Head-to-head · profiles checked Oct 11, 2026
Pick Runway for a multi-model workspace with a Free plan, editor plugins and a team tier; pick Kling AI for the lower entry price of $10/mo and its own video and 4K image models. Runway Standard is $15/mo with 625 credits. Kling's per-plan credits, free access and privacy terms were not confirmed.
We based this comparison on our Runway profile verified 2026-09-30 and our Kling AI profile verified 2026-09-29, both built from official vendor pages; it uses no third-party benchmarks, and no vendor paid for placement.
Runway is the better-documented choice: it lists a free plan, credit allowances for every tier, web and mobile apps, an API at $0.01 per credit, and a privacy position we can quote, including its catch that self-serve inputs and outputs may be used for training. Kling AI has the lower entry price, $10/mo against $15/mo, plus commercial use and watermark removal on every paid plan. But its profile leaves out per-plan credits, yearly prices, clip length, free access and any privacy or training terms. Pick Runway if you want one workspace, editor plugins and a team plan. Pick Kling AI if you mainly want Kling's own video and 4K image models and accept that several limits are unconfirmed. Runway also lists Kling among its third-party models, so you can test Kling output from inside Runway.
Based on our Runway profile verified 2026-09-30 and Kling AI profile verified 2026-09-29, both built from official vendor pages; Kling's pricing page could not be re-checked, and we ran no generation tests or benchmarks.
Our own captures of each vendor's public pages. Click a frame for the full-size image.
If you only want the answer, this is the table. Everything below is the evidence from the two documented profiles.
| You want to | Use | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Try AI video for free | Runway | Runway Free gives 125 one-time credits; a Kling AI free tier is not confirmed |
| Generate short clips from text or images | Either | Both list text-to-video and image-to-video generation |
| Get video with synchronized audio | Kling AI | Kling 4.0 is listed as audio-visual; Runway lists audio tools such as voice and sound effects, not audio built into video |
| Make native 4K stills | Kling AI | Kling Image 3.0 is listed with native 4K; Runway images are up to 4K only on some third-party models |
| Switch between many video and image models | Runway | Runway runs its own and third-party models, Kling among them, on one credit balance |
| Work inside Premiere Pro, After Effects or Resolve | Runway | Runway lists Adobe and DaVinci Resolve plugins on paid plans; Kling lists none |
| Deliver studio formats such as ProRes or HDR | Runway | Runway lists ProRes, EXR and HDR output on Max and Team; Kling lists none |
| Share credits and comments across a team | Runway | Runway Team pools credits and adds frame-accurate comments, for 2 to 9 seats |
| Keep a monthly bill as low as possible | Kling AI | Kling Standard is $10/mo against $15/mo for Runway Standard, though credit allowances are not comparable |
| Call a video model from your own app | Either | Runway Dev bills $0.01 per credit; Kling lists a separate developer API with pricing not captured |
| Plan | Tool | Price | Limits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Runway Free | Runway | $0 | 125 one-time credits, 5GB storage, a selection of models |
| Runway Standard | Runway | $15/mo; $12/mo billed annually | 625 credits a month, no rollover; 5 parallel generations |
| Runway Pro | Runway | $35/mo; $28/mo billed annually | 2,250 credits a month, no rollover; Runway MCP |
| Runway Max | Runway | $95/mo; $76/mo billed annually | 9,500 credits a month; unused credits roll over 1 month |
| Runway Team | Runway | $69/seat/mo; $55/seat/mo billed yearly | 6,900 credits per seat, pooled; 2 to 9 seats |
| Runway Enterprise | Runway | Custom | Custom credits; no-training commitment, SSO and SOC 2 |
| Kling AI Standard | Kling AI | $10/mo, then $8.80/mo; first month $6.99 | Credits from 660 a month across plans; per-plan amount not captured |
| Kling AI Pro | Kling AI | $37/mo, then $32.56/mo; first month $25.99 | Monthly credits; amount not captured |
| Kling AI Premier | Kling AI | $92/mo, then $80.96/mo; first month $64.99 | Monthly credits; amount not captured |
| Kling AI Ultra | Kling AI | $180/mo, then $159.99/mo; first month $127.99 | Up to 26,000 credits a month; lists Kling 4.0 Flash |
USD as published on each vendor's pricing page, checked Oct 11, 2026. Runway pricing in full · Kling AI pricing in full
| Runway | Kling AI | |
|---|---|---|
| Credits / allowance | Free 125 one-time; Standard 625 a month; Pro 2,250 a month; Max 9,500 a month | Credits from 660 to 26,000 a month across plans; exact amount per plan not captured |
| Clip length / resolution | Billed per second; caps vary by feature, such as 4 to 15 s for recipes; 480p to 4K depending on model | Max duration and resolution not confirmed; 1080p and 4K listed on paid plans |
| Seats / team | Team plan covers 2 to 9 seats with pooled credits | Business option listed; seat limits not stated |
| Feature | Runway | Kling AI |
|---|---|---|
| Text and image to video | Yes | Yes |
| Image generation | Yes | Yes (Kling Image 3.0, native 4K) |
| Audio | Voice, music and sound effects tools; voice clones on paid plans | Synchronized audio in Kling 4.0 video |
| Third-party models | Yes, including Kling, Seedance and Veo | Not stated |
| Editor plugins | Adobe and DaVinci Resolve on paid plans | Not stated |
| Watermark removal | No watermarks on Standard and above | Yes, on paid plans |
| Mobile apps | iOS and Android | Not confirmed |
| API | Yes, Runway Dev, $0.01 per credit | Yes, billed separately |
| Runway | Kling AI | |
|---|---|---|
| Training on your data | Terms allow training on inputs and outputs; no self-serve opt-out found; Enterprise states no training | Not confirmed |
| Retention | As long as necessary for the service; face scans and voiceprints no longer than three years after last interaction | Not confirmed |
| Business controls | SOC 2 Type 2, custom SSO, roles and permissions, C2PA provenance (SOC 2, ISO/IEC 27001 and SSO on Enterprise) | Not stated |
| Commercial use of outputs | No ownership claim and no restriction on commercial use, subject to the agreement | Included on paid plans |
Taken from each vendor's published policy pages at the time of our check. Policies change; the source links are at the bottom.
AI creative platform for generating and editing video, images and audio, with an API for developers.
Free stops at: 125 one-time credits (do not expire), 5GB asset storage
Free · paid from $15/mo US · checked Sep 30
AI video and image generator (Kling 4.0, Kling Image 3.0) with audio-visual output and native 4K images.
Watch out: Prices are shown only inside the app; generation is metered by monthly credits.
From ≈$8.80–$10/mo US · checked Oct 11
Kling AI has the lower entry price: Standard is $10/mo (then $8.80/mo, first month $6.99), against $15/mo for Runway Standard ($12/mo billed annually). Credit allowances are not comparable yet, because Runway lists 625 credits on Standard while Kling's per-plan credits were not captured.
Runway does: Free is $0 with 125 one-time credits, which do not expire and do not renew monthly. We could not confirm a Kling AI free tier on its pricing page.
Kling AI lists watermark removal on all paid plans. Runway lists no watermarks from Standard upward; its pricing page does not say whether the Free plan adds one.
Runway's profile lists Kling among the third-party models available under its single credit system. Which Kling versions it offers and what they cost in credits are not in our profile, so check Runway's current model list before relying on it.
Runway's Terms of Use say inputs and outputs may be used to train and improve its models, and we found no self-serve opt-out; Enterprise pages state it does not train on your data. For Kling AI, training use and retention were not confirmed, so we cannot compare the two.
Kling AI lists commercial use on its paid plans. Runway's terms say it does not claim ownership of inputs or outputs and does not restrict commercial use of outputs, subject to the agreement.
Both do. Runway Dev prices the API at $0.01 per credit with per-model rates. Kling AI lists a separate developer API, and its pricing was not captured in our profile.
Only official vendor pages. No third-party benchmarks, forum threads or press were used. How we review.
compare>
