Which is better, HeyGen or Synthesia?

HeyGen is better for marketing and sales videos, with more languages and a free avatar of you. Synthesia is better for training videos: it is cheaper to start and has 60+ templates on every plan.

Is HeyGen cheaper than Synthesia?

No. Billed yearly, Synthesia Starter is $18 a month and HeyGen Creator is $24. Billed monthly, both are $29. Both also have a free plan with a watermark.

Can I download my videos on the free plan?

Yes on HeyGen, no on Synthesia. HeyGen's free plan makes 3 videos a month, up to 1 minute each, with a watermark. On Synthesia, downloads start on Starter, at $18 a month billed yearly.

Can I make an avatar of myself?

Yes, in both. HeyGen's free plan includes 1 custom avatar, and voice cloning starts on Creator. Synthesia has none on the free plan, 3 on Starter and 5 on Creator.

Which one has more languages?

HeyGen. It lists 175+ languages and dialects from Creator, and it translates videos you already made. Synthesia lists 160+ languages and voices on every paid plan.

Can HeyGen and Synthesia export to a training system (LMS)?

Yes, both export SCORM files, the format staff training systems read. HeyGen does it on Business, at $149 a month. Synthesia does it on Enterprise, where you ask sales for a price.

Are AI avatar videos good enough for ads?

Often, for explainers and demos. For testimonials and personal stories, a real person on camera is usually more believable.

Comparison

HeyGen vs Synthesia: HeyGen for marketing, Synthesia for training

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HeyGenvs

Synthesia

HeyGen is the better choice for marketing and sales videos. Synthesia is the better choice for training and internal videos that staff are asked to watch.

In short

HeyGen and Synthesia both turn a typed script into a video with an AI presenter. HeyGen suits marketing, Synthesia suits training.
Choose HeyGen for ads, social posts and sales videos, or to translate one video into 175+ languages.
Choose Synthesia for training, onboarding and compliance videos that staff are asked to watch.
Both have a free plan with a watermark. Paid plans start at $24 (HeyGen) or $18 (Synthesia) a month, billed yearly.

A woman sits at a laptop in a stylish library setting, engaging in a video call. — Photo by SHVETS production on Pexels

Languages and dialects in HeyGen, from the Creator plan: 175+
Languages and voices on every paid Synthesia plan: 160+
Synthesia Starter a month, billed yearly: $18

HeyGen vs Synthesia at a glance

Here is what each tool is, what it costs and who it suits. Cutroom is added for anyone who wants a real person in the ad.

HeyGen vs Synthesia at a glance

Prices as published on each company's own pricing page.

Tool	Best for	Editing approach	Platform	Pricing from
HeyGen	Marketing and sales videos with an AI presenter	Type a script, pick an avatar, edit the video by text	Web, mobile app, API	Free plan; Creator $24/month, billed yearly
Synthesia	Training and internal videos with an AI presenter	Type a script into a template, pick an avatar	Web, API	Free plan with watermark; Starter $18/month, billed yearly
Cutroom	Turning one clip of you talking into a finished 9:16 ad	Edits your own clip for you: cuts, captions, b-roll, hook	Web	First video free; Lite $19.99/month

HeyGen
Best for
Marketing and sales videos with an AI presenter
Approach
Type a script, pick an avatar, edit the video by text
Platform
Web, mobile app, API
Pricing from
Free plan; Creator $24/month, billed yearly
Synthesia
Best for
Training and internal videos with an AI presenter
Approach
Type a script into a template, pick an avatar
Platform
Web, API
Pricing from
Free plan with watermark; Starter $18/month, billed yearly
Cutroom
Best for
Turning one clip of you talking into a finished 9:16 ad
Approach
Edits your own clip for you: cuts, captions, b-roll, hook
Platform
Web
Pricing from
First video free; Lite $19.99/month

Prices and plans read from each vendor's own pricing page on 21 September 2026.

What is the difference between HeyGen and Synthesia?

Both make a video of an AI presenter reading your script. The difference is who the video is for.

HeyGen is built for marketing. It makes many versions of a video quickly, for ads, social posts and sales outreach.
Synthesia is built for training. Every plan has 60+ templates, and from Starter, guests can comment on a video before it goes out.
Both can export to the course systems companies use to train staff. HeyGen does it on Business at $149 a month, Synthesia on Enterprise, where you ask for a price.
HeyGen lists more languages, with 175+ from Creator. Synthesia lists 160+ on every paid plan.
Synthesia is cheaper to start: $18 a month billed yearly, against $24 for HeyGen.

HeyGen and Synthesia side by side

HeyGen has more languages and a free avatar of you. Synthesia is cheaper to start and has 60+ templates.

Built for
HeyGen
Marketing, sales and social videos
Synthesia
Training and internal videos
Who watches
HeyGen
People scrolling social media
Synthesia
Staff who are asked to watch
Export to staff training systems
HeyGen
On Business, $149/month
Synthesia
On Enterprise, price on request
Languages
HeyGen
175+ from Creator
Synthesia
160+ on every paid plan
Stock avatars
HeyGen
500+
Synthesia
9 free, 125+ on Starter, 240+ on Enterprise
An avatar of you
HeyGen
1, even on the free plan
Synthesia
None free; 3 on Starter, 5 on Creator
Cheapest paid plan
HeyGen
$24/month, billed yearly
Synthesia
$18/month, billed yearly

	HeyGen	Synthesia
Built for	Marketing, sales and social videos	Training and internal videos
Who watches	People scrolling social media	Staff who are asked to watch
Export to staff training systems	On Business, $149/month	On Enterprise, price on request
Languages	175+ from Creator	160+ on every paid plan
Stock avatars	500+	9 free, 125+ on Starter, 240+ on Enterprise
An avatar of you	1, even on the free plan	None free; 3 on Starter, 5 on Creator
Cheapest paid plan	$24/month, billed yearly	$18/month, billed yearly

This is the whole editor

Highlight a phrase and a clip lands on those exact words. No timeline, no keyframes, no layers.

Translation and languages

HeyGen and Synthesia translate in different ways. Dubbing means the same video gets a new voice in another language.

HeyGen translates and dubs a video you already made into 175+ languages and dialects, starting on Creator. The free plan lists 30+ languages.
Synthesia can make the same video in 160+ languages from your script, on every paid plan. Starter also includes 10 minutes a month of dubbing.
Synthesia keeps one-click translation of a whole finished video, into 80+ languages, for its Enterprise plan.

HeyGen vs Synthesia pricing

Both have a free plan with a watermark, and both are cheaper when you pay yearly. Synthesia's free plan does not let you download your videos; downloads start on Starter.

HeyGen Creator is $24 a month billed yearly, or $29 monthly, and removes the watermark. Pro is $49 a month, paid monthly. Business is $149 a month, plus $20 for each extra person.
Synthesia Starter is $18 a month billed yearly, or $29 monthly. Creator is $64 a month billed yearly, or $89 monthly.
HeyGen's free plan makes 3 videos a month, up to 1 minute each, and exports them in up to 1080p. Synthesia's free plan allows 10 minutes a month with 9 avatars, but no downloads.
Synthesia gives you 10 minutes of video a month on Starter, or 120 a year if you pay yearly. Creator gives you 30 minutes a month.
HeyGen gives paid plans credits instead of minutes, 600 a month on Creator and 1,000 on Pro. Its pricing page does not say how many minutes of video that makes.

HeyGen and Synthesia plans

As each company publishes them, read on 21 September 2026.

Plan	HeyGen	Synthesia
Free	3 videos a month, up to 1 minute, watermark	10 minutes a month, 9 avatars, watermark, no downloads
First paid plan	Creator: $24/month yearly, $29 monthly	Starter: $18/month yearly, $29 monthly
Next plan	Pro: $49/month, 4K	Creator: $64/month yearly, $89 monthly
Teams	Business: $149/month, plus $20 per extra person	Enterprise: contact sales
Longest video	1 minute on Free, 30 minutes on Creator and Pro	Not listed
Video each month	Not given in minutes; paid plans use credits (600 on Creator)	10 minutes on Free and Starter, 30 on Creator

Plan: Free
HeyGen
3 videos a month, up to 1 minute, watermark
Synthesia
10 minutes a month, 9 avatars, watermark, no downloads
Plan: First paid plan
HeyGen
Creator: $24/month yearly, $29 monthly
Synthesia
Starter: $18/month yearly, $29 monthly
Plan: Next plan
HeyGen
Pro: $49/month, 4K
Synthesia
Creator: $64/month yearly, $89 monthly
Plan: Teams
HeyGen
Business: $149/month, plus $20 per extra person
Synthesia
Enterprise: contact sales
Plan: Longest video
HeyGen
1 minute on Free, 30 minutes on Creator and Pro
Synthesia
Not listed
Plan: Video each month
HeyGen
Not given in minutes; paid plans use credits (600 on Creator)
Synthesia
10 minutes on Free and Starter, 30 on Creator

When to choose HeyGen

HeyGen makes more sense if your videos are for customers, not staff.

You make ads, social posts or sales videos and want many versions of each.
You want to reach people in other languages. HeyGen translates and dubs into 175+ languages from Creator.
You want to start from an idea, not a script. Video Agent drafts a video from a prompt, a link or a document.
You want a presenter that looks like you. The free plan includes 1 custom avatar, and voice cloning starts on Creator.
You want HeyGen inside your own tools. The Business plan, $149 a month, adds an API, company sign-in and links to HubSpot and Zapier.
Keep in mind that you get a presenter video. Captions, b-roll and a hook for a social ad still take editing.

When to choose Synthesia

Synthesia makes more sense if you make training or internal videos.

You make onboarding, compliance or product training videos that staff are asked to watch. Every plan has 60+ templates to start from.
You want the cheaper start. Synthesia Starter is $18 a month billed yearly, against $24 for HeyGen Creator.
You want colleagues to comment before a video goes out. Starter lets 3 guests comment, and Creator lets 5.
You work in a large company and want a brand kit, company sign-in and live team editing. Those come with Synthesia Enterprise.
Keep in mind that Synthesia is made for training, so its videos can look out of place in a social feed.

Where Cutroom fits

HeyGen and Synthesia start from a script and generate a presenter. Cutroom starts from a real video of you and does the editing.

You upload one clip of yourself talking, up to 3 minutes long.
Cutroom cuts it, adds captions timed to your voice, puts b-roll on the words you pick and adds a hook.
B-roll never covers more than 52% of the video, so your face stays on screen for most of it.
You get a finished 9:16 MP4 for TikTok, Reels or Shorts. A 30-second ad costs 110 credits.
Cutroom can also make an AI presenter from a photo and a voice-over. That needs the Basic plan, at $39.99 a month.
Your first video is free, with no card, and you have 7 days to make it. It carries a Cutroom mark; Lite at $19.99 a month removes it.

HeyGen and Cutroom compared

HeyGen is better for translation and for videos with nobody on camera. Cutroom is better when a real person should be in the ad.

Translate one video into many languages
HeyGen: 175+ languages from CreatorCutroom: No translation
Nobody has to be on camera
HeyGen: An avatar reads your scriptCutroom: A presenter from a photo, on the $39.99 plan
A real person filmed on camera
HeyGen: An avatar of you, still made by AICutroom: Your own clip
Cuts, captions and b-roll done for you
HeyGen: You arrange them in the editorCutroom: Done as soon as you upload
Try it for free
HeyGen: 3 videos a month, up to 1 minuteCutroom: First video free, no card

	HeyGen	Cutroom
Translate one video into many languages	175+ languages from Creator	No translation
Nobody has to be on camera	An avatar reads your script	A presenter from a photo, on the $39.99 plan
A real person filmed on camera	An avatar of you, still made by AI	Your own clip
Cuts, captions and b-roll done for you	You arrange them in the editor	Done as soon as you upload
Try it for free	3 videos a month, up to 1 minute	First video free, no card

Which one should you choose?

It comes down to who watches the video: staff who are asked to, or people scrolling past.

Which one should you choose

Choose Synthesia if you make training, onboarding or compliance videos for your staff.
Choose HeyGen if you make marketing or sales videos and want many versions fast.
Choose Cutroom if a real person should be in the ad and you want the editing done for you. Your first video is free.

Questions people ask

Which is better, HeyGen or Synthesia?: HeyGen is better for marketing and sales videos, with more languages and a free avatar of you. Synthesia is better for training videos: it is cheaper to start and has 60+ templates on every plan.
Is HeyGen cheaper than Synthesia?: No. Billed yearly, Synthesia Starter is $18 a month and HeyGen Creator is $24. Billed monthly, both are $29. Both also have a free plan with a watermark.
Can I download my videos on the free plan?: Yes on HeyGen, no on Synthesia. HeyGen's free plan makes 3 videos a month, up to 1 minute each, with a watermark. On Synthesia, downloads start on Starter, at $18 a month billed yearly.
Can I make an avatar of myself?: Yes, in both. HeyGen's free plan includes 1 custom avatar, and voice cloning starts on Creator. Synthesia has none on the free plan, 3 on Starter and 5 on Creator.
Which one has more languages?: HeyGen. It lists 175+ languages and dialects from Creator, and it translates videos you already made. Synthesia lists 160+ languages and voices on every paid plan.
Can HeyGen and Synthesia export to a training system (LMS)?: Yes, both export SCORM files, the format staff training systems read. HeyGen does it on Business, at $149 a month. Synthesia does it on Enterprise, where you ask sales for a price.
Are AI avatar videos good enough for ads?: Often, for explainers and demos. For testimonials and personal stories, a real person on camera is usually more believable.

Want a real person in your ad instead of an avatar? Film one clip and get the finished ad back. Your first video is free.

Try for freeYour first video is free, no card, and you have 7 days to make it. It carries a Cutroom mark; Lite at $19.99/month removes it