AI Image and Video Costs: Budget for Regeneration, Not Just Subscriptions
Did you set out to make one promotional video, only to watch your credits disappear as you kept trying to get it right? Monthly subscription fees alone do not tell you what AI image and video production will cost. The options you generate and the revisions you make before finding something usable are part of production, too.
Start with your most recent project: count the candidates you generated and the outputs you actually used. Looking at subscription fees, usage, and human review and editing time together makes next month's budget easier to plan. Focusing on regeneration costs does not mean the subscription is unimportant. It means including repeat work in the calculation.
One finished asset, several attempts
Imagine creating a video for a store's weekend event. The first version gets the product wrong, the second has unnatural hand movements, and the third has the wrong composition. You end up with one finished video, but you have used several generation attempts. You have also spent time editing and reviewing them.
Distinguish an output that was generated successfully but that your company chooses not to use from a job that failed because of a service error. Adobe says credits for unsuccessful generations are typically refunded, though some refunds can take up to 24 hours. Do not assume that every result you dislike qualifies as a failed generation or a refund.
Look beyond whether you were happy with the first attempt and ask why you needed another. Was a product detail wrong? Was the initial brief unclear? Did the direction change during internal review? Each calls for a different improvement. Reducing AI generation charges may not reduce the overall production burden if review and rework increase.
When product imagery must preserve exact colors, components, or shapes, compare the output with the original material. Decide up front whether your goal is better served by generating a new representation of the product or editing actual photographs.
What changes credit consumption?
Services count generations and credits differently. Even for the same type of image or video, usage can vary with the model, resolution, video length, and feature. Check whether “one generation” produces a single image or several candidates.
Adobe's official FAQ distinguishes standard generative features from premium features. Some plans include unlimited standard generations while premium features consume credits. An “unlimited” label does not cover every model and video feature. Check your account's plan alongside the specific feature you intend to use.
In the guidance checked on October 11, 2026, Firefly's Generate Video at 24 FPS uses 100 credits per second for 1080p, 50 for 720p, and 20 for 540p. Under those conditions, generating one five-second 1080p video uses 500 credits. Four attempts use 2,000 credits. This is a usage example for that particular feature, not a price for other models or features, or an amount on your bill.
Before starting, check the current usage information for your selected model and feature. Afterward, compare it with the deductions in your account. Some workflows have costs that depend on their actual execution and cannot display a fixed estimate beforehand. In those cases, test with a small input before expanding the scope.
Separate drafting, review, and final production
Before generating anything, agree on the purpose, publishing channel, aspect ratio, required duration, and product details that must remain unchanged. If you generate finished videos repeatedly while the copy or schedule is still undecided, a later internal decision may send you back to the beginning.
For the draft stage, choose a method that lets you assess composition and mood. For example, agree on the direction using a short scene or a still image before producing the final specifications. A lower-spec result is not guaranteed to reproduce identically with the final model, however. Check the service's editing and extension features and their costs.
Agree on reviewers and criteria in advance, too. Review product appearance, people and movement, brand tone, and whether the material is suitable for publication together. Separate revision requests from several people can pull the same asset in different directions. List what should change and what should stay before requesting another attempt.
For each output, record the model, settings, prompt, and reasons for the review decision. This gives the next project useful examples of what worked and helps you understand what went wrong. Compare the cost of editing part of an existing result with generating the whole thing again. Neither approach is always cheaper or more accurate; use your actual project records to decide.
Calculate monthly volume and repeat work
Start your monthly budget with the number of finished assets you need. Separate images from videos, and separate tasks that use different models or specifications. Recording average attempts and actual usage in an initial trial gives you a basis for the next plan.
- Production volume: The number of finished images and videos needed each month
- Repeat work: The generation and editing attempts needed for each finished asset
- Usage: Credits per attempt, checked against the actual account records
- Review effort: Reasons for revisions and the time people spend reviewing and editing
For tasks with consistent usage per attempt, estimate credits as “finished assets × attempts per asset × credits per attempt.” If usage varies with the settings, calculate each task separately and add the results. Include refunds for failed jobs only after checking your account records. Do not exclude every failed attempt just to make the estimate look smaller.
To turn credit usage into a production budget, use the actual charges and terms for your subscription and any additional-credit purchases, in your account's billing currency. Staying within your included allowance does not eliminate review time. Recording subscription charges, additional purchases, and production time side by side makes it easier to decide which tasks to keep assigning to AI.
Adobe says unused generative credits do not roll over and that balances reset monthly. Check your account for its reset date and remaining balance. Rather than producing unnecessary assets to use up credits, choose a plan around your real production schedule and workload.
How many attempts and how much revision does our team need to produce one usable asset?
If you are choosing AI production tools and setting a budget, start with your monthly workload and current revision process, together with AIB. Built on an independent AI comparison platform, AIB helps companies choose and use AI that fits their work and budget. You can begin with a small trial tailored to your quality requirements and production process.
Talk to AIB about adopting and using AI
Sources and further reading
- Credits, usage by feature, failed-generation refunds, and monthly resets: Generative credits FAQ