How do HeyGen credits work?
HeyGen credits are the currency you spend to generate video. As of 2026-07, 1 credit equals about 3 seconds of Avatar IV/V video, video translation costs 5 credits per minute, and training a photo avatar costs 60 credits. Plans include a monthly allowance: Creator 600, Pro 1,000, Business 1,500. Unused credits can roll over one cycle.
Why — the first-principles explanation
Credits exist because different AI tasks cost different amounts of computing. Rendering a lifelike avatar frame is far heavier than translating captions, so a flat 'per video' price would either overcharge simple jobs or lose money on complex ones. Credits solve this by pricing each action by the compute it actually uses.
That is why one number can't cover everything. The core rate is 1 credit per 3 seconds of Avatar IV/V video, so a 30-second clip costs about 10 credits. Other features have their own rates: video translation is 5 credits per minute (10 for precision mode), and training a photo-avatar model costs 60 credits as a one-time charge. Premium options, like custom expressive motion, can double the cost of a scene, because they demand more processing.
Your plan hands you a monthly bucket of credits, 600 on Creator, 1,000 on Pro, 1,500 on Business, and each generation draws from it. Rollover softens the 'use it or lose it' problem: monthly subscribers keep unused credits for one extra cycle, and annual subscribers accumulate them until renewal. But dropping to a free account forfeits whatever is left, so credits are best treated as a monthly budget to plan around, not savings to hoard.
An example that makes it click
Think of credits like arcade tokens where different machines cost different amounts. The avatar-video machine takes 1 token for every 3 seconds of play, so a 30-second video eats about 10 tokens. The translation machine charges 5 tokens per minute. Building a new photo-avatar character is a big ride that costs 60 tokens up front. Your Creator plan is like getting 600 tokens dropped in your cup each month. Leftover tokens carry to next month, but if you leave the arcade for the free lobby, you lose them.
How to do it
- Check your plan's monthly credit allowance (Creator 600, Pro 1,000, Business 1,500).
- Estimate a video's cost: about 1 credit per 3 seconds of Avatar IV/V output.
- Budget 5 credits per minute for video translation (10 for precision mode).
- Reserve 60 credits when training a new photo-avatar model.
- Watch your remaining balance in the dashboard before generating long videos.
- Use up credits before downgrading, since a free account forfeits leftovers.
Key facts
- 1 credit equals about 3 seconds of Avatar IV/V video, so 30 seconds costs roughly 10 credits.
- Video translation costs 5 credits per minute (10 credits/minute in precision mode).
- Training a photo-avatar model costs 60 credits as a one-time charge.
- Monthly allowances: Creator 600, Pro 1,000, Business 1,500 credits (as of 2026-07).
- Unused credits roll over one cycle (monthly) or accumulate until renewal (annual), but are forfeited on downgrade to free.
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How do HeyGen credits work? Credits are the currency you spend to make video, and they exist because different AI tasks cost different amounts of computing. The main rate is simple: one credit equals about three seconds of avatar video. So a thirty-second clip costs roughly ten credits. Other actions have their own prices. Video translation is five credits per minute. Training a brand-new photo avatar is a one-time sixty credits. And premium touches, like custom expressive motion, can double a scene's cost because they use more processing. Your plan gives you a monthly bucket: six hundred credits on Creator, a thousand on Pro, fifteen hundred on Business. Good news on leftovers: unused credits roll over one cycle if you pay monthly, or build up until renewal if you pay yearly. The catch, if you downgrade to a free account, you lose them. So treat credits like a monthly budget, and spend them before you cancel.
What authoritative sources say
People also ask
How many credits does a 1-minute video cost?
About 20 credits, since 1 credit covers roughly 3 seconds of Avatar IV/V video.
Do unused credits roll over?
Yes. Monthly subscribers keep them one extra cycle; annual subscribers accumulate until renewal. Downgrading to free forfeits them.
Why did one video cost more credits than expected?
Premium features like custom expressive motion can double a scene's credit cost due to heavier processing.
Can I buy extra credits?
Add-on credit availability varies by plan; the Creator plan relies on its 600 monthly credits rather than one-time top-ups.