Arcads: Pricing, Credits and Limits of AI UGC Ads

Arcads generates video ads in which AI actors read your script, alongside video and image generation models. Plans start at €100 a month before tax for 8,000 credits, which buys 10 minutes of talking actor; a 3-day trial with 1,000 credits requires a credit card (plan grid seen in a trial account opened from France, checked October 11, 2026).

Arcads is made by Freshr SAS, a French company, and its terms of service limit it to business customers. Arcads publishes no public pricing page. The prices below come from the Subscription & Billing page of a trial account, the allowances from the official help center, and the usage rights from the terms in force since October 8, 2026.

About the currency: the account was opened from France, and Arcads displayed euros. The terms say prices are in US dollars “unless otherwise specified,” but any dollar grid shown to US accounts could not be viewed from France. Check your own billing page before paying.

Links to Arcads are affiliate links: Génie Artificiel may earn a commission if you subscribe. That does not change the prices or limits described here.

What Does Arcads Do?

The core of Arcads is the talking actor: you write a script of up to 1,500 characters, pick one or more actors from the library, then an animation model (Arcads 1.0, Audio-Driven or OmniHuman 1.5). According to Arcads’ actor overview, these actors are “based on real actors” who agreed to the use of their likeness and are paid for it (checked October 11, 2026).

Arcads Studio in “Talking Actors” mode, trial account (screenshot taken October 11, 2026). Note the 1,500-character limit and the actor model setting.

Around those actors, the same subscription includes:

• video models for B-roll: 18 in the Studio menu on October 11, 2026, including Kling 3.0, Veo 3.1, Seedance 2.0 and 2.5, MiniMax H3, Grok Video and Wan 3.0;
• image models (GPT Image, Nano Banana, Seedream), with free Nano Banana images within a limit the official sources state differently: 100 a day in the credit breakdown, 200 to 10,000 a month depending on the plan in the plan grid;
• tools: captions, video translation, actor replacement, video extension, background removal, preset gestures;
• Workflows that chain these steps (one script across several actors and languages), from the Creator plan up;
• the Agent and an MCP server to drive Arcads from Claude, on every plan (active subscription and credits required).

Video models offered in the Arcads Studio (screenshot taken October 11, 2026). The model you pick sets the credit cost of each generation.

How Much Does Arcads Cost?

Arcads’ pricing page returns an error; the plan grid only appears after sign-up, on the Subscription & Billing page. Here is the grid shown to a trial account opened from France on October 11, 2026, in euros:

Monthly plan grid on Arcads’ Subscription & Billing page, trial account opened from France (screenshot taken October 11, 2026).

Three details change the budget:

• Before tax. Section 12.1 of the terms says fees exclude taxes; sales tax or VAT is calculated at checkout through Stripe Tax based on your billing location.
• The 30% discount covers the first month only. On monthly billing, Starter costs €70, then €100 every month. On annual billing, €80 a month means €960 before tax paid for the year, a calculation from the displayed price.
• The grid depends on the account. The account opened from France showed euros, while section 12.1 states dollar prices “unless otherwise specified.” Freshr can revise prices with at least 10 days’ written notice (section 25).

Two lines of the grid disagree with other official sources:

• Cloning yourself. The grid lists one custom actor (“clone your own”) from Starter up. Yet the FAQ and the actor overview, both updated the week of October 11, 2026, reserve cloning your face and voice from a video to Pro (1,600 credits per video according to the cloning article). Starter’s custom actor may refer to an actor built from a photo, which the custom actor guide describes. Ask Arcads before choosing Starter to clone yourself.
• API. The grid includes it from Pro, but section 2 of the terms limits API access to custom offers.

Pro, Scale and Business carry a “Save 17% per video” label: 1,000 credits cost about €10.42 there on monthly billing, versus €12.50 on Starter and Creator. That is the only volume discount shown; Arcads does not sell individual videos.

How Many Videos Does a Plan Buy?

Arcads’ official credit breakdown charges a talking actor 800 credits per minute, per actor, whatever the animation model. Length is always rounded up to the next full minute (checked October 11, 2026).

The direct consequence: a 15-second ad costs the same as a one-minute video. On Starter, 8,000 credits = 10 actor videos of one minute or less per month, or €10 before tax per video on monthly billing. The help center gives its own example: a 1:45 video with two actors counts as 2 minutes × 2 actors = 3,200 credits.

Clips from video models are charged per generation, depending on the model, length and resolution:

An ad combining one actor and two Veo 3.1 shots therefore uses at least 800 + 2 × 800 = 2,400 credits, close to a third of Starter.

The breakdown does not cover everything: it says “see the app” for Seedance 2.5, Kling 3.0 4K, Kling 3 Pro Turbo and Happy Horse (model list) and does not mention MiniMax, Wan or Omni Flash. The Studio showed no cost while writing the script (checked October 11, 2026). Talking actor videos are capped at 2 minutes according to the help center’s UGC page.

Once credits run out, Starter and Creator are blocked until renewal unless you upgrade (help article). From Pro up, the pricing FAQ on the Subscription & Billing page says overage is added to the next invoice, at an unpublished per-credit price, and unused credits roll over while the subscription stays active. Section 12.3 of the terms says otherwise: on a standard offer you wait for renewal, and only custom offers bill extra credits. Get overage terms in writing if your volume is uneven.

Is Arcads Free?

No, but there is a trial. According to the free trial article (checked October 11, 2026):

1. The trial lasts exactly 72 hours and includes 1,000 credits, with Studio, Workflows and the Agent.
2. A credit card is required; it is verified with a hold, not charged, during the trial.
3. If you do not cancel in time, Starter is charged automatically. If you use all 1,000 credits first, a screen makes you pick Starter, Creator or Pro.
4. Canceling ends access immediately; projects and custom actors are kept if you come back with the same email.

1,000 credits cover a single actor video of one minute or less, plus 200 credits for a short clip or a few tools. The trial lets you judge one actor reading your script, not prepare a campaign.

Refunds and Cancellation

The refund policy is strict (checked October 11, 2026):

• a full refund for a billing period only if no credits were used, requested within 30 days;
• change of mind: refund possible within 24 hours of the first charge, with no credits used, once per account;
• charge at the end of the trial: a one-time courtesy refund may be possible if you ask within 24 hours and have used no credits since;
• wrong plan: the lower-tier charge can be refunded within 7 days of upgrading;
• generation failed because of a platform error: credits restored, not cash; disappointing quality (lip sync, accents) does not qualify.

The FAQ and help center say you can cancel anytime from Subscription & Billing, keeping access until the end of the cycle. Section 23 of the terms, however, requires cancellation at least 72 hours before the end of the period, through the workspace support tools, and any period started is due in full. Cancel a few days early and keep the confirmation: the refund policy covers charges after a cancellation you can prove. Unused credits are lost on every plan, as they are when you downgrade.

What Can You Do With the Videos?

Section 13.3 of the terms grants a non-exclusive, personal and non-transferable license, worldwide, to reproduce, distribute and sell the videos. Freshr notes that another customer may get a similar or identical video with the same script and actor.

Clauses to read before running a campaign:

• Limited edits: cropping, music, text, subtitles, emojis, GIFs, B-roll, sound effects, format changes, and your name, brand and logo. Any other edit needs Freshr’s written approval.
• Takedown if an actor withdraws: Freshr can ask you to remove a video from every channel if the actor withdraws consent, with a €100 per day penalty for delays.
• Prohibited uses: misleading advertising, content that breaks ad platform rules or influencer marketing rules (sponsored content and required disclosures), harming the actor’s dignity, deepfakes or edits to their face and voice, and feeding the videos into another AI that can alter image or voice. A breach voids the license. For videos made with a library actor, a breach not cured within 30 days of notice triggers a flat €500,000 indemnity per breach, each unauthorized use counting as a breach, on top of any other damages (section 13.3.2).
• Your files: scripts, prompts and uploaded videos remain yours, but you grant Freshr a free license to use them, including to train its models and promote its services (section 13.4).

The prohibited content list bans sexual content, dating services, sexual enhancement products and all political content (candidates, parties, debates, fundraising), among others, on every plan.

An AI actor is not a customer. Arcads’ own article on testimonial-style ads says to base scripts on real customer feedback, never present an actor as a verified buyer, and follow each ad platform’s rules on AI-generated content. In the US, the FTC rule on fake reviews and testimonials bars businesses from creating, buying or knowingly spreading reviews and testimonials that misrepresent that they come from someone who does not exist (the FTC cites AI-generated fake reviews) or from someone with no actual experience of the product. This is not legal advice.

Which Languages?

Actor voices cover 35 languages and accents, including US, UK, Australian and Canadian English and Mexican Spanish (common questions). Video translation supports more than 130 languages and accents with lip sync, for files up to 100 MB; it is not available through the API. Custom voices and connecting an ElevenLabs account require Pro or above.

Our Take: Who Is It For?

Arcads suits a team that writes many hooks and wants several faces to deliver them to find the one that works. Full-minute billing favors videos close to a minute: for 10- to 15-second ads, each video costs four to six times its actual length.

• Your starting point is a product page rather than a script: compare it with Creatify in our Arcads vs Creatify comparison.
• You want to compare the cost of a 30-second ad: our comparison of seven AI UGC ad generators works it out for Arcads, HeyGen, Creatify, Topview and three other tools.
• You want a presenter to explain a service, or a clone of yourself: see the HeyGen alternatives.
• You mostly need generated shots without an actor: the Higgsfield profile covers a video-generation-first platform.
• You need to translate an existing video: our AI dubbing guide compares costs per minute.

FAQ

How much does Arcads cost per month?

From €100 a month before tax (Starter, 8,000 credits) to €2,000 (Business, 192,000 credits), with 30% off the first month and 20% off on annual billing; custom plans above that. These are the prices shown to an account opened from France on October 11, 2026; US accounts may see a dollar grid.

How many videos does the Starter plan include?

Ten talking actor videos of one minute or less per month with a single actor, because each video is rounded up to the next full minute and costs 800 credits per actor. Generated clips and tools reduce that number.

Can you try Arcads for free?

Yes, for 72 hours with 1,000 credits, but a card is required and Starter is charged unless you cancel. Canceling ends access immediately.

Do unused credits roll over?

Only on Pro, Scale and Business, while the subscription stays active. On Starter and Creator, credits reset at every renewal. On every plan, they are lost if you cancel or downgrade.

Are Arcads videos royalty-free?

No. You get a non-exclusive license to run and sell them, with limited edits, and Freshr can require their removal if the actor withdraws consent.