The facts, with their sources

What it does

Done-for-you service: NoYou run the software yourself: self-serve plans, a studio you edit in, and an API you call; enterprise buyers get onboarding and a CSM rather than a team producing the videos for them.HeyGen empowers 100,000+ businesses to create, localize, scale, and collaborate on video, no camera or crew needed.heygen.com/pricing

How much it does unattended

Runs autonomously: YesVideo Agent takes one prompt and completes scripting, avatar choice, scene composition and rendering without a human step, with a fire-and-forget mode alongside a multi-turn chat mode.One-shot video generation from a prompt — agent handles scripting, avatar selection, scene composition, and rendering. Supports generate…developers.heygen.com/mcp/overview
Agent permissions: PartlyAn external agent reaches HeyGen only after a one-time OAuth approval, and custom agents are additionally restricted by domain whitelisting, but no per-tool permission scoping is documented.For security, HeyGen Remote MCP uses domain whitelisting. If your agent runs on a domain that isn't already whitelisted, you'll need to request…developers.heygen.com/mcp/overview

Which models it runs on

Claude: YesClaude is supported as a client rather than as a selectable generation model: HeyGen ships an official connector that makes video generation a native Claude tool.Add HeyGen as a native tool in Claude. Generate avatar videos from any conversation or agentic workflow.heygen.com/integrations
GPT: YesChatGPT is supported the same way, as a calling surface through an OpenAI plugin and MCP connector, not as a model you select inside HeyGen.Generate a video script in ChatGPT and instantly turn it into a finished HeyGen video.heygen.com/integrations
Model choice: PartlyYou choose between named engines rather than being locked to one: Avatar III, IV or V for video and HeyGen Voice, Starfish or ElevenLabs for speech, all within HeyGen's own catalogue.Creates an avatar video: a HeyGen avatar or an image speaks your script or audio with lip-sync. Choose Avatar III, IV or V with engine (Avatar IV by…developers.heygen.com/mcp/overview

Where you use it

In your editor: PartlyThere is no HeyGen editor extension; the IDE surface is the MCP connector installed into Cursor from its marketplace, which calls the hosted service.Cursor (available in the Cursor marketplace)developers.heygen.com/mcp/overview
On the command line: YesA first-party command line tool creates and downloads videos, documented beside the API as the terminal route into the same endpoints.heygen video create, heygen video download. Scriptable from any shell or CI job.developers.heygen.com/docs/quick-start
In your pipeline: PartlyThe vendor states the CLI is scriptable in a CI job and webhooks exist for completion, but nothing acts on a pull request or runs as a CI app itself.heygen video create, heygen video download. Scriptable from any shell or CI job.developers.heygen.com/docs/quick-start
In a browser: YesThe primary surface is a hosted browser studio where scripts, gestures, tone and scenes are edited, with team commenting and brand assets in the same place.The text-based editor makes AI video generation as easy as writing a document. Control tone, delivery, gestures, and emotion in one seamless platform…heygen.com

Whose machine it runs on

Self-hosted: NoEverything runs on HeyGen's own AWS estate in the United States; no bring-your-own-infrastructure or on-premise deployment is offered on any tier.HeyGen's services are hosted on Amazon Web Services (AWS) in the United States.heygen.com/security

What it costs to run

How it meters: YesBilling is a monthly subscription carrying a credit allowance spent across every feature, with team seats charged separately on top at a fixed per-seat rate.Paid plans include a monthly credit allocation you spend across all features. For solo creators, the Creator plan costs $29/month (or $24/month if…heygen.com/pricing
Free tier: YesA standing $0 plan lets anyone generate three one-minute videos a month with stock avatars and one custom avatar, no sales call and no card.You can use HeyGen for free and generate up to 3 videos a month, no credit card required.heygen.com/pricing
API access: YesA documented public REST API with key authentication drives video, avatar, voice, translation and template endpoints from your own stack.Base URL https://api.heygen.com · Auth header X-Api-Key: <your-key>developers.heygen.com/docs/quick-start
MCP server: YesA hosted remote MCP server exposes dozens of tools over OAuth, so another agent can create, poll, translate and delete videos without an API key.Connect any MCP-compatible AI agent to HeyGen video generation in a few clicks. No API key, no local server — add the connector, authenticate with…developers.heygen.com/mcp/overview

Buying it for a team

A company can buy it: YesBusiness and Enterprise tiers are sold to organisations with centralised billing, invoicing and team management rather than only to an individual card holder.Additional Seats are $20/seat. Secure, scalable video creation for teams and businessesheygen.com/pricing
Seat model: YesSeats are priced per member per month on top of the Business plan fee; the plan itself is the floor and no published ceiling applies.Add team members for $20/seat/monthheygen.com/pricing
Pooled budget: YesCredits belong to the workspace rather than the individual, and OAuth or MCP calls draw the standard price from that shared workspace balance.a connected integration (OAuth, including MCP) the method's standard price from workspace creditsdevelopers.heygen.com/mcp/overview
Admin controls: PartlyCentral role and access management is an Enterprise capability, alongside SCIM provisioning and enforced MFA; lower tiers get workspace membership controls only.Centrally manage roles and accessheygen.com/pricing
Audit log: PartlyAdministrative and user activity is logged and retained, but the vendor frames the resulting visibility as something enterprise customers get rather than every plan.HeyGen maintains audit logs of user activity and administrative actions, giving enterprise customers visibility into how their accounts and data are…heygen.com/security
Single sign-on: PartlySAML single sign-on starts at the Business plan and is not available to Free, Creator or Pro buyers; Enterprise adds SCIM provisioning and enforced MFA.SAML/ SSOheygen.com/pricing

What happens to your code

Opt out of training: YesEnterprise data is excluded from model training by default and everyone else can opt out, though non-enterprise opt-out is by emailing privacy rather than a setting.Enterprise customers' data is excluded from AI model training by default. Non-enterprise customers may opt out at any time by contactingheygen.com/security
Data residency: PartlyThere is one jurisdiction only — the United States on AWS — with EU transfers covered by the Data Privacy Framework and standard contractual clauses rather than local storage.All HeyGen customer data is stored in the United States on AWS infrastructure.heygen.com/security
Getting out: PartlyData return on termination is promised in a commonly used format but governed by contract terms rather than a self-serve export, and credit rollover is a paid-plan feature.Upon termination of a customer's contract, HeyGen is committed to assisting in the return of all customer data in a commonly used format, as detailed…heygen.com/security
Certifications: YesThe vendor names SOC 2 Type II certification plus GDPR, CCPA, EU-US Data Privacy Framework and EU AI Act compliance, with reports available through a security portal.HeyGen meets rigorous compliance requirements for global standards, including SOC 2 Type II, GDPR, CCPA, the EU-US Data Privacy Framework (DPF), and…heygen.com/security

Plans and pricing

Price and terms

Free plan: YesYes
The terms in full
Free plan at $0/mo: 3 videos per month, videos up to 1 minute, 500+ stock video avatars, 1 custom video avatar, 30+ languages, standard processing, watermark not removable, no 1080p/4K export. No credit card required.