The AI storyboard generator you pay for once.
Most AI storyboard tools bill you every month, $19 to $39 at their cheapest. StoryboardAI doesn't. Buy a credit pack from $3, use it whenever you like, and keep what you don't spend — your credits never expire.
no subscription · no auto-renewal · credits never expire
└ Bought once. Yours forever.
A subscription charges you for the months you don't board. Credits don't.
Storyboarding is bursty work. You board hard for a pitch week, then nothing for a month. Monthly billing is built for the opposite pattern — and you pay for the gap.
What AI storyboard generators cost over a year.
Each tool’s cheapest plan that allows commercial use, at today’s price, cheapest first. A credit pack is a single purchase, so its column never moves.
- Tool12 months
- StoryboardAI$15Studio Pack · one-time1,100 credits, never expire
- Katalist AI$228Essential · $19/mo200 image + 700 video credits, 1 character
- Storyboarder.ai$324Starter · $27/mo · $252 billed yearlyunlimited images, 5 projects/mo; promo price to Oct 31 (list $69)
- M Studio$324Starter · $27/mono free plan or trial
- LTX Studio$420Standard · $35/mo · $336 billed yearlyfirst commercial tier
- Boords$468Solo · $39/mo · $312 billed yearly250 AI images/mo, 1 user
| Tool | 1 month | 6 months | 12 months |
|---|---|---|---|
| StoryboardAIStudio Pack · one-time1,100 credits, never expire | $15 | $15 | $15 |
| Katalist AIEssential · $19/mo200 image + 700 video credits, 1 character | $19 | $114 | $228 |
| Storyboarder.aiStarter · $27/mounlimited images, 5 projects/mo; promo price to Oct 31 (list $69) | $27 | $162 | $324$252 billed yearly |
| M StudioStarter · $27/mono free plan or trial | $27 | $162 | $324 |
| LTX StudioStandard · $35/mofirst commercial tier | $35 | $210 | $420$336 billed yearly |
| BoordsSolo · $39/mo250 AI images/mo, 1 user | $39 | $234 | $468$312 billed yearly |
Prices from each vendor’s own pricing page, checked October 3, 2026. Yearly billing discounts noted where offered. Prices change, so check with the vendor before you decide.
How subscriptions, free tiers and credit packs compare, tool by tool: AI storyboard generator pricing, explained →
Four things a subscription can’t give you.
Nothing to cancel
No auto-renewal, no retention flow, no card on file quietly billing you next quarter.
Idle months are free
Between projects you pay nothing. Your balance is exactly where you left it.
Credits never expire
Unused credits carry forever. Nothing resets at the end of the month.
No seat minimums
Buy a $3 pack to try it, or $7 for one project. No plan tiers gating what you can produce.
When a subscription is the better deal.
Pay-once is not automatically right. Here is where it isn’t.
You generate every single month
- —A whole team works in the tool every day and needs shared seats and version history.
- —Your generation volume is high and continuous, so a refilling monthly quota works out cheaper than repeat packs.
- —You want voiceover and music bundled into the same platform.
Your work comes in bursts
- You board hard for a pitch, then not again for weeks.
- You want to try a real project without putting a card down first.
- You resent paying for months you never opened the tool.
- You want the same character locked across every panel, then animated into video.
Four prices. Each one paid a single time.
Starter Pack
$3 once
150 credits
A small first step: enough to try Final Renders on a real project after the free credits.
Director Pack
$7 once
400 credits
Enough for a full board plus revisions. The pack most people start with after the free credits.
Studio Pack
$15 once
1,100 credits
The best balance of price per credit for someone boarding regular projects.
Producer Pack
$25 once
2,100 credits
For heavier work, including video animation across a whole board.
Agency Pack
$79 once
7,500 credits
Cheapest per credit. For agencies boarding many client projects at once.
Every pack unlocks the same features — all art styles, custom character training, video animation and watermark-free exports. Full pricing →
No-subscription questions.
How much do AI storyboard generators cost?+
As of October 2026, the cheapest plan you can use commercially costs $19–39 a month: Katalist Essential $19, Storyboarder.ai Starter $27 (a promotional price until October 31), M Studio Starter $27, LTX Studio Standard $35 and Boords Solo $39. Paying for a year upfront brings some of those down to $21–28 a month. Kept for a year at the monthly price, that is $228–468. StoryboardAI has no subscription: credit packs cost $3, $7, $15, $25 or $79 once, the credits never expire, and you start with 50 free credits.
Is there an AI storyboard generator with no subscription?+
Yes — StoryboardAI is pay-once. You buy a credit pack when you need it and use the credits whenever you like. There is no monthly fee, no auto-renewal, no seat minimum and nothing to cancel. The cheapest commercial plans elsewhere cost $19–39 a month; StoryboardAI packs start at $3 as a single purchase.
How do AI storyboard pricing models work?+
Most tools sell a monthly subscription with a quota of images, credits or projects that resets every month, and a discount if you pay for a year upfront. Some also have a free tier with low limits, often for personal use only. StoryboardAI sells credit packs instead: you pay once, each render costs a set number of credits, and whatever you do not use stays in your balance. A subscription suits a team that boards every week; credit packs suit work that comes in bursts.
What is the cheapest AI storyboard generator?+
On a one-time basis, StoryboardAI starts at $3 for the Starter Pack, and you can generate a full storyboard before that on the 50 free credits you get at signup without a card. Over any period longer than a month the gap widens sharply, because a subscription keeps charging and a credit pack does not.
Do the credits expire?+
Never. Credits stay in your balance indefinitely, including through long gaps between projects. This is the practical difference from a subscription: an unused month costs you nothing instead of costing you the monthly fee.
Is there a free AI storyboard generator with no sign-up?+
You can try StoryboardAI on the home page without an account: type a prompt and get a draft frame, with three free previews a day. A full storyboard needs an account, which comes with 50 free credits and no card. Boords and Katalist offer a free trial rather than a free plan.
Do I need a credit card to try it?+
No. Creating an account gives you 50 free credits and no payment details are required. That is enough to generate a storyboard and see whether the character consistency holds up before you decide anything.
What is the catch with paying once?+
Credits are finite. A subscription refills your quota every month; a pack does not, so heavy continuous users will buy again. That is the honest trade: pay-once is cheaper for project-based work and for anyone whose usage comes in bursts, while a subscription can work out better if you generate steadily every single month.
When is a subscription actually the better choice?+
When a whole team works on boards in one tool every day. Boords in particular is built for that — shared seats and version history — and if that is the job you are paying to solve, it is worth a monthly fee. Client sign-off and presenting on their own no longer need one: a StoryboardAI share link lets a client comment on and approve every shot without an account, and the board plays full screen for a pitch, on any plan. StoryboardAI is the better value when the job is generating consistent boards, turning them into video and getting them approved.
Board your first scene free.
50 credits on signup, no credit card, and no subscription waiting on the other side of it.
Start free — 50 credits, no cardstoryboardai.studio · no credit card required
Boords, Katalist, LTX Studio, Storyboarder.ai and M Studio are trademarks of their respective owners. StoryboardAI is not affiliated with any of them; this page is an independent price comparison.