If you want to generate short-form footage instead of filming it, you will keep running into three model families: Google's Veo, ByteDance's Seedance and Kuaishou's Kling. What decides a 9:16 clip is rarely on the launch page: how long a single take runs, how much control you get over faces and camera, whether sound comes with the picture, and what a usable clip costs once you count retries.
This post compares the current versions: Veo 3.1, Seedance 2.5 and Kling 3.0 Turbo. Specs and prices come from vendor documentation or named third-party pages, linked inline, and prices are API list prices as of October 2026. On motion, faces and on-screen text we found no independent benchmark we would stand behind, so instead of a ranking you get what each vendor documents and a way to test all three yourself for about $50. Disclosure: all three models are available in ClipSpeed's AI Creator, so we have a stake in every column, though not in which one wins.
API-generated footage is billed by the second, including the takes you throw away. ClipSpeedAI's AI clipping works on video you already have: paste a video link or a livestream and it finds the strongest moments, cuts them to vertical 9:16, burns in captions and gives each clip a viral score.
Try ClipSpeedAI →Veo 3.1 entered paid preview in October 2025 and now comes in Standard, Fast and Lite tiers (Lite arrived in March 2026). Seedance 2.5 got its official launch post on July 31, 2026. Kling 3.0 Turbo shipped on June 17, 2026, per Kling's API changelog, as a variant of Kling 3.0.
| Veo 3.1 | Seedance 2.5 | Kling 3.0 Turbo | |
|---|---|---|---|
| One generation | 4, 6 or 8 s | 4 to 30 s | 3 to 15 s (confirmed for Kling 3.0, not Turbo specifically) |
| Beyond one shot | Scene Extension from the final second | Multi-round extension | Up to 6 shots inside one generation (Kling 3.0); multi-shot is Pro-only on Turbo |
| Resolution | 720p, 1080p, 4K (1080p and 4K by upscaling; 4K on Standard and Fast only) | 480p and 720p at launch, 1080p added later; 4K unconfirmed | 720p (Standard) or 1080p (Pro) |
| Native audio | Dialogue and sound effects | Generated jointly with video | Yes, multilingual at the 3.0 launch |
| References | Reference images, first and last frame | Up to 30 images, 10 videos, 10 audio clips | Start and end frames (Standard image-to-video) |
| API price at 720p | $0.05 to $0.40 per second, by tier | About $0.473 per second on fal | $0.112 per second |
Sora 2 is missing on purpose: OpenAI took the Sora app offline on April 26, 2026, and the API followed on September 24, according to third-party reports. The rest of the field is in our full AI video generator comparison.
We found no independent, repeatable motion test covering all three versions, and demo reels are picked to look good, so we are not ranking motion. What we can compare is control.
Veo makes clips of 4, 6 or 8 seconds. You can pin a first and last frame, the most direct way to decide where a move starts and ends, and Scene Extension continues from a clip's final second to reach "a minute or more". The catch: 1080p, 4K, reference images and extension all require the 8-second length, so a tight 4-second shot is a 720p shot.
Seedance 2.5 generates 4 to 30 seconds in one pass, with multi-round extension on top. ByteDance's launch post also describes timestamp-level editing, camera-perspective edits and a "clay render" mode for blocking a scene with textureless 3D models. Reference videos can go in alongside images and audio, which is worth testing if you want a specific movement followed.
Kling's guide gives Kling 3.0 a 3 to 15 second range and up to six shots per generation. On Turbo, multi-shot sits on the Pro tier, and Standard image-to-video accepts start and end frames. The 3 to 15 second range for Turbo itself comes only from a third-party guide.
For b-roll, the length ceiling matters less than it looks, because the edit cuts between shots anyway. It matters for one continuous take longer than 15 seconds, such as a product walkthrough or a character talking without a cut. Of these three, only Seedance 2.5 does that in a single generation.
Same caveat: we found no verified, like-for-like face or lip-sync test across these versions. The documented differences are in how you show each model who should appear.
On dialogue, Google is candid: its Veo page calls natural speech in short segments "an area of active development". ByteDance documents lip-synced dialogue for Seedance 2.0 and joint audio and video generation for 2.5. The quickest check is a six-second line spoken to camera; watch words with p, b and m sounds, where the lips should visibly close.
Whichever model you use, do not generate real people or copyrighted characters without rights. Seedance 2.0 drew cease-and-desist letters from Disney and the MPA in February 2026, and ByteDance responded by suspending real-person references. TikTok's rules ban fake endorsements by public figures and the likeness of anyone under 18, even when labeled. This is not legal advice; check each platform's current terms. For keeping an invented character stable, see how to keep AI characters consistent.
For signs, labels and on-screen titles, we found no vendor claim and no independent test of legible text in generated video for any of the three. Treat it as unverified and keep text out of the generation where you can:
All three generate sound with the picture, and every per-second price in the cost table below includes it: Google's Gemini API prices for Veo include audio, fal lists no extra charge for Seedance 2.5 audio, and Kling's pricing page labels Turbo "With Native Audio". Seedance 2.5 accepts up to 10 reference audio clips, so you can give it sound to work from. Kling 3.0 launched with multilingual native audio.
If the clip will run under a voiceover, a trending sound or your own music, native audio is a preview convenience, not a reason to pick a model. It matters most for dialogue and for b-roll that needs ambient sound.
We could not verify a render time for any of the three, and on shared platforms the wait depends on queue load. Names like Veo 3.1 Fast and Kling 3.0 Turbo point at speed, but a name is not a measured time, and our sources list no Fast tier for Seedance 2.5. If turnaround matters, time a few renders yourself.
Cost is the one area with hard numbers. The table is our arithmetic from per-second API list prices, audio included, as of October 2026: Google for Veo, fal for Seedance 2.5, and Kling and fal for Kling 3.0 Turbo. Consumer apps, Higgsfield among them, bill in credits, which this table does not convert.
| Model and tier | Per second (720p / 1080p) | 8 s at 720p | 8 s at 1080p | 15 s at 720p, one pass |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Veo 3.1 Standard | $0.40 / $0.40 | $3.20 | $3.20 | Needs Extend (8 s max) |
| Veo 3.1 Fast | $0.10 / $0.12 | $0.80 | $0.96 | Needs Extend (8 s max) |
| Veo 3.1 Lite | $0.05 / $0.08 | $0.40 | $0.64 | Needs Extend (8 s max) |
| Seedance 2.5 on fal | about $0.473 / $1.164 | $3.78 | $9.31 | $7.10 |
| Kling 3.0 Turbo | $0.112 / $0.14 | $0.90 | $1.12 | $1.68 (15 s not confirmed for Turbo) |
What the table leaves out: Seedance 2.5 is cheaper direct from BytePlus, about $0.23 a second at 720p by one third party's calculation, and fal offers 480p at about $0.22. For 4K, Veo 3.1 charges $0.60 a second on Standard and $0.30 on Fast, and Google describes Veo's 1080p and 4K as upscaling.
The number that matters is cost per usable clip. If a shot takes three attempts, an 8-second Veo 3.1 Fast clip costs $2.40, not $0.80, and on Veo Standard $9.60. Settling the prompt on a cheap tier, then rendering the final on the tier you trust, keeps that number down. Our AI video generation cost guide goes further.
If you post to YouTube: every Veo frame carries Google's SynthID watermark, and YouTube's help page says it always applies its AI label to content made with Veo. YouTube says disclosure does not reduce reach or monetization, and realistic synthetic footage needs disclosing whichever model made it. See our AI video disclosure guide.
With no verifiable public test to point to, the most useful comparison is the one you run on your own shots.
There is no single winner, and without an independent test, any ranking on motion, faces and text is a guess. On what can be checked, the split is clear. Seedance 2.5 makes the longest single takes and accepts the most references, at the highest per-second price on fal. Veo 3.1 has the cheapest tier (Lite, $0.05 a second at 720p) and 4K on Standard and Fast, but stops at 8 seconds per generation. Kling 3.0 Turbo sits between them: up to 1080p, audio included, and the cheapest of the three for a single 720p generation longer than 8 seconds, if your host confirms its 15-second ceiling. Prices move quickly and Kling already lists a 4.0 API as coming soon, so re-check the linked pages before you budget.
All three are in ClipSpeed's AI Creator, alongside MiniMax H3 Max, Gemini Omni 1.1 Flash and three image models, including Nano Banana Pro for text-bearing start frames, so you can run the head-to-head in one account. Runway, Luma and Wan are not in the lineup. Generations use ClipSpeed creation credits, not the API prices above (see pricing). For footage you already have, ClipSpeed's AI clipping turns a long video or live stream into captioned vertical clips with a viral score; it also works from Claude through our MCP connector.
Which is better for short-form video: Veo, Seedance or Kling?
It depends on the shot. As of October 2026, Seedance 2.5 is the pick for continuous takes up to 30 seconds and for heavy reference control, Veo 3.1 for short premium shots, native vertical and 4K, and Kling 3.0 Turbo for high-volume clips longer than 8 seconds (up to 15, per Kling's 3.0 guide) at $0.112 a second for 720p. We found no verified benchmark that ranks them on motion, faces or on-screen text, so test those on your own prompts.
Which of the three is cheapest per second?
Veo 3.1 Lite, at $0.05 a second for 720p and $0.08 for 1080p on the Gemini API, audio included. Its clips stop at 8 seconds, though. For a single generation longer than 8 seconds, Kling 3.0 Turbo costs $0.112 a second at 720p, against about $0.473 a second for Seedance 2.5 on fal. Prices are as of October 2026 and change often.
Which model makes the longest clips in one generation?
Seedance 2.5, which generates 4 to 30 seconds in one pass. Kling 3.0 runs 3 to 15 seconds, and that range is not separately confirmed for Turbo. Veo 3.1 makes 4, 6 or 8 second clips, and its Scene Extension can chain them to "a minute or more".
Do Veo, Seedance and Kling all generate sound?
Yes. All three generate native audio with the video, and the per-second API prices in our cost table include it. Veo 3.1 produces dialogue and sound effects, though Google says natural speech in short segments is still "an area of active development". Seedance 2.5 accepts up to 10 reference audio clips per request, and Kling 3.0 launched with multilingual native audio.
Which one renders text and faces best?
We could not verify an answer. We found no independent, like-for-like test of text rendering or faces across these three versions. Add captions and titles in the edit, build any in-scene text into a start frame made with an image model, and compare faces yourself with the same prompt run three times on each model.
Is Sora 2 still worth comparing?
No. OpenAI took the Sora app offline on April 26, 2026, and third-party reports put the API shutdown on September 24, 2026. It is no longer an option for new projects.
Can I use Veo, Seedance or Kling inside ClipSpeed?
Yes. Veo 3.1, Seedance 2.5 and Kling 3.0 Turbo are all in ClipSpeed's AI Creator, side by side with MiniMax H3 Max and Gemini Omni 1.1 Flash for video and Nano Banana Pro, GPT Image 2.5 Flare and GPT Image 2.5 Sunburst for images. Pick by job: Seedance 2.5 for long single takes and heavy reference control, Veo 3.1 for short premium shots, native vertical and 4K, and Kling 3.0 Turbo for high-volume variants. Generations use ClipSpeed creation credits rather than the vendor API prices in this post (see pricing). ClipSpeed also does AI clipping, which turns long videos and livestreams into captioned vertical clips.
Published by ClipSpeedAI · AI video generation and AI clipping in one place — create with Seedance, Veo, Kling and Nano Banana, then cut it into captioned shorts.