HeyGen in 2026: Pricing, Free Plan, Avatar V and Video Translation

HeyGen makes videos presented by an AI avatar (a stock presenter or a clone of you) and translates your existing videos, recreating your voice and lip movements. Our take as of September 25, 2026: it is the most complete tool for cloning yourself and localizing marketing videos, starting at $29 a month, but the move to credits means you should work out your minutes before picking a plan. For an internal training library, Synthesia or Colossyan are better equipped.

This review is based on the official pages of HeyGen and its competitors, checked on September 25, 2026. Since the March 2025 version of this page, HeyGen has released Avatar V, replaced its “unlimited videos” plans with credits, and moved its conversational avatars to a separate product, LiveAvatar. Génie Artificiel earns no commission from HeyGen: links to heygen.com are direct.

What Does HeyGen Do?

• Avatar videos from a script. Pick one of 700+ stock avatars (500+ on the free plan) and one of 1,000+ voices, then paste your text or upload an audio file. The editor (AI Studio) offers 75+ templates and imports PowerPoint and PDF files (pricing page, checked Sept. 25, 2026).
• Your own avatar. A “Digital Twin” built from a short video of you, or a “Photo Avatar” animated from a single picture. For every video-based twin, HeyGen requires a consent video under 30 seconds, recorded by the person being cloned (HeyGen help).
• Translation of existing videos, with voice cloning and lip-sync (details below).
• Video Agent: a single prompt produces a complete video (script, voiceover, presenter, captions, music and motion graphics), according to the July 2026 release notes.
• Training content: interactive videos (quizzes, links, branching), SCORM export and LMS integrations, starting with the Business plan.

Avatar III, IV or V: Which Model Should You Use?

HeyGen offers three generations of avatar models, and each burns credits at a different rate (credit costs, checked Sept. 25, 2026):

Avatar V, announced on April 8, 2026 (HeyGen announcement), is the flagship model. You record yourself once (HeyGen says 15 seconds on a phone is enough), and the AI generates new “looks” (outfit, setting) while keeping your real gestures. The avatar moves from the waist up, and its identity is meant to hold across camera angles and long videos (Avatar V blog post). In May 2026, HeyGen added plain-English directing (“lean in, stay serious, thumbs up at the end”) (May 2026 release notes).

Avatar IV is the model included in the free plan, as a limited trial. It is mainly for animating photos, and HeyGen also recommends it for cartoon or 3D characters (Avatar IV guide).

Avatar III suits long videos on a tight budget: it uses twelve times fewer credits than Avatar V.

Since July 2026, all three models can generate a single 30-minute talking video in one pass, in the web app and through the API (July 2026 release notes).

How Does HeyGen Video Translation Work?

This is the feature that sets HeyGen apart most. Upload a video (or paste a YouTube link), pick up to 10 target languages at once, and HeyGen produces dubbed versions using the speaker’s cloned voice with re-synced lips. You can review and edit the translated script before rendering, and group versions in a multilingual player you can embed on a website or LMS (video translation page, checked Sept. 25, 2026).

Source: pricing page, checked Sept. 25, 2026. The feature page mentions 3 minutes on the free plan, but the pricing grid says 1 minute: go by the grid.

In credits, a translated minute costs 6 credits in Speed mode, 10 in Precision mode and 4 without lip-sync (credit costs, checked Sept. 25, 2026).

If you only need the voice dubbed, ElevenLabs also dubs videos.

For another localization workflow, see the Vozo guide to translation, dubbing and point budgets.

The guide to translating a video while keeping your voice covers preparation, review, and batch costs with or without lip sync.

Other Features: LiveAvatar, API, Podcasts

• LiveAvatar: HeyGen’s interactive avatars (Interactive Avatar), which hold real-time conversations on a website (customer support, tutoring, sales), are now LiveAvatar, a separate platform with its own plans and credits. Avatars created in HeyGen can’t be reused there (HeyGen help).
• API: billed separately. In May 2026, HeyGen announced the Avatar V API at five cents per second (May 2026 release notes, checked Sept. 25, 2026).
• Video Podcast: since July 2026, a script, PDF or URL can become a two-host video podcast.
• Integrations: n8n, Make, HubSpot and Zapier on the Business plan.

HeyGen Pricing: How Much Does It Cost in 2026?

Paid plans now run on monthly credits shared across every feature. Unused credits roll over for one month (until renewal on an annual plan) and are lost when you cancel (HeyGen pricing, checked Sept. 25, 2026):

Pro comes in tiers, from 1,000 credits at $49 a month up to 100,000 credits at $4,300 a month, with identical features.

How Many Minutes of Video Do You Get?

Our math, based on HeyGen’s published credit rates (credit costs, checked Sept. 25, 2026):

The avatar model you pick matters more to your budget than the plan itself.

Is HeyGen Free?

Yes, there is a permanent free plan with no credit card required: 3 videos a month, up to 1 minute each, with a watermark, one custom avatar, up to 3 photo avatars, 30+ languages, and limited trial access to Avatar IV, Video Agent and lip-synced translation (pricing page, checked Sept. 25, 2026). The official grid does not state the free plan’s export resolution. Enough to judge the quality, not enough to publish.

What Are HeyGen’s Limitations?

• Less predictable costs. In March 2025, Creator offered unlimited short videos; now everything is paid in credits, and a minute of Avatar V costs twelve times as much as a minute of Avatar III.
• Teamwork requires Business. Creator and Pro include a single user; comments, shared workspaces, SSO and SCORM export need the Business plan.
• Official pages sometimes disagree. Free translation length (1 or 3 minutes), language count (175 or 177 depending on the page): check the pricing page when you subscribe.
• An avatar is still an avatar. For a testimonial or a personal message, real footage remains more credible. And a video is only as good as its script: see our guide to writing high-quality content with ChatGPT.
• Responsible use. Cloning someone requires their recorded consent. Tell your audience when they are watching an AI avatar; in the European Union, the AI Act (Article 50) calls for deepfakes to be labeled.

HeyGen vs Synthesia, Colossyan and Elai: Which Alternative?

Three tools cover part of the same ground. US prices from their official pages, checked Sept. 25, 2026 (HeyGen, Synthesia, Colossyan, Elai).

• Synthesia: 160+ languages for voiceover and a strong enterprise focus. Creator costs $89 a month ($64 billed yearly). See our tutorial on creating an educational video with Synthesia and ChatGPT.
• Colossyan: interactive videos, branching and conversational avatars; watermark removal and unlimited MP4 downloads require Professional.
• Elai.io: 15 minutes a month on Creator, 50 minutes on Team ($125 a month, $100 billed yearly); 80+ avatars and 75+ languages. A personal clone (“Selfie Avatar”) is a paid add-on on Free and Creator; one is included with Team billed yearly.

Where HeyGen still leads: translating existing videos with lip-sync into 175+ languages (Synthesia dubs into 70+ languages below Enterprise, and its lip-sync uses twice the credits), the Avatar V twin built from 15 seconds of footage, 4K from $49 a month, and 30-minute videos from Creator. For marketing, social media, or rolling out one video in several languages, it is the most complete of the four. For an internal training library, Synthesia and Colossyan are better equipped at a similar budget. Our top 10 AI video tools also covers clip generators (Kling, Runway, Veo…).

This site’s Synthesia review includes an affiliate link; links to Colossyan and Elai are direct.

What Changed Since 2025

• Plans: Creator used to offer unlimited videos up to 5 minutes, and Team cost around $89 a month. Now: monthly credits, 30 minutes per video from Creator, and Team replaced by Pro (individuals) and Business (teams).
• Models: Avatar IV, then Avatar V (April 2026), replaced the “3.0” avatars mentioned in the first version of this page.
• Interactive avatars: now LiveAvatar, a separate product.
• New features: Video Agent (a full video from one prompt), Video Podcast, interactive videos and SCORM export.

Our Verdict: Who Is HeyGen For?

HeyGen suits people who want to appear on screen without filming (creators, independent trainers, marketing teams) and anyone who needs to translate existing videos while keeping the speaker’s voice and face. It is a weaker fit for a training team that needs SCORM and collaboration without paying $149 a month. The free plan is enough to judge Avatar IV and translation quality. Before paying, estimate your monthly minutes for the avatar model you plan to use: that is what determines the plan you need.

FAQ

How much does HeyGen cost per month?

$29 a month for Creator ($24 billed yearly), $49 for the entry Pro tier, and $149 plus $20 per seat for Business; Enterprise is custom-priced (pricing, checked Sept. 25, 2026).

Is HeyGen really free?

The free plan is permanent but limited: 3 one-minute videos a month, with a watermark. To publish without a watermark, you need at least Creator.

What is Avatar V?

HeyGen’s newest avatar model, announced in April 2026: a digital twin built from a 15-second recording, with outfits and settings you can change. It is also the most expensive, at 48 credits per minute.

Can HeyGen translate a video into Spanish or other languages?

Yes: upload the video or a YouTube link, and HeyGen dubs it into the chosen language with the speaker’s cloned voice and re-synced lips, from 175+ languages and dialects on paid plans.

HeyGen or Synthesia?

HeyGen for digital twins, marketing and translating existing videos; Synthesia for corporate training, with a cheaper entry point when billed yearly ($18 a month vs $24).

Useful Links

• HeyGen and its pricing page
• HeyGen Help Center
• HeyGen API documentation
• LiveAvatar, HeyGen’s conversational avatars