Image to Video AI Free: Where the First Charge Appears
The picture path, rung by rung
| Rung | What happens | What it costs |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Sign up | The Ad Video tab needs an account | Free. A new account starts with 50 credits |
| 2. Add photos | Up to four photos of one subject; your browser converts them | Free |
| 3. Reading | The composer says Reading your image…, then shows what the AI understood: a category and a name you can correct | Free. A photo that cannot be made out is refused and costs nothing |
| 4. Choose | Ad vibe, length, format, quality, and one line about what it is | Free to browse. The quality menu shows the all-in price beside each option |
| 5a. One-click generate | Everything runs on its own, about ten minutes | A single all-in price on the button. It is a cap; each stage charges its actual price |
| 5b. Expert mode | The AI prepares the product shot and writes the ad script, then you run the steps | A smaller price to start, then each step on its own button |
| 6. Fix a shot, Rebuild final cut | Change one shot, or re-join the shots with a new end card | Paid per action, the shot by its seconds and the join by 1 credit a second |
| 7. Download, share | The finished file, the link | Free. A free account’s video carries the small AI badge |
Rung 3 is the last one that costs nothing, and it is more useful than it sounds: you find out whether the photos can be used, what category the AI thinks your subject is and whether it noticed people to remove, all before a credit moves. If the reading has misunderstood the subject, Pick different images and try again. Which photos work for an ad.
The free allowances an ad does not use
New accounts get a handful of free things, and it is easy to assume they apply to the photo route too. They do not, and the reasons are specific.
| Free thing | On a script project | On an ad |
|---|---|---|
| Welcome credits | Yes | Yes. They are ordinary credits |
| 15 free setup images | Yes, once the script has been read and paid for | No. An ad pays no script-read fee, and the free images can only be spent on a project whose script has been read and paid for |
| Storyboard for episode 1 of your first drama | Yes | No. Ads are never the free first project |
| One free cover batch | Yes, on the first drama | No, same conditions as the free images |
| One free 5 second preview | Yes, once per account, in a parsed episode | No. Ad projects are left out of the preview offer |
| Reading the photos | Not applicable | Free, always |
The same table is the reason “free image to video” can mean two different things. For an ad, free means the reading. For a story, free goes much further: the cast, a storyboard and a preview shot. What you get for free lists every allowance and its conditions.
What lowers the price once you do pay
Only some of the choices on the composer move the price, and knowing which ones lets you start cheap without wasting a try.
| Choice | Changes the price? | Cheapest way to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Length (15, 30 or 60 seconds) | Yes | 15 seconds is one segment and one idea. 30 is two segments, 60 is four |
| Quality (480P, 720P or 1080P) | Yes, and the menu shows each price | 480P is for drafts and small screens; most people ship 720P |
| Ad vibe | No | Change it freely. It sets the look and the colours of the end card |
| Format (landscape or portrait) | No | Pick the shape you will actually post in |
| The one line | No | Write it. It saves a misread subject |
| Mode | Both are capped or itemised | Expert mode asks for less up front, then charges each step on its button |
Three further things keep the bill down. The all-in price is a cap, so an ad that needs fewer images than the bound simply costs less. A stage that fails is refunded on the usual rules and the retry is quoted on what is left. And a shot you do not like can be fixed on its own, which is far cheaper than a new ad. The one price is a cap.
The price is on the button, and your balance is in the top bar. If the balance does not cover the all-in price, the ad does not start; it asks you to top up. Whether the credits a new account starts with cover a short ad at the lowest quality is something only the button can tell you, because prices are set by the site and can change.
If you wanted your own picture in a free story instead
The photo-to-ad door is the only place a free account can upload a picture. Putting your own picture on a character, place or prop card is a paid-plan feature, and so is uploading to the asset library. The free route into a story is words: describe the character, let the site draw a setup picture, and spend the 15 free setup images that are shared across your account.
| You want | Free route | Where it stops |
|---|---|---|
| To see what the AI makes of your product photo | Add it and read it | Stops before the ad is made |
| Your own face on a character | Describe the face in words | A photo on the card needs a paid plan |
| A moving version of one still | Not offered | There is no one-photo animate tool |
| A free taste of video | The 5 second preview in a parsed script project | Once per account, lowest tier |
| A story with a cast and a storyboard | Paste a page, pay the small reading fee, then the cast and first storyboard are free | Video is charged from the first second |
Free AI text to video covers the story ladder in full, and free sheets are per account explains the pool of 15.
What free output looks like
A free account’s video carries a small AI badge in the corner, burned into the picture, and a line of AI-generated-content information in the file. Downloading does not add or remove it, and a link shared through the site always shows it. Taking the badge off is a paid-membership setting, and it does not remove any duty you have to say a video is AI-made where you publish. Why shared videos carry the badge.
There is no free video allowance beyond the one preview. If you need to judge the look of a person before paying for an ad, the cheapest honest test is a script project with a short text: after a small reading fee, the cast (within the free pool) and the preview shot are free.
FAQ
Is there a free image to video AI?
It is free up to the reading of your photos. Making the ad costs credits, and a new account starts with 50 of them. Video is charged from the first second in every kind of project.
Can I make an ad from a photo for free?
Not entirely. Reading the photos is free, and the price of the ad is shown on the button before you press it. Whether the sign-up credits cover it depends on the length and quality you pick.
Is reading my photos charged?
No. The reading is free and nothing is charged until you choose one-click or expert mode. A photo that cannot be made out is refused at no cost.
Do I get the free setup images for an ad?
No. The 15 free setup images belong to script projects that have been read and paid for. Ads and remakes never draw from that pool.
Is there a free preview for an ad?
No. The free 5 second preview is offered in a parsed script project, not in an ad project.
Does a free account put a watermark on the video?
A small AI badge is burned into the corner of every video on a free account. Removing it is a paid-membership setting.
Can I animate one photo for free?
There is no tool that animates a single still, free or paid. A photo can become a reference for a character, place or prop, or one of up to four photos in an ad.
How do I see the price before I pay?
Every button shows its price. The quality menu in the ad composer lists the all-in price of each option, and the balance is in the top bar.
Read your photos for free
Add up to four, see what the AI makes of them, and decide after.
Updated November 2, 2026