Pika's entry paid plan is $10/month for 600 credits. HeyGen's is $29/month for 600 credits. Same headline allowance, $19 apart. Whether that means Pika is cheaper depends on what a credit buys at each vendor — and neither pricing page states how many credits one video costs.
So this page compares the invoices and the credit rates, not the output. That is the only comparison the tracked data supports.
Basis: monthly subscription price and included credits, as published on 2026-11-08. Cost per credit is derived (price ÷ credits), not published by either vendor.
The plans side by side
| Vendor | Plan | Price | Billing | Credits | Cost per credit (derived) | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pika | Free plan | $0 | per month | — | — | 2026-11-08 |
| Pika | Starter plan | $10 | per month | 600 | $0.0167 | 2026-11-08 |
| Pika | Creator plan | $35 | per month | 2,600 | $0.0135 | 2026-11-08 |
| Pika | Fancy plan | $95 | per month | 8,550+ | $0.0111 | 2026-11-08 |
| Pika | Credit top-up | $25 | per credit pack | 1,500 (60 per $1) | $0.0167 | 2026-11-08 |
| HeyGen | Free plan | $0 | per month | — | — | 2026-11-08 |
| HeyGen | Creator plan | $29 | per month | 600 | $0.0483 | 2026-11-08 |
| HeyGen | Pro plan | $49 | per month | 1,000 | $0.049 | 2026-11-08 |
| HeyGen | Business plan | $149 | per month | 1,500 | $0.0993 | 2026-11-08 |
What 600 credits costs at each
| Credits needed per month | Cheapest Pika plan | Cheapest HeyGen plan |
|---|---|---|
| 600 | Starter $10 | Creator $29 |
| 1,000 | Creator $35 | Pro $49 |
| 1,500 | Creator $35 | Business $149 |
| 2,600 | Creator $35 | no plan reaches 2,600 credits |
At every allowance both vendors offer, Pika's invoice is lower. The gap widens at the top: 1,500 credits costs $35 at Pika and $149 at HeyGen, a $114 monthly difference — $1,368 a year.
Why the credit comparison is not a video comparison
A credit is not a unit of output. Each vendor defines its own credit and deducts a different number per render, and neither pricing page states the deduction in the tracked rows. So:
- $0.0111 per Pika credit and $0.0483 per HeyGen credit are not comparable as "cost per video", only as "cost per credit".
- A cheaper credit can still produce a more expensive video if it buys less runtime.
- The only defensible claim from this data is the invoice: for the same number of credits, Pika is cheaper.
Nothing in the tracked rows describes resolution, watermark, commercial licence or seat count for HeyGen. Pika's rows state no watermark and a commercial licence on all three paid plans; that is Pika's own description, not an independent check.
Price gap to the next tier
Pika: Starter → Creator is +$25 for +2,000 credits, $0.0125 per extra credit. Creator → Fancy is +$60 for +5,950 credits, $0.0101 per extra credit. Each step is cheaper per credit than the one below.
HeyGen: Creator → Pro is +$20 for +400 credits, $0.05 per extra credit — above Creator's $0.0483 average. Pro → Business is +$100 for +500 credits, $0.20 per extra credit, four times Pro's average. HeyGen's pricing gets more expensive per credit as you go up.
That is the structural difference between the two: Pika discounts at volume, HeyGen does not, at least on the credit line.
Where this comparison breaks
Credit definitions. The core problem. Neither vendor publishes credits per render in the tracked rows, so no per-video conclusion is possible.
Annual billing. Pika's page states annual prices: Starter $8/month ($96/year), Creator $28/month ($336/year), Fancy from $76/month (from $912/year). HeyGen's tracked rows are monthly only; no annual figure is available here.
Top-ups. Pika's top-up pack is $25 for 1,500 credits at the Starter rate. HeyGen has no top-up row in the file, so overflow cost cannot be compared.
Plan contents. Seat counts, API access, commercial terms and resolution are not in these rows for either vendor. Price alone does not describe the product.
Which to pick, on price alone
- Lowest monthly invoice for 600 credits: Pika Starter, $10.
- Lowest cost per credit: Pika Fancy, $0.0111 at most (the allowance is listed as 8,550+).
- Worst cost per credit: HeyGen Business, $0.0993.
- Largest single allowance: Pika Fancy at 8,550+, against HeyGen's 1,500 maximum.
FAQ
Is Pika cheaper than HeyGen?
Per credit, yes: $0.0111 to $0.0167 at Pika against $0.0483 to $0.0993 at HeyGen. Per video, unknown — neither vendor publishes credits per render, so the credit rate is not a video rate.
Why does HeyGen cost more per credit on its top plan?
Because Business is $149 for 1,500 credits while Pro is $49 for 1,000. The extra 500 credits cost $100, or $0.20 each. Whatever else Business includes is not described in the tracked pricing row.
Do the plans include a commercial licence?
Pika's rows state a commercial licence on Starter, Creator and Fancy. HeyGen's four rows do not mention licensing, so this site does not claim it either way.
Which has the cheaper annual option?
Only Pika publishes annual pricing in the tracked rows: $8/month on Starter, $28/month on Creator, from $76/month on Fancy. HeyGen's rows are monthly only.
Basis. monthly plan prices and included credits, 2026-11-08. Every figure is converted from the vendor's published row, shown in the Rate column. All prices checked 2026-11-08. Resale rows are labelled and never merged with the model owner's rate.