Pika Pricing and Free Plan
Pika has a free plan, but it comes with no monthly credits: you pay for credit packs at 60 credits per $1. Starter is $10 a month for 900 credits, or $8 a month billed yearly.
Updated
Made in Ziztu · Micro drama
Made in Ziztu · AnimeSee what Ziztu makes
Real outputs, exactly as they came out. Each one shows the prompt that made it, and you can start from it.
Micro dramaMade in Ziztu
Micro dramaMade in ZiztuAnimeMade in Ziztu
Micro dramaMade in Ziztu
AnimeMade in Ziztu
AnimeMade in ZiztuWhat a finished clip costs
Pika against Ziztu, on the cheapest monthly plan of each.
| What | Pika | Ziztu |
|---|---|---|
| Cheapest monthly plan | $10 a monthStarter, 900 credits | $12 a monthStarter, 1,000 credits |
| One short video clip | about $0.37Wan 3.0 at 720p, 5 seconds, 33 credits, Starter plan on monthly billing | $0.37 at 480P$0.60 at 768P, 5 seconds, 50 credits |
| Try it free | No monthly credits, credit packs only | 40 credits, no cardscripts, character art, storyboards, voices and sound, with a watermark |
| Credits without a plan | Packs from $25 (1,500 credits) | Packs from $7Credits never expire |
| A 60 second episode | about $4.40 for the clips12 clips, Wan 3.0 at 720p, Starter, monthly billing; clips only | $8.56713 credits: shots, voices, score and the cut |
Pika costs less to start: $10 a month against $12 a month. Per finished clip, Pika costs less on these figures. Credits are not the same unit across tools, so compare finished clips, not credit counts.
Pika figures from its own pricing, checked 14 October 2026. Source: Pika pricing page. Ziztu figures from the plans and credit costs shown before every generation; Starter is $12 for 1,000 credits. The check mark marks the lower cost.
Switching from Pika? 30% off your first 3 months
Monthly plans, for new customers. 100 of 100 left. Ends 13 November 2026.
The code is added at checkout for you. It takes 30% off each of the first 3 monthly payments, then the plan costs its normal price. It does not apply to yearly plans or credit packs. Stripe counts the redemptions and stops the offer at 100 or on the end date. Cancel anytime.
- Starter
$12$8.40a month for 3 months - Creator
$29$20.30a month for 3 months - Studio
$79$55.30a month for 3 months
| Plan | Monthly billing | Yearly billing, per month | Credits a month | What the page lists |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | $0 | None, packs only | All models, no watermark, no commercial license, 2 videos in parallel |
| Starter | $10 | $8 | 900 | All models, no watermark, no commercial license, 2 videos and 8 images in parallel |
| Creator | $35 | $28 | 3,150 | Commercial license, 8 videos and 32 images in parallel |
| Fancy | $95 to $880 | $76 to $704 | 8,550 and up | Commercial license, unlimited parallel generations, priority queue; early access to new models from $440 a month |
Is Pika free?
Pika has a Free plan with all models and no watermark, but it gives no monthly credits: the pricing page says "0 credits a month, packs only". To make anything on it you buy a one-time credit pack, at 60 credits per $1 on every plan, starting at 1,500 credits for $25.
The page lists a commercial license only from Creator up, and marks it "Not included" for Free and Starter, so free and Starter results are for personal use. Top-up credits only work in Pika Create on pika.art, not in the API, MCP or the iOS app.
What a Pika credit buys
Pika prints the credits for each model on its pricing page. On Starter a credit costs $0.0111 on monthly billing and $0.0089 billed yearly, and Creator and Fancy work out the same. A top-up pack costs $0.0167 a credit.
| Result | Credits | On Starter, monthly | On Starter, yearly | From a top-up pack |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wan 3.0, 720p, 5 s video | 33 | $0.37 | $0.29 | $0.55 |
| Seedance 2.5, 720p, 5 s video | 122 | $1.36 | $1.08 | $2.03 |
| GPT Image 2.5, 1K image | 2 | $0.022 | $0.018 | $0.033 |
| Nano Banana 2, 1K image | 8 | $0.089 | $0.071 | $0.13 |
So 900 credits make about 27 Wan 3.0 clips or 7 Seedance 2.5 clips a month on Starter, and 25 Seedance 2.5 clips on Creator.
Pika and Ziztu: cost per result
One 5 second clip or one image. Ziztu's side is its rate card: Starter is $12 for 1,000 credits, Creator is $29 for 2,500, and the plan list names Kling, Seedance and Grok video from Creator up.
| Result | Where | Credits | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wan 3.0, 720p, 5 s clip | Pika Starter, monthly | 33 | $0.37 |
| H3 Max Turbo, 480P, 5 s clip | Ziztu Starter | 31 | $0.37 |
| H3 Max Turbo, 768P, 5 s clip | Ziztu Starter | 50 | $0.60 |
| Seedance 2.5, 720p, 5 s clip | Pika Starter, monthly | 122 | $1.36 |
| Seedance 2.5, 720P, 5 s clip | Ziztu Creator | 585 | $6.79 |
| GPT Image 2.5, 1K image | Pika Starter, monthly | 2 | $0.022 |
| Meta Muse Image | Ziztu Starter | 3 | $0.036 |
| GPT Image 2.5 (high) | Ziztu Starter | 15 | $0.18 |
Where the math favours Pika: the same Seedance 2.5 clip costs about $1.36 on Pika Starter against $6.79 on Ziztu, and a Wan 3.0 clip, $0.37, matches Ziztu's cheapest H3 clip. Pika lists its GPT Image 2.5 at 1K without a quality level, so its image row is not strictly like for like with Ziztu's high quality row.
Where Ziztu fits: the work around the clip. Pika makes clips and effects; Ziztu plans and cuts a whole film.
What a finished episode costs
A clip price is not an episode price. Take one episode of 60 seconds: 12 shots of 5 seconds at 768P, 6 reference images for the cast, 8 spoken lines, one score cue and 5 Director chats to plan the shots.
On Ziztu Starter that is 713 credits, or $8.56, and it comes out as one cut with the same characters in every shot. Retakes cost extra: the 287 credits left in the month cover 5 of them. This is a worked example from the rate card, not a quote.
The same 12 clips cost about $4.40 on Pika (Wan 3.0 at 720p, 5 seconds, 33 credits, Starter plan on monthly billing, read from the official page on 14 October 2026). That is less than the Ziztu episode, but it is the clips only. The rest of the job is still to do: the script, the shot list, a cast that looks the same in every shot, the voices, the score and the cut. Each of those is another tool or another hour, and each handoff is a chance for a character to change face. On Ziztu they share one credit balance and one timeline.
Our pick for micro dramas and anime: Ziztu
If the job is an episode where the same characters appear in every shot, Ziztu is the pick: one idea in, a planned and finished cut out, on one credit balance. New Ziztu accounts get 40 free credits after email signup, no card, for scripts, character art, storyboards and voices. Animating shots into video starts on any plan.
- A whole micro drama or anime episode from one idea. The Director turns an idea or a script into a shot list, character sheets keep the cast the same from shot to shot, and clips, music, voice and captions sit on one timeline. See the AI micro drama generator and the AI anime video generator.
- Many models in one plan. H3 Max Turbo, Kling, Seedance and Grok video and several image models draw on one pool of credits, so a shot can use whichever model suits it.
- Credit packs with no plan. The smallest pack is 500 credits for $7, about 16 five second clips at 480P, and you do not need a subscription to buy it.
If you want quick clips and effects on many models and a low entry price, Pika is built for that. The full price list is in the AI video price index, and the plans are on the pricing page. For more, see the Pika alternatives page and the image to video tool.
Sources (checked 14 October 2026)
Every price and limit on this page comes from the official pages below, read on 14 October 2026. Prices change often, so check them before you buy. Where a page did not state a number, this page says so instead of guessing. Ziztu's own prices come from its pricing page.
- Pika pricing (official page, read 14 October 2026)
Frequently asked questions
Is Pika free?
Only in name. On 14 October 2026 the Free plan had all models and no watermark but 0 credits a month, packs only. To generate you buy a credit pack at 60 credits per $1, from $25. Free results carry no commercial license.
How much does Pika cost per month?
Starter is $10 a month ($8 billed yearly) for 900 credits, Creator $35 ($28) for 3,150, and Fancy from $95 ($76) for 8,550 and up, up to $880 a month. Yearly billing is 20 percent off. From Pika's pricing page on 14 October 2026.
How many credits does a Pika video cost?
33 credits for a 5 second Wan 3.0 clip at 720p and 122 for a 5 second Seedance 2.5 clip at 720p, per Pika's pricing page. A 1K image is 8 credits on Nano Banana 2 and 2 on GPT Image 2.5.
Does Pika have a commercial license?
Only on Creator, Fancy and Enterprise. The pricing page marks the commercial license "Not included" for Free and Starter.
Does Pika put a watermark on videos?
The pricing page lists "No watermark" for every plan, including Free.
Is Pika cheaper than Ziztu?
On the same model, Pika has been cheaper: a Seedance 2.5 clip is $1.36 on Pika Starter and $6.79 on Ziztu Creator. A Wan 3.0 clip on Pika Starter is $0.37, the same as a 5 second H3 Max Turbo clip at 480P on Ziztu Starter. Ziztu is built for micro dramas and anime from one idea.
Why creators switch
One idea, the same cast in every shot
Describe a micro drama or an anime episode once. Ziztu plans the shots and keeps each character looking the same from scene to scene, with voices, music and the cut.
Many models in one plan
Video, image, music and voice models draw from one credit balance, so you pick the right one for each shot instead of paying for Pika and a second tool.
Credit packs, no plan
Not ready for a subscription? Buy credits once, from $7. They never expire, and you only pay for what you make.
Make your first result free
40 free credits, no card. Type an idea and see it. Then 30% off your first 3 months with SWITCH30.