Alternatives
Best Runway Alternatives for Agencies (2026)
By Red Kite Search Agency Created Updated 8 min read
Summary
Runway is a solid choice, but it does not fit every agency. Leonardo.Ai: AI image and video generation with solo, team and API plans. HeyGen: AI avatar video generation with translation in 175+ languages and a shared team workspace on Business. Canva: Easy online design for social, presentations and brand content. Prices and ratings below were checked in October 2026.
What are the best Runway alternatives for agencies in 2026?
Runway is strong for creative video, but no team features were listed and projects are capped.
We compared each option with Runway on price, scope and public ratings.
The three alternatives below are an image and video platform, an avatar tool and a design suite.
The shortlist is Leonardo.Ai, HeyGen, Canva. The table puts them next to Runway.
| Tool | Editorial score | Review-site ratings | Pricing | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runway | 4.3 / 5 | No review-site rating found | Free $0 with 125 one-time credits. Standard $15 a month, or $12 billed yearly, for 625 credits and 3 projects. Pro $35 monthly or $28 yearly for 2,250 credits and 5 projects. Max $95 monthly or $76 yearly for 9,500 credits and 10 projects. | Freelancers to creative studios |
| Leonardo.Ai | 4.3 / 5 | G2 4.5 | Solo plans, monthly billing: Free $0 with 150 fast tokens a day, Essential $12, Premium $30 and Ultimate $60 a month. Team plans per seat: Starter $72 a month (3 seats, $24 each) and Growth $144 (3 seats, $48 each). A pay-as-you-go API and custom Enterprise plans exist. A yearly toggle advertises up to 20% off. | Freelancers to creative teams |
| HeyGen | 4.6 / 5 | G2 4.8 | Free $0 with 3 watermarked videos a month. Creator $29 a month, or $24 billed yearly, for 600 credits. Pro $49 a month for 1,000 credits and up. Business $149 a month for 1,500 credits with a shared workspace and extra seats at $20 a month. Enterprise is custom. | Freelancers to enterprise teams |
| Canva | 4.5 / 5 | G2 4.7 | Free plan. Pro $144 a year for one person and Business $250 a year per person, with yearly billing selected (save from 16%); Enterprise is quoted. | Individuals to enterprises |
Why do agencies look for Runway alternatives?
Agencies usually look beyond Runway for team plans, image models, or avatar video.
Others want a visible review score.
A fair test is to produce one real client asset in each option. Track setup time, credits spent, and whether the result was good enough to send to a client without rework. Real use shows differences that feature lists hide.
Cost behaves differently in each tool. Some charge per month with credits or minutes, some per seat, and some by project. Count what you will really use over twelve months, including regenerated clips and extra seats, before you compare headline prices.
Think about the client side. Clients judge your agency by the finished video or image, so review the output as a client would, and check what rights come with it.
Finally, plan the move. Export your assets, brand kits and scripts, rebuild templates one at a time, and keep the old tool running for a short period so nothing a client relies on disappears during the switch.
Common limitations of Runway
- No team or seat features were listed on the pricing page.
- Projects are capped at 3 on Standard, 5 on Pro and 10 on Max.
- Free credits are one-time, not monthly.
- Commercial-use terms and a mobile app were not stated on the pricing page.
Is Leonardo.Ai a good Runway alternative for agencies?
Leonardo.Ai adds image models and per-seat Team plans.
Leonardo.Ai generates images and video from many models, with token-based plans. Solo plans run Free, Essential, Premium and Ultimate. Team plans are priced per seat with shared tokens and private team generations, and an API has pay-as-you-go and custom plans.
Who it suits: Design and creative teams that generate images, concepts and short video for client work.
Leonardo.Ai pros
- Premium costs $30 a month for 25,000 tokens and private generations.
- Team plans start at $72 a month for 3 seats at $24 a seat with 75,000 shared tokens.
- Paid subscribers get full ownership of generated work, according to the pricing page.
- The vendor states SOC 2 Type I and Type II accreditation.
Leonardo.Ai cons
- Free creations are public and use a non-exclusive licence, not full ownership.
- Yearly discounts of up to 20% were not captured.
- The Team price period was read from a page with the monthly toggle selected, so confirm it at checkout.
- G2 shows only 33 reviews, and a mobile app was not stated.
Is HeyGen a good Runway alternative for agencies?
HeyGen makes presenter video with avatars and has a 4.8 G2 score.
HeyGen creates videos from scripts using AI avatars and voices, and translates videos into many languages. It sells Free, Creator, Pro and Business plans plus a custom Enterprise plan, with credits as the usage limit and a shared workspace from Business.
Who it suits: Agencies that produce explainer, localisation and social video for clients without filming.
HeyGen pros
- Creator costs $29 a month, or $24 billed yearly, with 600 credits and no HeyGen branding.
- Business costs $149 a month with a shared team workspace and extra members at $20 a seat.
- G2 shows 4.8 from 1,975 reviews.
- SOC 2 Type II, GDPR, CCPA, HIPAA and the EU-US Data Privacy Framework are stated.
HeyGen cons
- Free is watermarked and limited to 3 videos a month of up to one minute.
- Credits are consumed by each generation, and G2 reviewers note regenerating a video costs more credits.
- Multi-workspace control is Enterprise only, so client separation below that is by folders and members.
- Pro annual price and commercial-use terms were not stated on the pricing page.
Is Canva a good Runway alternative for agencies?
Canva is a design suite with AI features and a large G2 base.
Canva is an online design platform with a drag-and-drop editor, templates, a Brand Kit, AI tools, social scheduling and print. It has a free plan and Pro, Business and Enterprise plans, with AI usage allowances that vary by plan.
Who it suits: Agencies that produce social graphics, presentations and brand templates quickly and want clients to edit approved designs.
Canva pros
- A free plan with 1.6M+ templates and 5 GB of storage.
- Pro costs $144 a year for one person, with 5 Brand Kits and social scheduling.
- Business adds 100 Brand Kits, approvals and 500 GB of storage for $250 a year per person.
- Business billing is pay as you grow: you pay only for members who accept invitations.
Canva cons
- Prices are shown per year; monthly prices were not displayed with yearly billing selected.
- Free allows only 20 AI uses a month, and Pro up to 200 Premium AI uses or 20 Ultra uses.
- SSO and SCIM are Enterprise only, with a dedicated success manager at 150 or more seats.
- GDPR, mobile app and a client-specific sharing workflow were not stated.
What is the quick verdict on each Runway alternative?
If you only have a minute, this table gives our verdict on each alternative to Runway, based on the research above.
| Tool | Verdict | Editorial score |
|---|---|---|
| Leonardo.Ai | A strong, low-priced creative AI platform with per-seat Team plans, private generations and SOC 2 evidence. The G2 base is small (33 reviews), tokens drive cost, and the Team price period needs confirming at checkout. | 4.3 / 5 |
| HeyGen | The best-reviewed AI avatar video tool we checked, with strong security evidence and a shared workspace from Business. Credits are the real limit, there are no separate client workspaces below Enterprise, and each regeneration spends credits. | 4.6 / 5 |
| Canva | The easiest design tool for non-designers, with a free plan, large template and stock libraries, Brand Kits and approvals on Business, and the highest G2 score and base in this group. Plans are priced per person per year, AI use is capped by plan, and SSO and SCIM are Enterprise only. | 4.5 / 5 |
How much do Runway and its alternatives cost?
Runway Standard costs $12 a month billed yearly. Leonardo Premium costs $30 a month, HeyGen Creator costs $24 a month billed yearly, and Canva Pro costs $144 a year.
| Tool | Pricing summary |
|---|---|
| Runway | Free $0 with 125 one-time credits. Standard $15 a month, or $12 billed yearly, for 625 credits and 3 projects. Pro $35 monthly or $28 yearly for 2,250 credits and 5 projects. Max $95 monthly or $76 yearly for 9,500 credits and 10 projects. |
| Leonardo.Ai | Solo plans, monthly billing: Free $0 with 150 fast tokens a day, Essential $12, Premium $30 and Ultimate $60 a month. Team plans per seat: Starter $72 a month (3 seats, $24 each) and Growth $144 (3 seats, $48 each). A pay-as-you-go API and custom Enterprise plans exist. A yearly toggle advertises up to 20% off. |
| HeyGen | Free $0 with 3 watermarked videos a month. Creator $29 a month, or $24 billed yearly, for 600 credits. Pro $49 a month for 1,000 credits and up. Business $149 a month for 1,500 credits with a shared workspace and extra seats at $20 a month. Enterprise is custom. |
| Canva | Free plan. Pro $144 a year for one person and Business $250 a year per person, with yearly billing selected (save from 16%); Enterprise is quoted. |
What do reviewers say about Runway and its alternatives?
Review-site scores are a useful signal for how happy teams are after the first few months. They are snapshots from October 2026, and review counts differ widely between tools.
| Tool | Source | Rating | Number of reviews |
|---|---|---|---|
| Leonardo.Ai | G2 | 4.5 / 5 | 33 |
| HeyGen | G2 | 4.8 / 5 | 1,975 |
| Canva | G2 | 4.7 / 5 | 7,757 |
Which Runway alternative suits which kind of agency?
The right pick depends mostly on team size, how clients interact with the tool, and whether you need money data. This table maps common situations to a recommendation.
| Agency situation | Best pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Images and teams | Leonardo | Per-seat plans. |
| Presenter video | HeyGen | Avatars. |
| Design | Canva | Templates. |
How hard is it to switch away from Runway?
Download your generated clips and project files from Runway before you leave.
Note the prompts and settings that worked.
Keep Runway until the new tool has reproduced your styles.
Before you leave Runway
- List active projects.
- Download assets.
- Compare cost per clip.
- Save prompts.
- Test output.
How do you choose the right Runway alternative?
Decide whether you need clips, images or presenter video.
Compare cost per finished asset.
A quick decision guide
- Choose Leonardo for images and teams.
- Choose HeyGen for presenter video.
- Choose Canva for design.
- Stay with Runway for cinematic clips.
- Test each on one brief.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the best Runway alternative?
- Leonardo for images and teams, HeyGen for presenter video, and Canva for design.
- Why do agencies look beyond Runway?
- No listed team features and project caps.
- Which is cheapest?
- Leonardo Essential is among the lowest.
- Does Runway have a free plan?
- Yes.
- Which has the highest G2 score?
- HeyGen.
Sources
Prices, plan limits, and ratings were gathered in October 2026 from:
- Runway pricing page
- Leonardo pricing page
- HeyGen pricing page
- Canva pricing page