Veo 3.1 Fast vs Sora 2
Sora 2 is the cheaper of the two on each of the 2 renders both models price. 4s at 1080p is 120 credits on Veo 3.1 Fast against 80 on Sora 2, and 8s at 1080p is 245 credits on Veo 3.1 Fast against 160 on Sora 2. So on cost alone the answer is Sora 2, and the only reason to spend the difference on Veo 3.1 Fast is a capability Sora 2 does not have. In practice, take Veo 3.1 Fast if you are standardising a workflow you expect to still be running next quarter, and Sora 2 if you need one continuous clip longer than 8 seconds.
We run Veo 3.1 Fast (Google) and Sora 2 (OpenAI) ourselves, on our own provider accounts, inside the same studio and off the same credit balance. Everything below is read out of the catalogue that prices your renders, so the numbers are the ones your account is actually charged. What you will not find here is a quality verdict: we hold no benchmark that would make one honest, so every claim on this page is a capability or a price you can check.
Veo 3.1 Fast vs Sora 2: the specs
Every cell below is read from the catalogue that our generator and our billing run on, so it is what you get and what you are charged, not what a vendor page advertises. Two rows are worth reading carefully: where the render runsis the platform we actually dispatch to, which is not always the one a model’s Replicate name implies, and how the length is set separates the models you give a duration to from the ones whose clip runs as long as the speech does.
| Spec | Veo 3.1 Fast | Sora 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Vendor | OpenAI | |
| Catalogue label | Veo 3.1 Fast | Sora 2 |
| Where the render runs | Replicate | Replicate |
| Provider model | google/veo-3.1-fast | openai/sora-2 |
| Max duration, one render | 8s | 12s |
| How the length is set | You pick it, per render | You pick it, per render |
| Priced clip lengths | 4s, 6s and 8s | 4s, 8s and 12s |
| Priced resolutions | 720p and 1080p | 1080p |
| Audio | Generated with the picture, same pass | Generated with the picture, same pass |
| Reference image required | Yes | No, a prompt is enough |
| Reference images per render | 1 | 1 |
| Cheapest render | 120 credits (4s at 720p) | 80 credits (4s at 1080p) |
| Best rate per second | 30 credits/sec (4s at 720p) | 20 credits/sec (4s at 1080p) |
| Credit range | 120 to 245 | 80 to 245 |
| On the free 3-day trial | On the free trial | Paid plans only |
| Announced end date | None announced | 24 September 2026 |
Like for like: what the same render costs
Only the clip lengths and resolutions BOTH models price appear here. Comparing a 5 second render against a 15 second one and calling the gap a price difference is the most common way these comparisons go wrong, so rows that do not line up exactly are left out.
| Render | Veo 3.1 Fast | Sora 2 | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4s at 1080p | 120 credits | 80 credits | 40 credits cheaper on Sora 2 |
| 8s at 1080p | 245 credits | 160 credits | 85 credits cheaper on Sora 2 |
Credit costs, not dollars: what a credit costs you depends on the plan, and all three plans are listed on the pricing page.
Which one to pick
Each line below traces back to a single difference in the tables above. Where a model has no measurable advantage, that is what it says.
Pick Veo 3.1 Fast if
- You are standardising a workflow you expect to still be running next quarterSora 2 carries a vendor-announced end date of 24 September 2026. Veo 3.1 Fast has none.
- You want to see it on your own product before you pay anythingVeo 3.1 Fast runs during the free 3-day trial. Sora 2 is on paid plans only, so trying it means starting a plan first.
- You want the higher resolution without paying more for itVeo 3.1 Fast charges the same credits for 720p and 1080p at any given length. Sora 2 charges more for its higher tiers.
Pick Sora 2 if
- You need one continuous clip longer than 8 secondsSora 2 runs to 12s in a single call. Veo 3.1 Fast caps at 8s, so anything longer has to be cut together from more than one render.
- You want to render from a written prompt with nothing else to handSora 2 does not require a reference image. Veo 3.1 Fast does, so you need a product shot or an avatar frame before you can render at all.
- Cost is the deciding factorSora 2 is cheaper on each of the 2 renders both models price, by 40 to 85 credits a render.
- You want the cheapest possible render to test an idea onSora 2 starts at 80 credits (4s at 1080p). The cheapest thing Veo 3.1 Fast sells is 120 credits.
- You are buying seconds of finished video rather than a specific clip lengthSora 2 is the better rate at every resolution the two share (1080p): 20 credits a second against 30 at 1080p.
What they have in common
A comparison that manufactures a difference is worse than no comparison, so here is where Veo 3.1 Fast and Sora 2 genuinely match.
- Both come back with their own audio, so neither needs a separate voice pass in the chain.
- Both price 1080p.
- Both are dispatched to Replicate from our own account, Veo 3.1 Fast as google/veo-3.1-fast and Sora 2 as openai/sora-2.
- Both spend from that one balance on every plan, so moving a campaign from Veo 3.1 Fast (from 120 credits a render) to Sora 2 (from 80) costs you nothing but the credit difference.
One credit balance, every model
Veo 3.1 Fast and Sora 2both spend from the same balance, so a plan is not a commitment to one of them. Here is what each plan’s credits buy on the two models on this page, measured in seconds of finished video.
| Plan | Credits a month | Veo 3.1 Fast | Sora 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter $49 a month, or $34 billed annually | 5,000 | 163 to 166 seconds | 245 to 250 seconds |
| Growth $99 a month, or $69 billed annually | 12,000 | 392 to 400 seconds | 588 to 600 seconds |
| Agency $199 a month, or $139 billed annually | 25,000 | 816 to 833 seconds | 1,225 to 1,250 seconds |
The low end of each range is the model’s dearest priced tier and the high end its cheapest, both from the tables above, so a month spent entirely at 1080p sits at the bottom and a month of 720p drafts near the top. Mixing models moves it in between. On a paid plan, credits are the only limit: no cap on how many renders you make and no per-model licence. Annual billing is 30% off (Starter saves $180 a year, Agency $720). Veo 3.1 Fast runs during the free 3-day trial. Sora 2 needs a paid plan.
Veo 3.1 Fast vs Sora 2: frequently asked questions
Which is cheaper, Veo 3.1 Fast or Sora 2?
Sora 2 is the cheaper of the two on each of the 2 renders both models price. 4s at 1080p is 120 credits on Veo 3.1 Fast against 80 on Sora 2, and 8s at 1080p is 245 credits on Veo 3.1 Fast against 160 on Sora 2. So on cost alone the answer is Sora 2, and the only reason to spend the difference on Veo 3.1 Fast is a capability Sora 2 does not have.
How long can a single Veo 3.1 Fast or Sora 2 clip be?
Veo 3.1 Fast caps at 8s and prices 4s, 6s and 8s. Sora 2 caps at 12s and prices 4s, 8s and 12s. Both are per-render limits, so a longer ad is several renders cut together rather than one long generation.
What resolutions do Veo 3.1 Fast and Sora 2 render at?
Veo 3.1 Fast is priced at 720p and 1080p, all at the same credit cost for a given length. Sora 2 is priced at 1080p. Those are the tiers you can actually buy, not the tiers the vendors advertise.
Do Veo 3.1 Fast and Sora 2 need a reference image?
Veo 3.1 Fast does and Sora 2 does not. Sora 2 will render from a written prompt on its own.
How do Veo 3.1 Fast and Sora 2 handle audio?
The same way. Veo 3.1 Fast generates its audio in the same pass as the picture, so there is no separate voice step to run or pay for, and Sora 2 works identically. Neither one needs a voice model bolted on afterwards.
Is Sora 2 being retired?
Yes. Sora 2 carries a vendor-announced end date of 24 September 2026, and Veo 3.1 Fast has none, which is the one asymmetry on this page that a price table will not show you. If you are picking between them for something that has to keep running past that date, Veo 3.1 Fast is the side that survives it. Veo 3.1 Fast caps at 8s and prices 4s, 6s and 8s, at 720p and 1080p, from 120 credits. We publish the date because standardising an ad workflow on an endpoint that disappears is an expensive surprise, and this comparison stops generating once it passes.
Do I need a separate plan for each model?
No. Every plan is one credit balance that spends on any model we run, so the same subscription renders a Veo 3.1 Fast test at 120 credits and a Sora 2 test at 80 and you compare them on your own footage. There is no per-model licence, and on a paid plan credits are the only thing that runs out rather than a render count.
Can I try Veo 3.1 Fast and Sora 2 on the free trial?
One of them. Veo 3.1 Fast runs during the free 3-day trial, from 120 credits a render against a 250 credit per-render ceiling. Sora 2 is not available on the trial and needs a paid plan. We would rather say so on this page than have the product refuse after you have signed up.
Where do these Veo 3.1 Fast and Sora 2 numbers come from?
From the accounts the renders actually run on. Veo 3.1 Fast is dispatched to Replicate as google/veo-3.1-fast and Sora 2 to Replicate as openai/sora-2, both ours. The 6 priced tiers listed for Veo 3.1 Fast and the 3 priced tiers for Sora 2 are read at build time from the same price table that debits your balance when a render finishes, and the capabilities come from the record the generator reads to build each request, so a reprice or a new tier rewrites this page instead of leaving a stale number on it. What you will not find is a quality or realism score for either one: we hold no benchmark that would make one honest.
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