Video generation AI — what to use for each task
What to use when
Creating short social videos from text
When you want a 5–10-second video from a text description alone
Start with a fast, low-cost version to try several options, then recreate your favorites with a higher-tier model to keep costs down.
Officially verified
Animating a single photo
When you want to use a product photo or portrait as the opening frame and add motion
The starting image's resolution affects output quality. Use a high-resolution original.
Officially verified
Keeping the same character across scenes
When a character or face needs to stay consistent in every scene
Models that accept multiple reference images have an advantage.
Officially verified
Creating video and sound together
When you want a video with sound effects and background audio in one generation
Enabling audio generation often uses more credits.
Officially verified
In public benchmarks
The top 5 models on LMArena's user-voted leaderboard. These are a reference separate from our own tests.
Text-to-video Published 2026-09-22
| Rank | Model | Developer | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | #1gemini-omni-1.1-flash | 1516 | |
| 2 | #2gemini-omni-flash | 1513 | |
| 3 | #3Bflux-3-video | Black Forest Labs | 1493 |
| 4 | #4xgrok-imagine-video-1.5-agent | xAI | 1492 |
| 5 | #5dreamina-seedance-2.0-720p | ByteDance | 1479 |
Image-to-video Published 2026-09-22
| Rank | Model | Developer | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | #1minimax-h3 | MiniMax | 1495 |
| 2 | #2gemini-omni-1.1-flash | 1488 | |
| 3 | #3wan3.0 | Alibaba | 1480 |
| 4 | #4dreamina-seedance-2.5-720p | ByteDance | 1477 |
| 5 | #5dreamina-seedance-2.0-720p | ByteDance | 1475 |
Official Video
Hands-on Tests
We gave 4 image models the same prompt to test whether they render Korean (Hangul) characters accurately. The resulting images, scores, and credits used are published as recorded in Hands-on Test Reports. We have not directly tested video or audio models; this page provides guidance based on official sources.
View the image model test for Korean (Hangul) charactersVideo models available for the editor to test
| Model | Overview (summary of official description) | Resolution & audio |
|---|---|---|
| Seedance 2.5 ByteDance | Text-to-video, generation with multiple references, video editing and extension | 480p · 720p · 1080p / Audio generation |
| Seedance 2.0 ByteDance | Keeps characters consistent using image, video, and audio references; can generate audio too | 480p · 720p · 1080p · 4k / Audio generation |
| Seedance 2.0 Mini ByteDance | A faster, lower-cost version of Seedance 2.0 | 480p · 720p / Audio generation |
| Kling 3.0 Kling | Multiple scenes, synchronized audio, and motion transfer | Audio generation |
| Kling 3.0 Turbo Kling | Fast text-to-video and animation from a single starting image | 720p · 1080p |
| Veo 3.1 Google | Focused on realistic, cinematic visuals | - |
| Veo 3.1 Lite Google | For creating multiple videos quickly at a lower cost | Audio generation |
| Wan 3.0 Alibaba Wan | Text-to-video, first and last frame controls, and audio generation | 480p · 720p · 1080p / Audio generation |
| Grok Video 1.5 xAI | Video generation using text, a starting image, and audio references | 480p · 720p · 1080p |
| Hailuo MiniMax | Natural physical motion and facial expressions | - |
Based on the Higgsfield model list · accessed 2026-10-04