Feature
AI avatars for course creators: HeyGen or Synthesia for lessons, Cutroom for course ads
HeyGen, Synthesia and Colossyan are built for full avatar lessons. Cutroom makes short vertical ads for your course, at 350 credits per minute of avatar video.
In short
- HeyGen, Synthesia and Colossyan are the AI avatar tools built for full course lessons, with long videos and many languages.
- Cutroom is for short course ads: a finished 40-second avatar ad costs about 395 credits, and every video is vertical 9:16.
- Full lessons in Cutroom get expensive: twelve 8-minute lessons need 33,600 credits of avatar video.
- Film your lessons yourself if you show your screen, a tool or your hands, because an avatar made from a photo cannot.
- For learning platforms that need SCORM files, Colossyan Professional includes SCORM export and HeyGen offers it on Business.
- Credits per minute of avatar video in Cutroom
- 350
- Longest voice-over one Cutroom avatar video takes
- 5 min
- Credits for twelve 8-minute avatar lessons in Cutroom
- 33,600
What AI avatar lessons cost
A course has a lot of minutes, so the price per minute matters most. Here is what each tool includes, from its own pricing page.
- In Cutroom, avatar video is 350 credits a minute, so one 8-minute lesson costs 2,800 credits and twelve cost 33,600.
- If you bought those credits as top-ups at $39.99 for 2,500, twelve 8-minute lessons would cost more than $530.
- Cutroom takes at most 5 minutes of voice-over per avatar video, which costs 1,750 credits. You have to split an 8-minute lesson into two recordings yourself.
AI avatar video for a course, by tool and plan
Prices as each company publishes them, checked 21 September 2026. Cutroom minutes are worked out from its credits.
| Tool and plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| HeyGen Creator | $29 a month, or $24 billed yearly | Videos up to 30 minutes long, 600 credits a month |
| Synthesia Creator | $89 a month, or $64 billed yearly | 30 minutes of video a month, 5 personal avatars |
| Colossyan Starter | Free | 20 minutes of video a month, all stock avatars |
| Colossyan Professional | $89 a month, or $59 billed yearly | 30 minutes of video a month, 5 SCORM exports |
| Cutroom Basic | $39.99 a month | 2,500 credits, about 7 minutes of avatar video |
| Cutroom Premium | $79.99 a month | 5,000 credits, about 14 minutes of avatar video |
Tool and plan: HeyGen Creator
- Price
- $29 a month, or $24 billed yearly
- What you get
- Videos up to 30 minutes long, 600 credits a month
Tool and plan: Synthesia Creator
- Price
- $89 a month, or $64 billed yearly
- What you get
- 30 minutes of video a month, 5 personal avatars
Tool and plan: Colossyan Starter
- Price
- Free
- What you get
- 20 minutes of video a month, all stock avatars
Tool and plan: Colossyan Professional
- Price
- $89 a month, or $59 billed yearly
- What you get
- 30 minutes of video a month, 5 SCORM exports
Tool and plan: Cutroom Basic
- Price
- $39.99 a month
- What you get
- 2,500 credits, about 7 minutes of avatar video
Tool and plan: Cutroom Premium
- Price
- $79.99 a month
- What you get
- 5,000 credits, about 14 minutes of avatar video
Which AI avatar tool fits which course video?
Some avatar tools are built for full lessons, and Cutroom is built for short ads. Prices are from each company's own site.
- Choose HeyGen or Synthesia if you want full avatar lessons, or the same course in several languages.
- Choose Colossyan if you build courses from slides and want quizzes in the video or SCORM files for a learning platform.
- Choose Cutroom if you want short vertical ads for your course, with captions and b-roll added for you.
AI avatar tools for course creators
Prices as each company publishes them, checked 21 September 2026.
| Tool | Best for | Price from |
|---|---|---|
| HeyGen | Lessons up to 30 minutes on Creator, translated into 175+ languages | Free plan; Creator $24 a month, billed yearly |
| Synthesia | Training videos from templates, in 160+ languages | Free plan; Starter $18 a month, billed yearly |
| Colossyan | Courses with quizzes, built from slides or a PDF, with SCORM export | Free plan; Professional $59 a month, billed yearly |
| Cutroom | Short vertical ads and promo videos for your course | Basic $39.99 a month |
Tool: HeyGen
- Best for
- Lessons up to 30 minutes on Creator, translated into 175+ languages
- Price from
- Free plan; Creator $24 a month, billed yearly
Tool: Synthesia
- Best for
- Training videos from templates, in 160+ languages
- Price from
- Free plan; Starter $18 a month, billed yearly
Tool: Colossyan
- Best for
- Courses with quizzes, built from slides or a PDF, with SCORM export
- Price from
- Free plan; Professional $59 a month, billed yearly
Tool: Cutroom
- Best for
- Short vertical ads and promo videos for your course
- Price from
- Basic $39.99 a month
This is the whole editor
Highlight a phrase and a clip lands on those exact words. No timeline, no keyframes, no layers.
When to film your lessons instead
An avatar made from one photo can only talk. Lessons where you show something are better filmed.
- Film the teaching yourself if you show your screen, a tool or your hands. An avatar made from a photo cannot show any of them.
- HeyGen and Colossyan can turn PowerPoint or PDF slides into an avatar video, which covers lessons that are mostly slides.
- Filming lessons with your own camera or screen recorder costs nothing per minute.
- Cutroom exports vertical 9:16 video only, which suits ads and phones but not a widescreen lesson player.
Course videos an avatar suits
Short promo videos come up again and again when you sell a course. They suit an avatar because they are short and factual.
- On Basic, 2,500 credits make about six 40-second avatar ads a month, or about seven 30-second ones.
- The same face, room and clothes in every video keeps your course marketing consistent over months.
- Every Cutroom export is a vertical 9:16 video, made for TikTok, Reels, Shorts and phone feeds.
Course promo videos made with an avatar in Cutroom
Finished and exported, with a generated voice. Each charge is rounded up to a whole credit.
| Video | Length | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Course ad for social media | 40 seconds | About 395 |
| Enrolment reminder, like "doors close Friday" | 20 seconds | About 248 |
| Announcement of a new module or a price change | 40 seconds | About 395 |
| Tip video for social media | 30 seconds | About 320 |
Video: Course ad for social media
- Length
- 40 seconds
- Credits
- About 395
Video: Enrolment reminder, like "doors close Friday"
- Length
- 20 seconds
- Credits
- About 248
Video: Announcement of a new module or a price change
- Length
- 40 seconds
- Credits
- About 395
Video: Tip video for social media
- Length
- 30 seconds
- Credits
- About 320
Making the course ad in Cutroom
Here is how to make a 40-second course ad with an avatar. It costs about 395 credits, finished and exported.
- B-roll means extra clips shown over the avatar. On the normal speed setting it covers up to 45 percent of the ad.
- Highlight the words where you name a module, and a clip covers exactly those words.
- Pick one of 40 caption styles. Generated music costs 50 credits for a track up to 60 seconds.
- Use your own photo, a stock presenter, or someone else's photo only with their written permission.
Making a course ad with an avatar
Cutroom charges in credits. The Basic plan is $39.99 a month for 2,500 credits.
Add a photo
Your own face, or a stock presenter
Add the voice
Record it free, or generate it for 70 credits a minute
Make the avatar video
About 234 credits for 40 seconds
Edit it into an ad
100 credits for cuts, captions and b-roll
Export
About 14 credits for 40 seconds
Questions people ask
- Can I make a whole course with an AI avatar?
- Yes, and HeyGen, Synthesia and Colossyan are built for it. In Cutroom it gets expensive: twelve 8-minute lessons cost 33,600 credits, and each avatar video takes at most 5 minutes of voice-over.
- Which AI avatar tool is best for online courses?
- HeyGen or Synthesia for full lessons in many languages, and Colossyan if you build from slides and want quizzes or SCORM files. Cutroom is for the short vertical ads that sell the course.
- Can AI avatar lessons go into my course platform?
- Yes. Most course platforms take an MP4 video upload. Workplace learning platforms often need SCORM files: Colossyan Professional includes 5 SCORM exports a month, HeyGen has SCORM on Business, and Synthesia on Enterprise.
- Can I translate my course with an AI avatar?
- Yes, in the lesson tools. HeyGen translates and dubs videos into 175+ languages from its Creator plan. Synthesia makes videos in 160+ languages, and Colossyan in 100+.
- Should my course ad use an avatar or my own filmed face?
- Your own filmed face if students choose your course because of you. An avatar if the ad is mainly facts, like dates, prices and what the course covers.
- Which Cutroom plan do I need for avatars?
- Basic at $39.99 a month or higher. Lite and the free first video do not include avatars. Premium is $79.99 for 5,000 credits, about 14 avatar minutes.
- Can I use someone else's face for my course?
- Only with their written permission. Otherwise use a photo of yourself, or one of Cutroom's stock presenters.
Make the lessons in a lesson tool or on camera, and the ads that sell your course in Cutroom. Avatars come with Basic at $39.99 a month, and your first filmed video is free.