Pricing decode · 2026
HeyGen Real-Time Pricing Explained
What HeyGen's interactive avatar API actually costs — and what you build around it — decoded from published pricing.
HeyGen's real-time interactive avatar is API-only — there's no no-code studio for it — priced at roughly $0.20 per minute (~$12/hour) on the full tier, with credits that expire monthly. You integrate it into your own application; for a complete assistant you also configure the conversational stack around it. (A lighter avatar-only API tier exists at ~$0.10/min where speech and language components are yours to bring.)
Disclosure: we build Selvia AI, a competing real-time avatar. This page covers HeyGen's real-time product specifically — its main video-generation studio, where HeyGen excels at pre-recorded video at scale, is a different product with its own plans, out of scope here. Full comparison: Selvia AI vs HeyGen.
What the price includes — and what you build
- 1.API-only access. The real-time product is a developer integration: your engineers embed and orchestrate it. Excellent if you have engineers; a real cost line if you don't.
- 2.Expiring credits. Monthly credit allowances don't roll over — uneven usage raises your effective per-used-minute price.
- 3.Custom avatars are separate — a distinct subscription (~$475/month for one custom avatar at last check). Worth noting plainly: that's the one capability on this page we don't offer at all; HeyGen genuinely leads on it.
- 4.No recurring free real-time tier comparable to a monthly allowance; developer trial credits may apply — check current terms.
At real usage levels
| Monthly conversation time | HeyGen RT (~$0.20/min, + your build) | Selvia AI ($0.03/min, turnkey) |
|---|---|---|
| 10 hours / month | ~$120 + engineering | $10–30 |
| 50 hours / month | ~$600 + engineering | $50 |
| 8 hrs/day kiosk | ~$2,900 | ~$240 ($1/hr) |
When HeyGen is the right call
If you're already a HeyGen video-generation customer with engineering capacity, extending into their real-time API keeps one vendor relationship — and nothing in this category matches their pre-recorded video tooling. The decode above matters when the job is a turnkey conversational assistant: then API-only access, expiring credits and ~$0.20/min change the math, and turnkey platforms become the relevant comparison set — see the full price ladder and the all-inclusive roundup.
Frequently asked questions
How much does HeyGen's interactive avatar cost?
Roughly $0.20/minute (~$12/hour) on the full real-time tier, accessed API-only, with credit allowances that expire monthly. A lighter avatar-only tier exists at ~$0.10/min where you bring the speech and language components yourself.
Can I use HeyGen's real-time avatar without coding?
No — the real-time interactive product is API-only; there's no no-code studio path for it. HeyGen's no-code studio is for its video-generation product, which is a different (and excellent) tool for pre-recorded content.
Does HeyGen's real-time avatar remember users?
No per-user memory is included — recognizing returning users would be retention logic you build in your own application layer.
Do HeyGen credits roll over?
No — monthly credit allowances expire on the plans we reviewed, so uneven usage raises your effective per-used-minute price.
What's the turnkey alternative to building on HeyGen's API?
If the job is a complete conversational assistant rather than a building block, compare turnkey platforms: Selvia AI is $0.03/minute all-inclusive with both a no-code studio and an API/SDK, and memory included — and we concede HeyGen its video-generation strengths and custom avatars (a capability we don't offer).
Studio and API, one rate
$0.03/min all-inclusive — no-code studio AND developer API/SDK, memory included, 60 free minutes monthly.
Book a Free DemoPricing based on publicly available information as of June 2026; figures are approximate and change over time. Check each vendor's site for current rates. All product names are trademarks of their respective owners; this is an independent analysis, not an endorsement.