COMPARISON · Last verified: September 2026

Hailuo AI vs Kling AI

Two AI video generators, compared on their current models, verified pricing and fit.

Hailuo AI vs Kling AI: official demos

Each vendor's own video. The Hailuo one shows its earlier Hailuo 02 model rather than H3; the Kling one covers the Kling 3.0 rollout.

Hailuo AI (Hailuo 02 model)

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Kling AI (Kling 3.0)

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Official videos via YouTube (MiniMax Design, Hailuo's @Hailuoai_MiniMax channel; Kling AI), embedded for reference. ToolChase does not host or claim these videos.

What is Hailuo AI?

Hailuo AI is the web and mobile app where MiniMax offers its video models (hailuoai.video, plus an Android app on Google Play); its terms are with Nanonoble Pte. Ltd., a Singapore company. The flagship is MiniMax H3, also called Hailuo 3, which MiniMax launched on July 31, 2026 and released as open weights on August 3. H3 reads text, images, video and audio as one context and generates clips of up to 15 seconds at 24 fps with native stereo sound, at 768p or 2K. Omni Reference accepts up to 9 images, 3 video clips and 3 audio clips (12 files in total) to guide a character, a performance or camera move, or a voice, and H3 can edit existing video: replace, add or remove people and objects, change lighting and effects, or revise dialogue and voice. The earlier Hailuo 2.3 models remain for 6 and 10 second clips, paid plans add Google's Veo 3.1, and image models such as Nano Banana Pro and Seedream sit in the same app. Developers can call H3, and H3 Max, a faster 480p and 768p variant post-trained by fal.ai, through MiniMax's pay-as-you-go API.

What is Kling AI?

Kling AI is Kuaishou Technology's AI video and image platform, on the web, iOS, Android and a desktop app for macOS and Windows; its terms are with Kling AI Pte. Ltd., which stores user data on servers in Singapore. The current family is Kling 3.0, rolled out in early 2026: VIDEO 3.0 (upgraded from VIDEO 2.6), VIDEO 3.0 Omni for reference-driven generation and editing, and Kling 3.0 Turbo, added on June 17, 2026, which Kuaishou says cuts production costs. Kling 3.0 generates 3 to 15 second clips, with optional native audio and lip sync in Chinese, English, Japanese, Korean and Spanish. Multi-Shot plans shot changes inside one clip, and Custom Multi-Shot lets you set the number of shots and their durations. Since April 23, 2026 the 3.0 series has had a native 4K mode, at 30 credits per second. Around the models sit Motion Control 3.0, element references, Kling Image 3.0 models and a per-second API with Kling MCP and a Kling CLI for AI agents.

Key differences at a glance

Both sell credit-based video generation with native audio and reference tools, so the differences sit in the details:

• -- Flagship model: Hailuo runs MiniMax H3, one model for generation, references and editing; Kling runs the Kling 3.0 family (VIDEO 3.0, 3.0 Omni and 3.0 Turbo).
• -- Resolution: H3 outputs 768p or 2K; Kling's 3.0 series adds a native 4K mode for subscribers.
• -- Free access: Hailuo gives new accounts one-time trial credits; Kling has a $0 Basic plan with free credits you can claim monthly.
• -- Entry price: Hailuo Standard lists at $14.99/mo for 1,000 credits; Kling Standard lists at $10/mo for 660 credits.
• -- Other models: Hailuo's paid plans add third-party models such as Google's Veo 3.1; Kling pairs its video models with its own Image 3.0 models.
• -- Developers: MiniMax publishes the H3 weights and a pay-as-you-go API, plus an official MCP server and the MiniMax CLI (mmx) for AI agents; Kling sells per-second API access and offers Kling MCP and a CLI.
• -- Score: Both rate 4.6/5 in our reviews, a tie.

Feature-by-feature comparison

Here is how Hailuo AI and Kling AI compare on the capabilities that affect daily use:

Pricing comparison

Hailuo AI's free tier is a one-time batch of trial credits for Hailuo's own models, with 0 monthly credits. Paid plans are per-account subscriptions, billed monthly or yearly at a discount. At monthly list prices, Standard is $14.99 for 1,000 credits, Pro $54.99 for 4,500 and Master $119.99, with Max on top adding unlimited Hailuo 1.0 and 2.x generations. Hailuo runs limited-time discounts below list, and its plan FAQ says the price returns to list after the promotion. Pay-as-you-go credits stay valid for a year.

What Hailuo Standard buys: 1,000 credits a month, which its plan card puts at about 84 seconds of H3 at 2K (12 credits per second) or about 143 seconds at 768p. A 6-second Hailuo 2.3 clip costs 25 credits at 768p or 80 at 1080p. Paid downloads are watermark-free, and Hailuo says any video you can download without a watermark is yours to use commercially.

Kling AI has a $0 Basic plan; its plan FAQ says non-subscribers can claim free credits once a month at login, valid for 31 days, while daily bonus credits go to subscribers. Free output is not for commercial use, and 1080p, 4K, watermark removal and video extension need a subscription. Per-account list prices are Standard $10/month (660 credits), Pro $37 (3,000), Premier $92 (8,000) and Ultra $180 (26,000). Billed monthly, the first month is a one-time discount (Standard $6.99) and renewals run below list (Standard $8.80, Pro $32.56, Premier $80.96, Ultra $159.99). Yearly billing is 34% off list, so Standard is $79.20 a year ($6.60/month). Extra credits cost $1 per 66 and last two years.

What Kling Standard buys: 660 credits a month. Kling's VIDEO 3.0 guide charges 12 credits per second for 1080p with native audio and 6 for 720p without, so Standard covers about 55 seconds of 1080p video with sound, 110 seconds of silent 720p, or 22 seconds of native 4K. Subscribers also get fast-track generation, watermark removal, commercial use and video extension.

A worked example: a solo creator who needs about 80 seconds of finished video with sound a month, before retries. Hailuo Standard covers roughly 84 seconds of H3 at 2K for $14.99 at list. On Kling, 80 seconds of 1080p with native audio takes 960 credits, so Standard needs one $5 top-up of 330 credits: $15 at list, $11.99 in the first month and $13.80 on renewal. Both work out to about 18 cents per second at list; Hailuo's credits buy 2K, Kling's buy 1080p, and Kling's 4K mode costs 2.5 times as many credits per second.

Bottom Line

Hailuo AI and Kling AI tie at 4.6/5 in our reviews, so pick on workflow. Hailuo's MiniMax H3 suits reference-heavy work: it blends image, video and audio references, edits footage by instruction and puts native stereo sound on every 2K clip, with Veo 3.1 as an extra. Kling suits creators who need 4K, multi-shot dialogue or a free plan, and its Standard plan starts lower at $10 a month list. At list prices both entry plans cost about 18 cents per second of flagship video with sound.

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