AI cost · Runway
Runway cost: what you actually pay
Credits meter every second of video generated and the per-second cost varies up to 8x by model (5 credits/sec on Gen-4 Turbo vs. 40 credits/sec on Veo 3 or Seedance 2), so model choice — not plan tier — is the real spend driver, and Standard/Pro credits reset to zero every billing cycle.
Public pricing
| Plan | Price | Billing | Includes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | Free | monthly | 125 one-time credits, 1 user |
| Standard (monthly) | $15 / mo | monthly | 625 credits/mo |
| Standard (annual) | $12 / mosaves $36/yr vs monthly | annual | — |
| Pro (monthly) | $35 / mo | monthly | 2,250 credits/mo |
| Pro (annual) | $28 / mosaves $84/yr vs monthly | annual | — |
| Max (monthly) | $95 / mo | monthly | 9,500 credits/mo, up to 1 month of unused credit rollover |
| Max (annual) | $76 / mosaves $228/yr vs monthly | annual | — |
| Enterprise | Custom | custom | Custom credits, custom team sizes, configurable teamspaces |
| API pay-as-you-go | $0.01 / creditcredits purchased at $0.01 each via developer portal, minimum 1,000-credit purchase | usage | — |
Credits meter generation seconds and vary sharply by model: Gen-4.5 ~12 credits/sec, Gen-4 Turbo 5 credits/sec, Aleph 2.0 ~28 credits/sec, Seedance 2 ~36-40 credits/sec, Veo 3 40 credits/sec, Act-Two 5 credits/sec. Image generation runs roughly 1-41 credits per image depending on model/resolution. Monthly plan credit pools: Free 125 (one-time), Standard 625/mo, Pro 2,250/mo, Max 9,500/mo. Standard and Pro credits reset to zero every billing cycle (no rollover); Max rolls over up to one month of unused credits. Purchased top-up credits (min. 1,000 at $0.01 each) never expire. Failed/rejected generations still consume credits.
Last updated: 2026-07-22. Sourced from Runway Official Pricing Page ↗, Runway Developer API Pricing Docs ↗.
Where the real Runway cost hides
The sticker is the smallest part of the story. For Runway, these are the line items that quietly inflate the bill:
- Per-second cost varies roughly 8x by model (5 to 40 credits/sec), so switching to a premium model like Veo 3 or Seedance 2 can burn a monthly allotment in a fraction of the expected time
- Standard and Pro plan credits reset to zero each billing cycle with no rollover — unused credits are simply lost
- Extra credits can only be purchased in blocks of at least 1,000 at a time, so even a small overage requires a larger minimum buy
- Failed or rejected generations still consume credits, adding invisible cost to experimentation
- The official pricing page does not publish seat/user counts for Standard/Pro/Max, making per-seat team budgeting hard to plan directly from the page
What an audit finds on Runway
Teams default to premium models (Veo 3, Seedance 2, Aleph 2.0) that consume credits 3-8x faster than Gen-4 Turbo, exhaust a monthly allotment within days, and then buy non-refundable 1,000-credit blocks to keep working instead of switching models or upgrading tier.
Runway pricing FAQ
Do unused Runway credits roll over?
No, on Standard and Pro credits reset to zero every billing cycle. Max is the only plan where up to one month of unused credits carries forward.
Can I buy more credits if I run out mid-month?
Yes — additional credits can be purchased from the Plans & Billing dashboard at $0.01/credit, with a minimum purchase of 1,000 credits; purchased credits never expire.
Does every model cost the same per second of video?
No. Cost ranges roughly from 5 credits/sec (Gen-4 Turbo) to 40 credits/sec (Veo 3, Seedance 2 1080p) — an 8x spread depending on which model you generate with.
What is Runway really costing you?
Spendassay connects your Runway spend to actual usage and engineering output — a proof-level AI cost report with the wasted dollars named. Neutral across every AI vendor.
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