Most people choosing an ElevenLabs plan end up comparing the same two: Starter and Creator. One is cheap and unlocks the commercial license; the other has four times the credits and Professional Voice Cloning. This guide explains what each includes and gives a simple rule for picking, plus when the Free plan stops being enough.
All figures were checked on the official ElevenLabs pricing page on October 26, 2026. Prices are in USD and exclude taxes. ElevenLabs updates plans often, so confirm before you buy.
Our pick
Compare ElevenLabs plans on the official siteOpens the official site. Check current pricing before you buy.
Starter vs Creator at a glance
| Free | Starter | Creator | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price (monthly billing) | $0 | $6/month | $22/month |
| Price (annual billing, per month) | – | $5 | $18.33 |
| Credits per month | 10,000 | 30,000 | 121,000 |
| Approx. TTS minutes (ElevenLabs' estimate) | ~10 | ~30 | ~121 |
| Extra minute (listed) | – | ~$0.20 | ~$0.18 |
| Commercial license | No | Yes | Yes |
| Instant Voice Cloning | No | Yes | Yes |
| Professional Voice Cloning | No | No | Yes (1) |
| Studio projects | 3 | 20 | Everything in Starter |
| Dubbing Studio | No | Yes | Yes |
| Concurrent requests | 2 | 3 | 5 |
Source: elevenlabs.io/pricing, checked October 26, 2026. During our check the page also showed a limited-time first-month price for Starter and Creator; offers change, so look at the live page.
What Starter gets you
Starter is the cheapest plan with a commercial license, which is the main reason most creators upgrade. You also get Instant Voice Cloning (a quick clone from a short sample), 20 Studio projects, Dubbing Studio, and commercial use of Music. The limit is credits: 30,000 a month is about 30 minutes of text to speech by ElevenLabs' estimate.
Good fit if you:
- publish a few Shorts or one or two short videos a month
- use stock voices or an instant clone
- want to stay legal on monetized content without a big monthly bill
What Creator adds
Creator is about four times the credits (121,000, roughly 121 minutes) and adds Professional Voice Cloning, ElevenLabs' higher-fidelity clone trained on more of your audio, plus the option to buy additional credits when you run out.
Good fit if you:
- publish weekly long-form narration (a 10-minute script is often 8,000–9,500 credits)
- want a cloned voice that sounds like you across a whole channel
- also use dubbing, sound effects or music, which draw from the same credit pool
The credit math in one minute
Text to speech costs roughly 1 credit per character with the standard multilingual models. An English script averages around 6 characters per word including spaces, so:
- 1,000 words ≈ 6,000 credits
- A 60-second Short (~150 words) ≈ 900 credits
- A 10-minute voiceover (~1,500 words) ≈ 9,000 credits
On Starter that's about three 10-minute videos a month before retakes. On Creator it's about thirteen. Dubbing is much more expensive (2,000–10,000 credits per minute), so check our ElevenLabs pricing explained guide if you plan to dub. Our ElevenLabs cost calculator does this math for your own script length.
Paid-plan credits roll over for up to two months (up to 3x your monthly quota) while you stay subscribed; downgrading or cancelling forfeits them at cycle end. Free-plan credits do not roll over.
When to upgrade from the Free plan
The Free plan (10,000 credits, about 10 minutes) is great for auditioning voices. Upgrade when any of these is true:
- You're publishing something commercial. Monetized YouTube, client work, ads or paid courses need a paid plan's commercial license. We explain the details in ElevenLabs Free vs Paid for YouTube.
- You run out of credits mid-month. Ten minutes goes quickly once you include retakes.
- You want voice cloning. Instant Voice Cloning starts at Starter; Professional Voice Cloning at Creator.
A simple rule for choosing
- Under ~30 minutes of narration a month, no pro clone needed: Starter.
- More than ~30 minutes a month, or you want Professional Voice Cloning: Creator.
- Not sure yet: start on Starter monthly. Upgrading carries unused credits forward, so moving up later costs you nothing you've already paid for.
- Committed for the year: annual billing gives 12 months for the price of 10.
Our pick
Start with ElevenLabs and pick your planOpens the official site. Check current pricing before you buy.
Source: elevenlabs.io/pricing, checked October 26, 2026. Prices exclude taxes and can change at any time.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between ElevenLabs Starter and Creator?
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Per elevenlabs.io/pricing (checked October 26, 2026), Starter is $6/month with 30,000 credits, a commercial license, Instant Voice Cloning, 20 Studio projects and Dubbing Studio. Creator is $22/month with 121,000 credits and adds Professional Voice Cloning and the option to buy additional credits.
How many minutes do Starter and Creator include?
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ElevenLabs estimates about 30 minutes of text to speech on Starter and about 121 minutes on Creator. Extra minutes are listed at about $0.20 on Starter and about $0.18 on Creator.
When should I upgrade from the ElevenLabs Free plan?
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Upgrade as soon as you publish anything commercial (monetized YouTube, client work, ads): the Free plan has no commercial license. Also upgrade when 10,000 credits a month (about 10 minutes of speech) is not enough or you want voice cloning.
Is ElevenLabs Creator worth it over Starter?
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Creator is worth it if you need more than about 30 minutes of narration a month or want Professional Voice Cloning. If you publish a few short videos a month with stock or instantly cloned voices, Starter is enough.
Is there a discount on yearly billing?
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Yes. Annual billing is the monthly price times 10, so Starter works out to $5/month and Creator to $18.33/month.