Runway ML vs Kling AI
Runway ML and Kling AI side by side: what each one is, what it costs to start, and whether you can try it free. Everything below comes from the vendors' own sites and other public sources, not from hands-on testing.
At a glance
| Runway ML | Kling AI | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Video & Motion | Video & Motion |
| Starting price | Free; paid plans from $12/mo (checked October 2026) | $8.80/mo (checked October 2026) |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| Profile | Read profile | Read profile |
Prices are in US dollars unless shown otherwise. Confirm the current price on the vendor's site before you buy.
Key differences
Both list a free tier, so you can try each before paying.
Kling AI has the lower starting price ($8.80/mo against $12/mo for Runway ML). The cheapest plan rarely has the same limits or features, so compare plans before choosing on price.
Both are in our Video & Motion category.
About each tool
Runway ML
AI video and image generation and editing platform with credit-based plans. Free plan with 125 one-time credits; Standard is $12 a month billed annually ($15 monthly).
Who it is for
Creators, video editors and studios who want to make AI video and images in a browser. Higher tiers add team seats, brand kits and studio export formats, and developers can use a separate pay-per-credit API.
Strengths
- Standard and higher plans list no watermark and 4K upscaling
- Credit rates are published per model; for example, Gen-4.5 video costs 12 credits a second
- Standard, Pro, Unlimited, Max and Team can buy extra credits (minimum 1,000), and purchased credits do not expire, per the help center
- Max lists studio-grade outputs (HDR, ProRes, image sequences) and up to 500GB of storage
- Team plans share a pool of 6,900 credits per seat, and Viewers are free, per the help center
Limitations
- The Free plan is a one-time deposit of 125 credits that do not expire, with 5GB of storage, and free users cannot buy credits
- Generation is metered in credits. At 12 credits a second, a 5-second Gen-4.5 clip is 60 credits and Standard's 625 monthly credits cover about 52 seconds
- Credit rates vary widely by model. For example, Gen-4 Video Turbo is 5 a second, and Veo 3.1 is 20 a second without audio and 40 with audio
- Standard allows up to 3 projects and 5 parallel generations, and Pro allows 5 projects and 15 parallel generations
- The Unlimited plan has not been offered since 1 June 2026. The help center says legacy plans stay unchanged through 30 November 2026, then monthly subscribers move to Max at $95 a month
Kling AI
AI video and image generator from Kuaishou. Text/image-to-video with native audio, multi-shot scenes, clips up to 15 seconds and a 4K mode. Credit-based, with a free plan.
Who it is for
People who want to generate short AI video and images in a browser. Paid tiers add commercial use, and team spaces let owners recharge and allocate credits.
Strengths
- A free Basic plan is listed at $0
- VIDEO 3.0 supports 3 to 15 second clips, with native audio (dialogue, ambience and sound effects) and multi-shot scenes
- A native 4K mode is available in the VIDEO 3.0 series, listed at 30 credits per second
- Paid plans list watermark removal, fast-track generation, video extension and image upscaling
- Standard and higher plans list commercial use as allowed
Limitations
- Usage is credit-based: the standard rate is $1 USD for 66 credits, and different features cost different amounts of credits
- The Basic plan is listed with 0 monthly credits and is not for commercial use; free output carries a watermark
- Subscription credits expire one month after they are distributed
- Kling's own pages disagree on whether free accounts can export 1080p
- Listed prices are first-subscription discounts; renewal prices are higher
