Hailuo AI starts free and its cheapest paid plan commonly lands around $9.99/month, scaling up to $199.99/month for the top tier, with two plans in between. Every plan runs on credits spent per generation, so the sticker price only tells half the story. This guide breaks down all the tiers, the credit math, the real cost of a clip, and how to avoid buying more than you'll use.
Hailuo AI plans at a glance
Hailuo has a free tier plus four paid tiers, all credit-based. What changes between them is your monthly credit allowance, generation speed, and access to unlimited Relax-mode rendering at the top. One important caveat before you compare: Hailuo has repriced its plans several times, and the Standard tier alone has appeared at $7.99, $9.99, $12.99, and $14.99 across different periods. Treat the figures below as a baseline and confirm the live price at checkout.
| Plan | Monthly | Approx. credits | Key limits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | Welcome + daily (expire fast) | Lower res, evaluation only |
| Standard | ~$9.99/mo | ≈ 1,000 | 1080p, commercial use |
| Pro | $24.99/mo | ≈ 4,500 | Faster generation, more concurrency |
| Master | $63.99/mo | ≈ 10,000 | Priority queue |
| Unlimited | $199.99/mo | ≈ 20,000 | Plus unlimited Relax-mode generation |
Annual billing, when offered, typically discounts the paid tiers. Always verify current rates and any promo pricing on the official Hailuo site before subscribing.
How Hailuo credits work
Hailuo charges credits per generation, and the cost scales with the model you pick, the resolution, and the clip length. A short 1080p clip on the flagship model spends a few dozen credits; a quick lower-res draft spends fewer. The practical rule is the same as every credit tool: read your allowance as "seconds of finished video," not "number of clips."
Two details quietly shape the real cost. First, failed or rejected generations can still consume credits, so a tricky prompt that needs several re-rolls costs more than the one clip you keep. Second, the higher-quality and longer-clip settings burn credits faster, so drafting on cheaper settings and finishing on the flagship stretches a plan much further.
How much is a video, really?
Because Hailuo undercuts the field, the per-clip math is its strongest selling point. Independent testing has pegged Hailuo at roughly $0.30 for a 10-second 1080p clip, against about $1.20 for a comparable Runway generation and several dollars for a premium Sora-class render. That gap is the whole reason budget creators choose it.
Run that against the plans and the value is clear. Standard's ~1,000 credits comfortably cover a couple of dozen short social clips a month; Pro's ~4,500 credits handle regular batches of ads and reels; and the top tiers only make sense for daily, high-volume output. Budget a few wasted renders per finished clip when you're dialing in motion, since Hailuo's physics realism sometimes takes a couple of attempts to land.
Free plan: what you actually get
Hailuo's free tier is unusually generous for the category: you get a batch of one-time welcome credits plus a daily top-up, enough to run several short generations a day and judge the motion quality for yourself. It's the best free way to test whether Hailuo's physics fit your work.
The catches are the ones you'd expect. Free credits expire quickly — welcome credits within a few days and daily credits within 24 hours — so you can't bank them for a big project. Resolution is limited, and the watermark and commercial-use policy on free output has shifted over time, so check the current terms before shipping anything you made on the free plan.
Which plan is worth it?
The right plan matches your typical monthly volume, not your busiest month, because unused credits expire. Here's how the tiers shake out by user type.
Standard (~$9.99/mo) fits occasional creators making a handful of short social clips a month. It unlocks 1080p and commercial use, and its ~1,000 credits cover light, predictable output without you rationing every generation.
Pro ($24.99/mo) is the sweet spot for steady content producers and freelancers. Its ~4,500 credits and faster generation handle regular batches of ads, reels, and image-to-video work — this is the tier most working creators should land on.
Master ($63.99/mo) suits small studios and heavy marketers shipping dozens of clips a month who value the priority queue. Unlimited ($199.99/mo) only pays off if you generate daily and would genuinely use its Relax-mode unlimited rendering; otherwise the credits go to waste.
Our recommendation: start free to learn Hailuo's credit rhythm, move to Pro once you're producing regularly, and only climb higher when your real usage justifies it. For the hands-on take, read our Hailuo review, compare it in Hailuo vs Kling, or see the full field in our best AI video generators guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does Hailuo AI cost in 2026?
There's a free tier with daily credits, Standard commonly around $9.99/month (~1,000 credits), Pro at $24.99 (~4,500), Master at $63.99 (~10,000), and Unlimited at $199.99 (~20,000 plus unlimited Relax mode). Pricing has changed several times, so verify at checkout.
How do Hailuo AI credits work?
Hailuo is credit-based, and each generation spends credits based on the model, resolution, and clip length. A short 1080p clip typically costs a few dozen credits, and failed generations can still consume credits.
Do Hailuo credits roll over each month?
No. Subscription credits reset each billing month and unused ones expire, and the free tier's welcome and daily credits expire even faster. Buy the tier that matches your typical monthly volume.
Is Hailuo cheaper than Runway or Sora?
Yes, substantially. A 10-second 1080p Hailuo clip runs roughly $0.30, against about $1.20 for a comparable Runway generation and several dollars for a premium Sora-class render. Cost is Hailuo's biggest advantage.
Why does the price I see differ from these figures?
Hailuo reprices frequently and runs promos, so the number at checkout may be higher or lower than the baseline here. The Standard tier alone has appeared at several price points in 2025–2026. Always confirm the live rate on the official site.
Do failed Hailuo generations cost credits?
Yes, they can. A tricky shot that needs several re-rolls quietly costs more than the single clip you keep, so budget a few wasted renders per finished clip when you're chasing a specific motion.
Which Hailuo plan should most people buy?
Standard (~$9.99) to start and learn the credit system, Pro ($24.99) once you produce regularly, and Master or Unlimited only for high-volume studios. Most working creators land on Pro.