Synthesia review

What Synthesia is

Synthesia is an AI video platform for creating presenter-led videos without cameras, studios or actors. You write or paste a script, choose an AI avatar and voice, add slides, media and templates, and Synthesia renders a video where the avatar presents your content. It’s widely used for training, onboarding, product explainers and internal communications.

Synthesia has moved beyond one-way video with interactive roleplays and surveys, plus dubbing and translation, and now uses credits as a shared currency across all AI usage-based features.

Key features

AI avatars

125+ stock avatars on paid plans (240+ on Enterprise) and personal avatars of yourself.

Script-to-video editor

Script-based editing with templates and pre-built libraries.

Dubbing and translation

Dub existing videos and, on Enterprise, translate into 140+ languages in one click.

Roleplays and surveys

Interactive practice scenarios and survey questions for learners.

Sharing and export

Share links on all plans, downloads on paid plans and SCORM export on Enterprise.

Collaboration and brand

Live team collaboration, Brand Kits and SAML/SSO on Enterprise.

Pricing breakdown

From Synthesia’s pricing page, checked October 16, 2026 (USD).

Plan	Price	Credits/month	Highlights
Basic	$0	500 (+10 min video, 3 survey responses)	Share links, templates, roleplays, surveys; watermark
Starter	$29/mo billed monthly ($19/mo shown with yearly)	1,250	Downloads, no Synthesia logo, 125+ avatars, chat/email support
Pro	$89/mo billed monthly	6,000 (tiers to 48,000 for $676/mo)	More credits and features
Enterprise	Let’s talk	Custom	Unlimited video minutes, 140+ language translation, 240+ avatars, unlimited personal avatars, SSO, Brand Kits, SCORM

Credit costs: ~100 credits per video minute, ~76 per dubbing minute and 350 per survey response beyond included amounts. Learner seats cost $29 per learner per month. Yearly billing saves up to 3 months.

Best use cases

• L&D teams: turn training scripts into narrated videos.
• HR: onboarding and policy videos.
• Product marketing: feature explainers that are easy to update.
• Global companies: localize videos into many languages.

How to get started

1. Sign up free at synthesia.io.
2. Pick a template and paste your script.
3. Choose an avatar, voice and language.
4. Add images, media and screen recordings.
5. Generate, review and share or download.

Tips and tricks

• Write conversationally and keep sentences short.
• Add pauses and on-screen text for key points.
• Reuse templates for consistent branding.
• Estimate credits using minutes and dubbing needs.

Example script opening:

Hi, I’m Alex. In the next three minutes, you’ll learn how to request time off in Workday and what happens after you submit.

Pros and cons

👍 Pros

• High-quality, professional avatars
• Fast script-to-video workflow
• Strong translation and dubbing
• Learning features for L&D
• Free plan to test

👎 Cons

• Credits make costs harder to predict
• Free videos are watermarked
• Best features on Enterprise
• Avatars aren't ideal for every audience

Who should (and shouldn't) use Synthesia

✅ A good fit if you…

• Produce training videos without filming
• Translate videos into many languages
• Update videos quickly when content changes

⛔ Look elsewhere if you…

• Need cinematic generative video (consider Runway)
• Want avatar video with lower entry cost (consider HeyGen)
• Edit real footage (consider Descript)

Synthesia alternatives

• HeyGen — AI video platform for realistic avatars, voice cloning and video translation in 175+ languages. (from $29/mo (Creator))
• invideo AI — AI video creation platform with frontier image and video models and agents, priced by credits per seat. (from $10/seat/mo billed annually (Starter); $20 monthly)
• Descript — Edit audio and video by editing the transcript, with an AI co-editor called Underlord. (from $16/person/mo billed annually (Hobbyist))
• Runway — AI creative suite for video, images and audio with Gen-4.5 and models from other labs. (from $12/mo billed annually (Standard))
• Murf AI — Studio-quality AI voiceovers, a fast text-to-speech API, dubbing and voice agents. (from API from $0.01 per 1,000 characters; Studio plans on pricing page)

FAQ

Is Synthesia free?

Yes. The Basic plan is free with 10 minutes of video creation or dubbing, 3 survey responses and 500 credits per month. Videos carry a Synthesia watermark.

How much does Synthesia cost?

Starter is $29/month billed monthly (the page shows $19/month with yearly billing) with 1,250 credits. Pro is $89/month billed monthly with 6,000 credits, with higher tiers up to 48,000 credits for $676/month. Enterprise is custom. Yearly billing saves up to 3 months.

How do Synthesia credits work?

Credits are a shared currency across AI usage features. Video creation uses about 100 credits per minute and dubbing about 76 credits per minute, with the first 10 minutes included on every plan; survey responses use 350 credits each after the first 3.

How many languages does Synthesia support?

Enterprise includes 1-click translations into 140+ languages.

Can I create my own avatar?

Yes. Personal avatars are available, and Enterprise includes unlimited personal avatars.

Can I export to an LMS?

Enterprise includes SCORM export for learning management systems. Learner seats cost $29 per learner per month.

Sources

This is an editorial review based on research of official Synthesia pages and documentation, not hands-on benchmark testing. Prices are in USD and were checked on October 16, 2026; vendors change plans often, so confirm on the official pricing page before buying.

1. Synthesia pricing
2. Synthesia homepage