AI video ad cost by model, October 2026

What a second of AI video costs from the model makers, and which model to use for which ad. By Hermoso AI.

REPORT · OCTOBER 2026

Executive summary

The short answer

Seedance 2.5 is the model to beat for ads with a real-looking person, and it holds up to 30 seconds in one take. Kling 4.0 is the newest serious contender. Veo 3.1 has the most cinematic light. For cheap hook drafts with sound, MiniMax H3 and Veo 3.1 Lite cost a few cents a second.

Benchmarked pricing & duration

Price per second (720p, with sound)

Model

Provider

Cost / sec

Longest take

Seedance 2.5

ByteDance

about $0.23

30 seconds

Kling 4.0

Kuaishou

about $0.16

30 seconds

Veo 3.1

Google

$0.40

8 seconds

Wan 3.0

Alibaba

about $0.10

30 seconds

MiniMax H3

MiniMax

about $0.06

15 seconds

Veo 3.1 Lite

Google

$0.05

8 seconds

Prices are what the model makers charge, read in October 2026 and rounded. Most cost more at 1080p.

Model recommendation matrix

Which model for which ad

Seedance 2.5

A real-looking person talking about your product: Seedance 2.5

Best for realistic human delivery

Wan 3.0 or Kling 4.0

A 30-second spot for less: Wan 3.0 or Kling 4.0

Best for affordable full-length takes

Veo 3.1

A cinematic, glossy look: Veo 3.1

Best for high-end lighting & gloss

MiniMax H3 or Veo 3.1 Lite

Lots of cheap hook tests: MiniMax H3 or Veo 3.1 Lite

Best for high-volume rapid iteration

Technical inflection points

What changed in 2026

Native sound

Video models got native sound: speech and room sound render in the same pass as the picture.

30s takes

Thirty seconds in one take became normal at the top.

Hook testing

A few cents a second is enough to test a hook: draft cheap, finish the winner on a premium model.

Product labels

Labels still need help: start from a real product photo, then animate it.

Data & Methodology

Open dataset: 40 video models, published under CC-BY by Hermoso AI.

Hermoso AI · October 2026

Documentation and reference links

Sources and the full data

Full comparison and test clips

https://hermoso.ai/blog/best-ai-video-models-for-ads-2027/

Open dataset, 40 models, CC-BY

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23667909

Model access and execution

Hermoso runs every one of these models at the model maker's price: https://hermoso.ai

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