AI API Pricing Comparison 2026: How Much Does AI Generation Really Cost?
Complete pricing breakdown of AI image, video, audio, and 3D APIs
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AI API Pricing Comparison 2026
The cost of AI generation has dropped dramatically. Images that cost $0.10 in 2024 now cost $0.001. But pricing varies wildly between providers, and hidden costs (cold starts, subscriptions, rate limits) can add up fast.
This guide breaks down the real cost of AI APIs across every category.
Image Generation API Pricing
| Provider | Model | Price per Image (1024x1024) | Free Tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hypereal AI | Flux 2 | $0.001 | 35 credits |
| Hypereal AI | SeeDream 4.0 | $0.003 | 35 credits |
| Hypereal AI | Stable Diffusion 3.5 | $0.002 | 35 credits |
| OpenAI | DALL-E 4 | $0.04-0.12 | None |
| Stability AI | SD 3.5 | $0.002-0.01 | 25 credits/mo |
| Replicate | Flux (community) | $0.003-0.008 | Limited |
| FAL.ai | Flux | $0.002-0.005 | $1 credit |
| Together AI | Flux | $0.003 | $1 credit |
| Ideogram | Ideogram 3 | $0.01 | 25/day free |
Winner: Hypereal AI at $0.001/image (Flux 2) — 40x cheaper than DALL-E 4
Cost for 10,000 Images
| Provider | Cost |
|---|---|
| Hypereal AI (Flux 2) | $10 |
| Stability AI (SD 3.5) | $20-100 |
| Replicate (Flux) | $30-80 |
| OpenAI (DALL-E 4) | $400-1,200 |
Video Generation API Pricing
| Provider | Model | Price per Second | Max Duration | Free Tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hypereal AI | WAN 2.5 | $0.02 | 10s | 35 credits |
| Hypereal AI | Kling 2.1 | $0.05 | 10s | 35 credits |
| Hypereal AI | Sora 2 Pro | $0.10 | 20s | 35 credits |
| Runway | Gen-4 | $0.12 | 16s | None |
| Kling Direct | 2.1 | $0.14 (via sub) | 10s | Limited |
| Luma | Dream Machine | $0.06 | 5s | Limited |
| Replicate | WAN | $0.03-0.05 | 10s | Limited |
Winner: Hypereal AI (WAN 2.5) at $0.02/sec for budget, Sora 2 at $0.10/sec for quality
Cost for 1 Hour of Generated Video
| Provider | Model | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Hypereal AI | WAN 2.5 | $72 |
| Hypereal AI | Kling 2.1 | $180 |
| Runway | Gen-4 | $432 |
| Kling Direct | 2.1 | $504 (via subscription) |
Audio & Voice API Pricing
| Provider | Type | Price | Free Tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hypereal AI | Voice Clone + TTS | $0.005/sec | 35 credits |
| Hypereal AI | Music Generation | $0.01/sec | 35 credits |
| ElevenLabs | Voice Clone + TTS | $0.018/sec | 10 min/mo |
| OpenAI | TTS (no cloning) | $15/1M chars | None |
| Fish Audio | Voice Clone + TTS | Free-$0.01/sec | Limited free |
| PlayHT | Voice Clone + TTS | $0.02/sec | Limited |
Winner: Hypereal AI at $0.005/sec — 3.6x cheaper than ElevenLabs
3D Generation API Pricing
| Provider | Model | Price per Model | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hypereal AI | TripoSR 2.0 | $0.05 | 10-20s |
| Hypereal AI | Rodin Gen-2 | $0.10 | 30-60s |
| Meshy | Custom | $0.10 | 60-120s |
| Replicate | Various | $0.05-0.15 | 30-60s |
Hidden Costs to Watch For
1. Cold Starts (Replicate, Modal)
Many serverless platforms charge per-second while models load. A 30-second cold start on Replicate costs the same as generating the actual image.
| Platform | Cold Start Time | Cold Start Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Hypereal AI | None | $0 |
| Replicate | 5-30 seconds | $0.01-0.05 |
| FAL.ai | 0-5 seconds | $0-0.01 |
| Modal | 5-60 seconds | $0.02-0.10 |
2. Subscription Lock-In
Some platforms require monthly subscriptions:
- Runway: $12-76/month for limited generations
- Kling: $9.90-66/month
- Synthesia: $22-67/month
- Hypereal AI: $0/month (pay-per-use only)
3. Rate Limits
| Provider | Free Tier Rate Limit | Paid Rate Limit |
|---|---|---|
| Hypereal AI | 10 req/sec | 100+ req/sec |
| OpenAI | 7 images/min | 50 images/min |
| Replicate | 10 req/sec | 25 req/sec |
How to Calculate Your Monthly AI API Budget
Monthly cost = (Images × $0.001) + (Video seconds × $0.02-0.10)
+ (Audio seconds × $0.005) + (3D models × $0.05)
Example: Marketing agency generating 5,000 images, 500 video seconds, 1,000 audio seconds per month
| Provider | Monthly Cost |
|---|---|
| Hypereal AI | $20 |
| Mixed (Replicate + ElevenLabs + OpenAI) | $150-300 |
| Enterprise (Runway + Synthesia + ElevenLabs) | $200-500/month |
Why Hypereal AI Has the Best Pricing
- No subscriptions — pure pay-per-use, starting at $0
- No cold starts — you never pay for model loading time
- Volume discounts — automatic discounts at higher usage tiers
- One bill — all 50+ models on a single invoice
- 35 free credits — test everything before committing money
- Transparent pricing — no hidden fees, no per-seat charges
Conclusion
AI API pricing has never been more competitive. For most developers, pay-per-use platforms like Hypereal AI offer the best value — especially at scale where the cost advantages compound.
See the full pricing at hypereal.ai/pricing. Start with 35 free credits today.