Credits go further on the Preview

Credits are the part of a video plan people worry about. Here is how to think about them.

A second costs by model#

A second of video costs credits by model. The simulated Preview costs one credit a second. A real model costs many times more, and the rates are not final, which is why we do not quote them here. The composer shows the cost before anything is made, so you always see it.

What that means#

Premium has 1,000 credits a month and Max has 3,000. On the Preview that is a long time: many minutes of clips. On a real model it is far less. Plan a video with that in mind and you will not be surprised.

A way to work#

Build the video on the Preview first. Settle the order, the lengths and the words with simulated clips, which are cheap and repeatable. Then, if a real model is switched on for you, remake only the clips that matter. The timeline remakes just the clips that changed, so you pay for those and no more.

Failed clips#

Credits are charged when a clip is finished, and a server clip when the server made it, once per take. A clip that fails is not charged as made.

A hard stop#

If the month cannot pay for a make, it is refused with the way on instead of running out in the middle. Pro has no credits at all, because Pro does not make videos.

What a credit is not#

It is not a promise of quality, and it is not a price in euros. Premium and Max are monthly plans with an allowance, and credits are how the allowance is measured.

Be honest with yourself#

Today the default makers are simulated. The cheap way to learn how a chain behaves is also the honest way to use it.

A small example#

Suppose you plan a thirty-second video. On the Preview that is a few dozen credits at the rate we quote for it, which you can afford many times a month. On a real model the same thirty seconds may use a large part of a month's allowance, so you would draft on the Preview and spend the real model only on the clips you keep.

See credits.