Is HeyGen free?
Yes, HeyGen has a free plan that costs $0, but it is limited. As of 2026-07 you get 3 videos per month, up to 1 minute each, in 1080p, with a HeyGen watermark you cannot remove and 1 custom avatar. To remove the watermark or make longer videos, you need a paid plan starting at $29/month.
Why — the first-principles explanation
HeyGen's free plan is a freemium funnel, not a charity. Generating AI video costs the company real GPU money, so the free tier is deliberately capped to be just enough to prove the product works, while nudging serious users to pay. Every limitation you hit on the free plan maps to a specific upgrade reason.
The three big caps are volume, length, and watermark. Volume is throttled to 3 videos a month, length is capped at 1 minute, and every clip carries a HeyGen logo. These are the exact walls a real project runs into: a business needs more than three videos, most explainers run longer than a minute, and no one publishes marketing with a competitor's watermark on it. That friction is intentional, because watermark removal and higher limits are what the paid plans sell.
So the honest answer to 'is HeyGen free' is: free to try, paid to use professionally. You can create and test avatars, voices, and translations at $0 forever, but the moment you need clean, longer, or higher-volume output, the model expects you to move to the Creator plan at $29/month (about $24/month billed annually) or higher.
An example that makes it click
HeyGen's free plan is like a warehouse-store sample table. You can taste the product for free, as many times as three little cups a month, but each cup has a big 'SAMPLE' flag stuck in it. If you want a full plate without the flag, you walk over and buy the box. The free samples are real and useful for deciding, but they're designed to make you want the paid version.
How to do it
- Sign up at heygen.com with an email or Google account, no credit card required.
- Use the Free plan to make up to 3 videos per month, each up to 1 minute.
- Test stock avatars, voices, and 1 custom avatar to see if the quality fits.
- Note that every free video keeps a watermark you cannot remove.
- Upgrade to Creator ($29/month) when you need watermark-free or longer videos.
Key facts
- The HeyGen Free plan costs $0 with no credit card required to start.
- Free users can create 3 videos per month, each capped at 1 minute (as of 2026-07).
- Every Free-plan video includes a HeyGen watermark that cannot be removed.
- The Free plan includes 1 custom avatar and 1080p export.
- Removing limits requires a paid plan, starting at Creator ($29/month or $24/month annually).
AI avatar videos and translation for marketing and training.
Affiliate link — we may earn a commission at no cost to you.▶ The 60-second explainer (script)
Is HeyGen free? Yes and no. There's a genuinely free plan that costs zero dollars and needs no credit card. But it's built as a trial, so it's capped. As of mid-2026, the free plan gives you three videos a month, each up to one minute long, in 1080p, plus one custom avatar. The big catch is the watermark: every free video carries a HeyGen logo you can't remove. Those limits aren't random. Three videos, one minute, and a watermark are exactly the walls a real project hits, and that's the point, because clean, longer, higher-volume video is what the paid plans sell. So use the free plan to test the avatars, voices, and translation quality. Then, if it fits your work, upgrade to the Creator plan at twenty-nine dollars a month, or about twenty-four if you pay yearly, to drop the watermark and unlock longer videos.
What authoritative sources say
People also ask
Do I need a credit card for the free plan?
No. You can sign up and use the Free plan without entering any payment details.
How many videos can I make for free?
Three per month, each up to one minute long, as of 2026-07.
Can I remove the watermark on the free plan?
No. The watermark stays on all free videos; removal requires a paid plan.
Is the free plan a limited-time trial?
No. The Free plan is ongoing at $0, but its monthly limits reset each cycle.