Imagen

Best AI Video Generation API in 2026

Last updated Oct 2, 2026 · By ModelsLab Engineering

Google Veo, Kling, Seedance, MiniMax Hailuo, Wan, LTX and Vidu through a single REST API. Partner-hosted video starts at $0.024 per second (Seedance 1.0 Pro Fast, 480p); self-hosted Wan 2.2 and LTX 2.3 cost $0.075 per clip. Every model's price is in the table below, checked September 27, 2026.

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Best AI video API for developers in 2026: the short answer

Pick the model first, then the provider. Google Veo 3.1 leads on realism and native audio, Kling 3.0 on motion, Seedance 2.0 on multi-shot scenes with reference inputs, and open-weight Wan and LTX on cost. Each model's own vendor is often the cheapest place to call it: on September 27, 2026 Google listed Veo 3.1 Fast at $0.10 per second at 720p with audio, where ModelsLab charges $0.24, and Runway listed Gen-4 Turbo at $0.05 per second against $0.08 here.

ModelsLab is the better fit when you want many video models behind one key, one payload shape and one bill: Veo, Kling, Seedance, Hailuo, Wan, LTX, Vidu and Runway are all a model_id change apart, Kling 3.0 costs the same $0.084 per second as on fal.ai, and self-hosted Wan 2.2 and LTX 2.3 are included in the $149/month Open Source Unlimited plan.

Sora is no longer an option: OpenAI shut down the Sora 2 API on September 24, 2026, and names no replacement. The closest alternatives are Veo 3.1 for realism with audio and Kling 3.0 or Seedance 2.0 for cost per second.

Same Model, Different Provider: Price per Second

List price per second of output video, checked September 27, 2026. Where a vendor bills per clip, the per-second figure is the clip price divided by its length.

Model	From its own vendor	ModelsLab	Other resellers
Veo 3.1 Fast	Google: $0.10 (720p), $0.12 (1080p), with audio	$0.24	—
Veo 3.1 Lite	Google: $0.05 (720p), $0.08 (1080p)	$0.096	—
Kling 3.0 Standard, audio off	—	$0.084	fal.ai: $0.084
Kling 3.0 Pro, audio off	—	$0.1126	fal.ai: $0.112
Seedance 2.0, 720p	—	$0.23	Replicate: $0.18; fal.ai: $0.3034
Hailuo 2.3, 768p	MiniMax: about $0.047 ($0.28 per 6 s)	$0.067	—
Wan 2.5, 720p	—	$0.10	fal.ai: $0.10
Runway Gen-4 Turbo	Runway: $0.05	$0.08	—
Sora 2	OpenAI: shut down September 24, 2026	No longer offered	—

Prices checked September 27, 2026 on ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/pricing (Veo 3.1, with audio), docs.dev.runwayml.com/guides/pricing (credits at $0.01), fal.ai model pages (Kling 3.0, Wan 2.5), platform.minimax.io pay-as-you-go pricing (Hailuo 2.3, $0.28 per 6-second 768p clip), replicate.com/bytedance/seedance-2.0 and developers.openai.com/api/docs/models/sora-2. ModelsLab prices are from each model's price rule on the same day.

How to Choose an AI Video Generation API in 2026

The 2026 AI Video Generation API Landscape

The AI video generation API market in 2026 is fragmented across model vendors. Google Veo leads on cinematic realism, Kling on motion control, Seedance on stylized output, and open-weight families like LTX and Wan keep closing the gap. The problem for developers is that each vendor ships its own API, auth, and pricing model — Veo lives behind Vertex AI, Kling behind Kuaishou, Seedance behind ByteDance.

ModelsLab aggregates these video models behind one REST API: Google Veo, Kling, Seedance, MiniMax Hailuo, Wan, LTX and Vidu are all callable from the same endpoint with the same key, selected by model_id. Partner-hosted video starts at $0.024 per second (Seedance 1.0 Pro Fast at 480p) and Kling 2.5 Turbo is $0.042 per second; self-hosted Wan 2.2 and LTX 2.3 are $0.075 per clip and included in the $149/month Open Source Unlimited plan.

This guide evaluates the top AI video generation APIs across the criteria that matter to production teams: model access, pricing, latency, async processing, and integration experience.

What to Look for in an AI Video Generation API

When evaluating AI video generation APIs in 2026, prioritize these factors:

Model access — Can you reach Veo, Kling, Seedance and open-source models from one API, or does each require a separate vendor integration?
Pricing model — Per-second vs per-clip vs credits. Predictability matters more than headline price at production volume.
Text-to-video and image-to-video — Both generation modes behind consistent payloads.
Async processing — Webhook callbacks and job polling, since video generation takes seconds to minutes.
Output control — Duration, aspect ratio and resolution, on the models that support them.
Multimodal stack — Image, audio, and LLM APIs from the same key for full production pipelines.
Compliance — GDPR and enterprise SLA options that meet production requirements.

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Best AI Video Generation APIs Compared (2026)

Side-by-side comparison of the leading AI video generation API providers.

Feature	ModelsLab	fal.ai	Replicate	Runway API	Google Vertex (Veo)
Video Models	Veo, Kling, Seedance, Hailuo, Wan, LTX, Vidu	Curated catalog	Open-source catalog	Runway Gen only	Veo only
Starting Price	$0.024/second (480p)	Per-clip, varies	Per-second, varies	Credit packs	Per-second, premium
Text-to-Video + Image-to-Video	Both	Both	Both	Both	Both
Closed + Open Models in One API	Yes	Partial	Mostly open	Single vendor	Single vendor
Webhook Callbacks	Yes	Yes	Yes	Limited	Limited
Image + Audio + LLM APIs (same key)	Yes	Image only	Some	No	Separate products
Flat Monthly Plans	From $21/mo	Usage only	Usage only	Subscriptions	Usage only
Enterprise SLA	99.9%	No	No	Yes	Yes

Feature comparison reviewed September 2026. For ModelsLab prices, use the per-model table below.

Video API Price per Second, Every Model We Serve

From the ModelsLab model catalogue, prices checked 2026-09-23. Each price is in the unit the model is billed in; a 5-second clip is shown for comparison.

Model (model_id)	Hosting	Billing unit	Base price	5-second clip	Resolution multipliers
Wan 2.2 (wan2.2)	Self-hosted	Per clip	$0.075	$0.075	—
LTX 2.3 (ltx-2.3)	Self-hosted	Per clip	$0.075	$0.075	—
CogVideoX (cogvideox)	Self-hosted	Per clip	$0.05	$0.05	—
MiniMax H3 (h3-minimax-t2v)	Self-hosted	Per second	$0.05/s	$0.25	—
Wan 2.1 (wan2.1)	Self-hosted	Per second	$0.075/s (480p/720p)	$0.375	1080p x1.5
Seedance 1.0 Pro Fast (seedance-1.0-pro-fast-t2v)	Partner (BytePlus)	Per second	$0.024/s (480p)	$0.12	720p x2.3, 1080p x4.9
Seedance 1.5 Pro (seedance-1-5-pro)	Partner (BytePlus)	Per second	$0.03/s (480p)	$0.15	720p x2.08, 1080p x4.64
Seedance 2.0 Mini (seedance-2-mini-t2v)	Partner (BytePlus)	Per second	$0.044/s (480p)	$0.22	720p x2.1
Seedance 2.0 Fast (seedance-2.0-fast-t2v)	Partner (BytePlus)	Per second	$0.08/s (480p)	$0.40	720p x2.25
Seedance 2.0 (seedance-2-text-to-video)	Partner (BytePlus)	Per second	$0.10/s (480p)	$0.50	720p x2.3, 1080p x4.5, 4K x9.4
Seedance 2.5 (seedance-2-5-text-to-video)	Partner (BytePlus)	Per second	$0.1236/s (480p)	$0.618	720p x2.25, 1080p x5.55
Kling 2.5 Turbo (kling-v2-5-turbo-t2v)	Partner (Kling)	Per second	$0.042/s	$0.21	—
Kling 3.0 (kling-v3-t2v)	Partner (Kling)	Per second	$0.084/s (std)	$0.42	pro x1.34, 4K x5.04, audio x1.5
Kling 2.1 Master (kling-v2-1-master-t2v)	Partner (Kling)	Per second	$0.336/s	$1.68	—
Hailuo 2.3 (Hailuo-2.3-t2v)	Partner (MiniMax)	Per second	$0.067/s	$0.335	—
Hailuo 02 (Hailuo-02-t2v)	Partner (MiniMax)	Per second	$0.096/s	$0.48	—
MiniMax H3 (Minimax-h3-t2v)	Partner (MiniMax)	Per second	$0.096/s (768p)	$0.48	2K x1.63
Wan 3.0 (wan3.0-t2v)	Partner (Alibaba Cloud)	Per second	$0.05/s (480p)	$0.25	720p x2, 1080p x4
Wan 2.5 / 2.6 / 2.7 (wan2.5-t2v, wan2.6-t2v, wan2.7-t2v)	Partner (Alibaba Cloud)	Per second	$0.10/s (720p)	$0.50	1080p x1.5
HappyHorse 1.1 (happyhorse-1.1-t2v)	Partner (Alibaba Cloud)	Per second	$0.14/s (720p)	$0.70	1080p x1.3
Veo 3.1 Lite (veo-3.1-lite-t2v)	Partner (Google)	Per second	$0.096/s	$0.48	—
Veo 3 Fast (veo-3.0-fast-generate-preview)	Partner (Google)	Per second	$0.12/s	$0.60	—
Gemini Omni (gemini-omni-text-to-video)	Partner (Google)	Per second	$0.12/s	$0.60	—
Veo 3.1 Fast (veo-3.1-fast)	Partner (Google)	Per second	$0.24/s	$1.20	—
LTX 2 Pro (ltx-2-pro-t2v)	Partner (LTX)	Per second	$0.07/s (1080p)	$0.35	1440p x2, 4K x4
LTX 2.3 Fast (ltx-2-3-fast-t2v)	Partner (LTX)	Per second	$0.072/s (1080p)	$0.36	1440p x2, 4K x4
LTX 2.3 Pro (ltx-2-3-pro-t2v)	Partner (LTX)	Per second	$0.096/s (1080p)	$0.48	1440p x2, 4K x4
LTX 2.5 Pro (ltx-2-5-pro-t2v)	Partner (LTX)	Per second	$0.144/s (720p)	$0.72	1080p x1.41
Vidu Q3 Turbo (vidu-q3-turbo-t2v)	Partner (Vidu)	Per second	$0.06/s (720p)	$0.30	1080p x1.17, 2K x1.4, 4K x1.67
Vidu Q3 Pro (vidu-q3-pro-t2v)	Partner (Vidu)	Per second	$0.125/s (720p)	$0.625	1080p x1.2, 2K x1.44, 4K x1.73
Grok Imagine (grok-imagine-video-t2v)	Partner (xAI)	Per second	$0.06/s (480p)	$0.30	720p x1.4
SkyReels V4 text-to-video	Partner (SkyReels)	Per second	$0.13/s (480p)	$0.65	720p x1.31, 1080p x3.24
FLUX 3 video (flux-3-t2v)	Partner (Black Forest Labs)	Per second	$0.204/s (HD)	$1.02	FHD x1.7
Runway Gen-4 Turbo, image-to-video (gen4_turbo)	Partner (Runway)	Per second	$0.08/s	$0.40	—

Prices checked 2026-09-23 from the live dreambooth_models catalogue (model_price, model_price_type and price_rules). Text-to-video model_ids are shown; image-to-video, start/end-frame and reference variants are separate model_ids and can be priced differently. Resolution multipliers apply to the base rate. Self-hosted models draw from a plan's monthly allowance and are included in the $149/month Open Source Unlimited plan. Partner-hosted models draw from the Basic or Standard allowance, then the wallet, and are never part of the unlimited allowance. Maximum clip length is set by each model; see its model page. Sora 2 is no longer listed: OpenAI shut down its API on 2026-09-24.

Quick Start: Generate Videos in Minutes

Get started with the best AI video API using simple REST calls.

Generate video from text (Python)

Python

1import requests
2
3response = requests.post(
4    "https://modelslab.com/api/v7/video-fusion/text-to-video",
5    json={
6        "key": "YOUR_MODELSLAB_API_KEY",
7        "model_id": "kling-v2-5-turbo-t2v",
8        "prompt": "a cinematic drone shot of a coastline at golden hour",
9        "duration": 5,
10        "aspect_ratio": "16:9"
11    },
12)
13
14data = response.json()
15print(data)

Generate video from an image (Python)

Python

1import requests
2
3response = requests.post(
4    "https://modelslab.com/api/v7/video-fusion/image-to-video",
5    json={
6        "key": "YOUR_MODELSLAB_API_KEY",
7        "model_id": "seedance-2.0-fast-i2v",
8        "init_image": "https://your-storage.com/product-shot.png",
9        "prompt": "slow camera orbit with soft studio lighting",
10        "duration": 5
11    },
12)
13
14data = response.json()
15print(data)

Generate with JavaScript (Node.js)

JavaScript

1const response = await fetch('https://modelslab.com/api/v7/video-fusion/text-to-video', {
2  method: 'POST',
3  headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
4  body: JSON.stringify({
5    key: 'YOUR_MODELSLAB_API_KEY',
6    model_id: 'wan2.2',
7    prompt: 'a product launch teaser with slow camera motion',
8    duration: 5,
9    aspect_ratio: '9:16',
10  }),
11});
12
13const data = await response.json();
14console.log(data);

Related API guides

Cheapest AI Video API

Per-second and per-clip prices for every video model, cheapest first.

Text to Video API

Endpoint reference and integration guide for prompt-based video generation.

Image to Video API

Animate stills into video clips with motion prompts and duration control.

Text to Video API

The endpoint set behind every model in this comparison.

Seedance API

Seedance 2.5, 2.0 and 1.5 Pro through the same REST endpoint.

Lip Sync API

Sync generated or recorded speech onto any clip.

How to Get Started with the Best AI Video API

From signup to your first generated clip in minutes.

STEP 01

Step 1: Create Your Account

Create a ModelsLab account, subscribe to a plan (from $21/month), and generate your API key from the dashboard.

STEP 02

Step 2: Pick a Model and Generate

Send a POST request to the video-fusion endpoint with your prompt, duration, and aspect ratio. Try Kling for motion control, Veo for cinematic realism, or Seedance for stylized output.

STEP 03

Step 3: Integrate and Scale

Set up webhook callbacks for async processing and fetch finished clips. Scale from $21/month (Basic) to $47/month (Standard) to $149/month (Open Source Unlimited) as usage grows.

Start Generating Videos

2026 AI Video API Pricing Breakdown

On ModelsLab, partner-hosted video is billed by clip length: from $0.024 per second (Seedance 1.0 Pro Fast, 480p) through $0.042 (Kling 2.5 Turbo) and $0.12 (Veo 3 Fast) to $0.336 (Kling 2.1 Master). Self-hosted Wan 2.2 and LTX 2.3 are $0.075 per clip and have no per-clip charge on the $149/month Open Source Unlimited plan. The full per-model table is above, checked September 23, 2026.

Enterprise plans add dedicated GPU instances, custom SLAs (99.9% uptime), priority support, and volume pricing for teams generating video at scale.

Why One API for Many Video Models Matters

Video model leadership changes every quarter. In the last two years the state of the art has rotated between Veo, Kling, Seedance, and open-weight contenders like Wan and LTX. Teams hard-wired to a single vendor API rebuild their integration every time the leaderboard shifts.

Switch models without changing providers, payloads, or billing
A/B test Veo vs Kling vs Seedance on the same prompts
Fall back to open-source models for cost-sensitive workloads
One vendor relationship, one invoice, one API key
Image, audio, and LLM endpoints on the same account for full pipelines

Why Developers Choose ModelsLab for Video in 2026

Key advantages that set us apart

Veo, Kling, Seedance, Hailuo, Wan, LTX — one API

Partner video from $0.024 per second (480p)

Self-hosted Wan 2.2 and LTX 2.3 at $0.075 per clip

Text-to-video and image-to-video endpoints

Webhook callbacks for async processing

Duration and aspect ratio controls per model

Duration and aspect-ratio control per request

Flat plans from $21/month — no credit math

$47/month Standard: 10 parallel generations

99.9% uptime SLA for enterprise

GDPR-compliant infrastructure

Image, audio, and LLM APIs with the same key

Basic plan at $21/month with 5 parallel generations

Our Popular Use Cases

What teams build with the best AI video generation API:

Generate launch teasers, feature demos, and social clips programmatically. Turn product shots into motion with image-to-video.

Text to Video API
AI video generation from a prompt, self-hosted and partner models.
Image to Video API
Animate a still image into a short clip.
Cheapest AI video API
Per-clip prices for every video model.
Lip Sync API
Sync a face video to new speech.
Cheapest AI API
Image, video and speech prices side by side.
Unlimited AI API
Every self-hosted open-source model for $149/mo.

Best AI Video Generation API FAQ

It depends on the model you need. ModelsLab serves Google Veo, Kling, Seedance, MiniMax Hailuo, Wan, LTX and Vidu behind one REST endpoint, switched by model_id. fal.ai and Replicate also carry large catalogues, while Runway and the Gemini API sell their own models. For a single model, its own vendor is often cheaper: Veo 3.1 Fast is $0.10 per second at 720p on the Gemini API against $0.24 on ModelsLab (checked 2026-09-27).

On ModelsLab, partner-hosted video costs $0.024 to $0.336 per second of output depending on the model and resolution, and self-hosted Wan 2.2 and LTX 2.3 cost $0.075 per clip. Plans start at $21/month; the $149/month Open Source Unlimited plan covers the self-hosted models. Prices checked September 27, 2026.

ModelsLab exposes Google Veo, Kling, Seedance, MiniMax Hailuo, Wan, LTX and Vidu through the same video-fusion endpoints — one API key and one payload shape, switchable by model_id instead of separate Vertex AI, Kuaishou, and ByteDance integrations.

Yes. ModelsLab covers both: POST to /api/v7/video-fusion/text-to-video with a model_id and a prompt, or /api/v7/video-fusion/image-to-video with a model_id and an init_image. Both support duration control, aspect ratios, and webhook callbacks.

Generation time depends on the model, clip duration, and resolution — from seconds for short open-source clips to minutes for premium cinematic models. ModelsLab provides webhook callbacks so your application is notified when clips finish instead of blocking on the request.

ModelsLab is paid-only. The Basic plan is $21/month and reaches every video model in the price table above. Self-hosted Wan 2.2 at $0.075 a clip is the cheapest way to test the endpoint itself.

Yes. The same ModelsLab API key covers image generation (10,000+ models including Flux and SDXL), text to speech, voice cloning, music generation, and LLM endpoints — one integration for a complete multimodal stack.

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It depends on the model you need. ModelsLab serves Google Veo, Kling, Seedance, MiniMax Hailuo, Wan, LTX and Vidu behind one REST endpoint, so you can switch models by changing model_id. fal.ai and Replicate also carry large catalogues. For a single model, its own vendor is often cheaper: Veo 3.1 Fast is $0.10 per second at 720p on the Gemini API against $0.24 on ModelsLab (checked 2026-09-27).

On ModelsLab, partner-hosted video starts at $0.024 per second (Seedance 1.0 Pro Fast, 480p) and runs to $0.336 per second (Kling 2.1 Master), billed by clip length. Self-hosted Wan 2.2 and LTX 2.3 cost $0.075 per clip and are included in the $149/month Open Source Unlimited plan. Prices checked September 23, 2026.

ModelsLab exposes Google Veo, Kling, Seedance, MiniMax Hailuo, Wan, LTX and Vidu through the same /api/v7/video-fusion endpoints: one API key, one payload shape, and model_id picks the model. Going direct would need separate Google, Kuaishou and ByteDance accounts.

Yes. The video-fusion API covers text-to-video and image-to-video, with duration and aspect-ratio control, webhook callbacks for async processing, and MP4, WebM or GIF output up to 4K depending on the model.

ModelsLab is paid-only. The Basic plan is $21/month and can call every video model in the table on this page; partner models draw their per-second price from the plan allowance. Self-hosted Wan 2.2 at $0.075 a clip is the cheapest way to test the endpoint itself.

Yes. The same ModelsLab API key covers video generation, image generation (10,000+ models including Flux and SDXL), text to speech, voice cloning and LLM endpoints — one integration for a full multimodal stack.

For realism with native audio, Google Veo 3.1 ($0.05 to $0.40 per second at 720p or 1080p on the Gemini API, by tier). For motion at a low price, Kling 3.0 ($0.084 per second standard, audio off, on fal.ai and ModelsLab). For reference-driven multi-shot clips, Seedance 2.0 ($0.18 per second at 720p on Replicate, $0.23 on ModelsLab). For the lowest cost at volume, open-weight Wan 2.2 or LTX 2.3, which ModelsLab includes in its $149/month Open Source Unlimited plan. Prices checked 2026-09-27.

No. OpenAI shut down the Sora 2 models and the Videos API on September 24, 2026, after announcing it on March 24, 2026, and it names no one-to-one replacement. ModelsLab no longer offers Sora. Veo 3.1, Kling 3.0 and Seedance 2.0 are the closest alternatives on the same API key.