. | ||
| Which plan to pick | 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. | Use the free credits to learn what prompts work, then go straight to Pro. Standard sounds cheap, but 625 credits is only a few minutes of good video a month and you'll spend more topping up than you saved. | Starter is only worth it if you make one or two short videos a month. Pro gives you around an hour of video, personal avatars and interactive features, and the yearly price of $64 a month is a fair deal for a team. Larger companies will need Enterprise for SSO and LMS export. |
Key features
| Attribute | HeyGen | Runway | Synthesia |
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Pros and cons
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Who each one is for
| Attribute | HeyGen | Runway | Synthesia |
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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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