Synthesia alternative for people making ads, not courses

What is Synthesia?

Synthesia is an enterprise AI video platform for business communication: training, onboarding, HR, compliance and sales enablement. You write a script, choose an avatar and it produces a presenter-led video, usually for an internal audience.

Published pricing, checked September 2026: Basic is free, with 10 video minutes a month and 9 stock avatars, but no downloads. Starter is $29 a month, or $18 a month billed yearly, with 10 video minutes a month, 125+ stock avatars, 3 personal avatars and downloads. Creator is $89 a month, or $64 a month billed yearly, with 30 video minutes a month, 180+ stock avatars, 5 personal avatars and API access. Enterprise is custom, with unlimited minutes, 240+ stock avatars, SSO and SCORM.

Synthesia runs in a web browser. Its help center says the video editor is not available on mobile, and the mobile browser experience is for self-serve users. Apps named Synthesia on the App Store come from other developers.

Why people look for a Synthesia alternative

• You want to make ads on your phone. Synthesia's editor needs a desktop or laptop.
• Minutes run out when you test ads. Starter gives 10 video minutes a month. Ad creative takes several tries, and every try uses minutes.
• The free plan cannot download. Basic lets you try the editor, but you need a paid plan to download a video (checked September 2026).
• It is shaped for courses. SCORM export, SSO and seats are great for a training team. One person making an Instagram ad does not need them.
• Your accounts still need posts. Synthesia's pricing page does not list planning or publishing posts to your social accounts (checked September 2026).

Vidpop vs Synthesia

The shape of the output is the first difference. Synthesia sells minutes because a course is long. Vidpop makes one shape: a 9:16 vertical ad of up to 30 seconds, hook first and call to action at the end. You give it a screen recording of your app or up to four product photos, and it writes the script, has an AI presenter deliver it, and adds a voiceover, burned-in captions, licensed background music and an end card. It takes about nine minutes.

The second difference is where you work. Vidpop is an iPhone app, so you can make and post an ad without opening a laptop. If you want a change, the edit chat swaps the music, voice, presenter, captions or script of the finished video.

Vidpop also runs your social posting

Ads are one piece of marketing. Your profiles also need regular posts. Autopilot learns your business from your website, your App Store page or a six-question interview. Then it plans and designs 3 carousels a week, 5 to 7 slides each, and writes a caption for every post.

Post for Me publishes them to Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn on schedule, and your videos can go to TikTok. You can check each post first with "Ask me first", or let Autopilot post on its own. Both plans include this, and Pro adds one UGC video ad a week plus one redo. See pricing.

Who Vidpop fits

Vidpop fits you if the video you need is an ad: vertical, short, and made by one person who is also the founder and the marketer. It suits you if you want the finished video without opening a laptop, and if the ad should show your app's real screens or your product's real photos.

It fits especially well if your ad has to be in Arabic with captions that read correctly, or if you want your Instagram and Facebook to keep posting every week while you run the business.

Frequently asked questions

Can Synthesia make Instagram or TikTok ads?

Synthesia is built for business communication and training, and its plans are measured in video minutes. Vidpop is built for social: it makes 9:16 video ads up to 30 seconds long on Pro, and it plans and posts carousels to Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn every week.

Is there a Synthesia mobile app?

Synthesia's help center says the video editor is not available on mobile. There is a mobile browser experience for self-serve users and no app download. Apps named Synthesia on the App Store come from other developers. Vidpop is an iPhone app for iOS 17 or later.

How much does Synthesia cost?

Per Synthesia's pricing page in September 2026: a free Basic plan without downloads, Starter at $29 a month or $18 a month billed yearly, Creator at $89 a month or $64 a month billed yearly, and a custom Enterprise plan. Vidpop Starter is $8.99 a week or $29.99 a month with a 3-day free trial, and Pro with UGC video is $16.99 a week or $59.99 a month on the US App Store.

Can Vidpop post to my social accounts?

Yes. Post for Me publishes to Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn and TikTok, right away or on a schedule. Instagram needs a Business or Creator account and Facebook needs a Page, and LinkedIn posts to a company Page you manage. TikTok takes video posts, so carousels go to Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn.

Does Vidpop make Arabic video ads?

Yes. The script, voiceover and captions can all be in Arabic, with 7 Arabic voices in Saudi, Kuwaiti, Omani and Egyptian accents and 4 presenters who speak Arabic. Captions join up and read right to left. Autopilot carousels are in English for now.

Can Vidpop make training or explainer videos?

Vidpop is made for marketing. Its videos are vertical ads up to 30 seconds long, and its carousels are social posts. Long training videos are not what it is for.

Do I need a computer to use Vidpop?

No. Vidpop is an iPhone app, and everything from making the video to posting it happens on the phone. There is no iPad-native app, no Android app and no web version.